NIJ FY18 Research and Evaluation on the Administration of Justice | NIJ 2018 14001

Opportunity Information: Apply for NIJ 2018 14001

The NIJ FY18 Research and Evaluation on the Administration of Justice grant (Funding Opportunity Number: NIJ 2018 14001) is a discretionary funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice (NIJ). It is designed to support investigator-initiated, interdisciplinary research and evaluation projects that examine how justice is administered in the United States, with an emphasis on producing findings that can inform policy and practice across law enforcement, courts, and related justice system functions. NIJ signals that it is looking for rigorous research and evaluation work, including projects that test interventions, assess implementation, measure outcomes, or strengthen the evidence base around key decision points in the justice process.

The opportunity highlights three priority research areas. The first is eyewitness evidence, which focuses on the reliability and use of eyewitness identification and testimony. Projects in this area generally fit questions about how identifications are collected, how memory and perception affect accuracy, what procedures reduce error, and how agencies or courts can improve the integrity of eyewitness-related evidence. The second priority area is front-end intervention strategies, meaning efforts that occur early in the justice process to prevent deeper system involvement or improve early-stage outcomes. NIJ specifically lists diversion and deflection approaches, pretrial notification protocols and strategies to increase court appearance compliance, and justice system-led strategies targeting young-adult offenders. This area is oriented toward evaluating real-world programs and practices that aim to reduce unnecessary detention, improve case processing outcomes, minimize harm, and better align justice responses with risk and need.

The third priority area is enhancing investigation and prosecution, where NIJ calls out body-worn cameras and jury nullification as topics of interest. Research on body-worn cameras can include how they influence investigative practices, evidence quality, accountability, officer and community behavior, case outcomes, and prosecution decisions, as well as practical issues like policy design, implementation fidelity, data management, and privacy. Jury nullification research aligns with understanding how juries make decisions, when and why jurors might disregard legal instructions, and what implications that has for prosecution strategy, trial procedures, and perceptions of legitimacy. NIJ also makes room for strong proposals that address administration of justice issues outside these stated priorities, as long as the work is clearly grounded in the U.S. justice context and is compelling in terms of significance and methodological strength.

The award mechanism is a grant, and the program is categorized under Law, Justice and Legal Services as well as Science and Technology and other Research and Development, reflecting NIJ's role as the research arm of DOJ. The CFDA number associated with the program is 16.560. Eligible applicants are broad and include state, county, and city or township governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education in those nonprofit categories); individuals; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. This range of eligibility is consistent with NIJ's interest in drawing proposals from academic researchers, research organizations, practitioners, and cross-sector partnerships.

Key administrative details include a creation date of March 16, 2018, and an original closing date of May 14, 2018. NIJ anticipated making about 10 awards under this solicitation, with an award ceiling of $3,000,000. In practical terms, the ceiling indicates the upper limit NIJ expected for any single award under this program, while the expected number of awards provides a rough sense of competitiveness and scale. Overall, the solicitation is aimed at building actionable knowledge about justice system practices and decisions, especially around evidence reliability, early-stage interventions, and mechanisms that shape investigative and prosecutorial outcomes.

• The Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice in the law, justice and legal services, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NIJ FY18 Research and Evaluation on the Administration of Justice" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.560.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 16, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 14, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $3,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 10 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for NIJ 2018 14001

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