Criminal Justice Research Guide

(Also see the Library's Government Information on the Internet subject guide.)

Criminal justice is the study of crime, criminal behavior and the justice system.It encompasses law enforcement, criminal courts, prisons and crime victims. It is an interdisciplinary field that touches on sociology, psychology, politics and law.

Who produces information used in criminal justice:

• Federal, State and Local Governments
• Not-for-Profit Organizations
• Academic Publications
• News and Public Opinion

Public Access Catalog

• Provides access to the Library's holdings
• Searchable by author, title, subject, keyword
• Searches can be limited by year of publication, material type
• Reference Books--located on the 2nd floor 
• Circulating Books--located on the 1st floor

In order to get an overview of the subject and determine the best way to approach your topic, it is useful to look at an encyclopedia.  The library has many more sources than those listed here, so browse the shelves around HV 6001-HV 9960 to locate other relevant sources as well as looking at the Online Public Access Catalog.

The Encyclopedia of High-Tech Crime and Crime-Fighting--Covers crimes such as identity theft, cell phone fraud, airport security, chemical and biological weapons, as well as computer viruses and software piracy. 
REF HV6773.N48 2004

The Encyclopedia of American Prisons--Examines the entire history of prisons in America and explores key social issues such as jail overcrowding and the cost of maintaining prison programs. REF HV9471.S54 2003

The Encyclopedia of American Crime--2,000 A-to-Z entries covering significant crimes, criminals, and law enforcement figures and techniques. REF HV6789.S54 2001

Online Databases

Criminal Justice Periodical Index

• Provides full-text coverage of 65 criminal justice journals plus citations and/or abstracts for over 220 journal titles. This database provides research support for students interested in careers in criminal justice, law enforcement, corrections, drug enforcement, rehabilitation, family law, and industrial security.  Database coverage is 1981 to the present.

Other Databases:

• Use General Subject Databases such as SIRS, Academic Search Premier, and Expanded Academic ASAP to search for topics in law enforcement and criminal justice.
• Remember to also check newspaper sources, such as Chicago Tribune, NY Times, Newspaper Source, and Proquest Newspapers.

On the Web

Federal Agencies

Bureau of Justice Statistics--The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), a component of the Office of Justice Programs in the U.S. Department of Justice, is the United States' primary source for criminal justice statistics. Provides a wide range of online statistics.

National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS)-- A federally funded resource offering justice and substance abuse information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide. This is an excellent resource for crime statistics and researched publications.  The NCJRS' Abstracts Database contains summaries of more than 180,000 criminal justice publications. To search the NCJRS collection of 7,000+ full-text publications, go to the NCJRS Virtual Library. The search covers the NCJRS Web site and the Web sites of the agencies of the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

The NCJRS also provides international criminal justice research resources.

United States Department of Justice--Homepage of the Department of Justice, the legal arm of the US government under the direction of the Attorney General. Provides news on the DOJ, current case filings, contact information, and links to the various offices and bureaus within the DOJ. 

United States Department of Homeland Security--Leverages resources within federal, state and local governments into a single department whose primary mission is to protect the United States.

Federal Bureau of Prisons--Provides statistics, news, and documents concerning prisons in the U.S.

Jail Statistics--Corrections facts at a glance, number of inmates, data on the relationship between jail populations and capacities. Capital punishment statistics, probation and parole information.

Federal Bureau of Investigation --(FBI) site will put you in touch with federal law enforcement issues. It is also a great source for crime statistics,

The Uniform Crime Report--A compilation of uniform crime statistics for the nation compiled by the FBI from 17,000 law enforcement agencies across the U.S. Although the report is available in print back to the 1930's the website only has online access back to 1995.

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention(OJJDP)--Publishes comprehensive annual reports about juvenile offending, victimization of juveniles, and the justice system's response to these problems.  Compiles the latest available statistics from a variety of sources and contains easy-to-read tables, graphs and maps.

Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics --The 30th edition of the Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics brings together data from more than 100 sources about all aspects of criminal justice in the United States, which are presented in over 600 tables.  The Welcome Page gives information about the Sourcebook.  The Contents Page gives the table of contents that will link you to the information contained in the Sourcebook.

Legal Information Institute, Cornell University--One of the most extensive and trusted legal sources on the Web. Provides access to nearly all Supreme Court decisions since 1990 and access to nearly 600 of the Court's most important decisions before 1990. Includes access to the US Code, the Code of Federal Regulations, state laws, state supreme courts. 

Supreme Court of the United States--Home page of the Supreme Court. Contains information on cases in front of the Court, rules of the Court, news concerning the Court, and recent Court opinions.

FindLaw Constitutional Law Center--An educational resource site dedicated to the United States Constitution and the U.S. Supreme Court. This is a great place to look for legal information that has not been published in print. 

Yahoo: Criminal Justice--Yahoo's listing of Web sites pertaining to criminal justice.

State and Local Agencies

Illinois State Police --A resource for Illinois law enforcement issues, Illinois uniform crime statistics and state police bulletins.

Illinois Courts--News and opinions of the Illinois Supreme Court and appellate courts, dockets, citizen self-help and judicial links.

Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority--Collects, maintains and updates a variety of criminal justice data.  CJ Data Net Statistics can be used to research broad issues facing the criminal justice system or to examine crime problems in a specific Illinois city, county or regional area.

Illinois Department of Corrections--News, reports and statistics, career opportunities.

Cook County Sheriff Training Institute--Criminal justice education and training partnership between Moraine Valley Community College and the Cook County Sheriff Training Institute.  Includes information about training programs and resources as well as links to state and local agencies.

Cook County Sheriff, Dupage County Sheriff's Office, Kane County Sheriff's Office, Will County Sheriff's Office, Lake County Sheriff's Office, McHenry County Sheriff's Office--Chicago metropolitan area and "collar counties" sheriff's departments

The Blue Line--a comprehensive source of law enforcement career information and public safety job listings