The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Transparency Analytics (DATA) Lab has published three data stories covering shooting clearance and arrest rates and recent changes to our monthly Incidents-Arrests-Charges graphics. In 2021, Philadelphia has seen record-breaking gun violence, but a large majority of the shootings have gone unsolved. To date, police have made arrests in only 17% of the year’s shootings. If police don’t make accurate arrests in homicides and non-fatal shootings, the DAO can’t file charges or seek justice for the victims of these most serious offenses. The first data story — Clearing Up Clearance Rates — seeks to clarify the difference between clearance rates and arrest rates.
The second data story — Shooting Arrest Rates: What Can Be Done? — brings transparency to law enforcement actions around the shooting crisis.
The third data story — Explaining Recent Changes to Our Incidents-Arrests-Charges Graphics — explains recent changes in DAO reporting on gun violence.
These data stories are timely given end-of-year reporting, and we hope that they will help ensure accuracy and transparency in reporting to the public. The DAO also recently made a technological upgrade to the DATA Dashboard, which now provides even more accurate information about serious and violent crime and the criminal justice system in Philadelphia.
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The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office is the largest prosecutor’s office in Pennsylvania, and one of the largest in the nation. It serves the more than 1.5 million residents of the City and County of Philadelphia, employing 600 lawyers, detectives, and support staff. The District Attorney’s Office is responsible for prosecution of approximately 40,000 criminal cases annually.