About Us

Research and Planning Unit

The Research and Planning Unit provides research and secretariat services to the Criminal Justice Commission and County Administration. The Research and Planning Unit is responsible for supporting the work of the Law Enforcement Planning , Court System Task Force, Corrections Task Force, and the Probation Advisory Board. In addition, many of the responsibilities of the Research and Planning Unit are outlined in the 1988 County Ordinance (Ordinance No. 88-16) which created the Criminal Justice Commission. To view sections of the 1988 County Ordinance that focus on the Commission’s mandate to undertake research and evaluation, please see objectives and authorities.

While members of the Criminal Justice Commission and its Task Forces and Committees bring a wealth of knowledge to the Commission’s work, research services further inform the Commission’s recommended policies and programs. Research and Planning typically provides information by conducting primary research (e.g., data collection and surveys) or secondary research (e.g., literature reviews, data analysis of existing sources, etc.) to inform policy and program discussions. It is important to note that research is one component of the policy and program development process, which may examine efficacy and cost effectiveness of programs or identify new and innovative ways to address a problem within the criminal justice system. The research services also include on-going monitoring of statistics that help the Commission and its Task Forces and Committees examine the efficacy, cost effectiveness, and timeliness of the criminal justice system. For example, research compiles monthly data on daily average counts in the county jail for the Corrections Task Force; which is responsible for monitoring jail overcrowding.

Research Ideas & Questions

The Research and Planning Unit is always looking for information and data that may be of interest to the Palm Beach County Board of Commissioners, the members of the Criminal Justice Commission, our staff, as well as the general public. We appreciate receiving research ideas and questions that focus on monitoring and evaluating Palm Beach County’s Criminal Justice System and programs funded in whole or in part by the Criminal Justice Commission. We know that we can benefit from the experience of others; therefore, we are interested in highlighting best practices and successful programs from other parts of the country and from around the world. We are also open to the possibility of undertaking joint research projects with both government and non-government sectors. If you have any questions, we encourage you to contact us for further assistance.

The purpose of this section of the Criminal Justice Commission’s web site is to highlight and disseminate the work of the Research and Planning Unit.