Justice Department Launches National Law Enforcement Accountability Database

As directed by Executive Order 14074, Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices to Enhance Public Trust and Public Safety, the Justice Department today launched the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database (NLEAD), a centralized repository of official records documenting instances of misconduct as well as commendations and awards for federal law enforcement officers. The NLEAD is accessible only to authorized users to help determine suitability and eligibility of candidates for law enforcement positions. As required by the Executive Order, on an annual basis, the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) will publish a public report containing aggregated and anonymized data to maintain transparency and accountability.

“No law enforcement agency — including the Justice Department — can effectively do its work without the trust of the public,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This database will give our law enforcement agencies an important new tool for vetting and hiring officers and agents that will help strengthen our efforts to build and retain that trust.”

“This database will make policing safer and more effective by strengthening trust between law enforcement officers and the communities they serve,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “The Justice Department and law enforcement agencies throughout the federal government are committed to ensuring that the database strengthens hiring practices while protecting the safety, due process rights, and privacy of law enforcement officers.”

“The NLEAD will help ensure that federal hiring officials have the most accurate and important information when making hiring decisions,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “This database, along with our work to expand access to this information at the state and local level, is a significant step forward in increasing transparency and accountability, and in enhancing police-community trust.”

The NLEAD connects all federal law enforcement agencies under one accountability infrastructure. With the NLEAD, law enforcement agency hiring personnel will have more accurate and complete information about misconduct in a job candidate’s past. Agencies can then make more informed hiring decisions, which enhances both accountability and public safety. 

As of today, the database includes records for the Department’s law enforcement officers. Pursuant to the Executive Order, by Feb. 16, 2024, other executive branch federal law enforcement agencies will report data for their law enforcement officers to the database. The database will include records of instances of misconduct for current and former federal law enforcement officers that occurred over the past seven years, and the Department will conduct regular periodic compliance reviews to assess data quality. In order to support similar law enforcement officer accountability efforts at the state and local level, the Department has also partnered with the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST). IADLEST’s National Decertification Index (NDI) is a national registry of law enforcement de-certification and revocation actions relating to officer misconduct that is currently used by all 50 states and D.C. The Department is working with IADLEST to expand the NDI to include additional categories of information required by the Executive Order. The Department is also awarding discretionary grants in a manner that supports and promotes the adoption of the Executive Order’s policies by state and local agencies, including language outlining priority consideration for applicants who use the NDI as part of their hiring and vetting of new officers. 

As part of the Justice Department’s ongoing work to improve public safety and advance accountability in law enforcement, the Department has contributed to more than 90 Executive Order steps, including issuing 18 reports and guidance documents, which can be found on the Office of Legal Policy’s webpage. More information can be found on the NLEAD website.