District Attorney Dashboard
Introducing Our Dashboard
Welcome to the Alameda County DA’s Office’s Data Dashboard. Our office receives thousands of incidents to review for prosecution each year. This is the first public view into that consequential work. One of the core values of the DA’s Office is transparency. The work of a prosecutor’s office is the most unseen and often most powerful decision in the life course of a criminal case and the real lives impacted. Making data available to the public is an essential step to enhance public trust and a greater understanding of procedural justice.
The District Attorney Data Dashboard is the first of its kind for Alameda County. This first phase release of the dashboard provides detailed information on case referrals, cases filed and indicators. Future phases of the dashboard will include demographics, crime categories and additional Prosecutor Performance Indicators.
Key Dates in California's Criminal Justice System
When exploring the Alameda County DA Dashboard, there are important law and policy changes and events to account for. When interpreting this dashboard, consider whether these changes could explain a sudden change in the data.
California Ballot Initiative Proposition 47
The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, Proposition 47 passes, recategorizing 5 types of theft and fraud crimes to misdemeanors that previously could have been charged as either felonies or misdemeanors.
Mental Health Diversion
California Legislature passes mental health diversion for most felony or misdemeanor cases, resulting in qualifying defendants with mental health issues that played a significant role in the offense receiving treatment and ultimately having charges dismissed by the judge.
COVID-19 Pandemic
Due to the conditions of the pandemic, courts implemented modified pretrial release to reduce jail populations, permitted remote hearings, and extended case timelines as lockdown and other pandemic controlling measures challenged courts' ability to resolve cases in a timely fashion. During the COVID-19 pandemic, jail populations and conviction rates fell. For a list of all local rules adopted to address COVID-19 click here.
Judicial Diversion
California Legislature authorizes judges to offer misdemeanor defendants, with or without mental health or addiction issues, judicial diversion. Upon completion of court-imposed requirements, the judge shall dismiss the case. Applies to most misdemeanors that are not DUI or domestic violence.
Racial Justice Act
The first phase of the Racial Justice Act (RJA) is implemented, barring the state from seeking or securing a criminal conviction or imposing a sentence on the basis of race, ethnicity, or national origin. Violations can be made by a judge, attorney, law enforcement officer, expert witness, or juror in the case. The law allows individuals to challenge their criminal case if ther is evidence of racial bias in their case, or a statistical disparities in how people of different races are charged, convicted, or sentenced of crimes. If a court finds a violation, they are required to impose a remedy specific to the violation.
Racial Justice for All Act
The Racial Justice for All Act requiring the retroactive implementation of RJA goes into effect. The retroactive implementation of the law occurs in stages for eligible cases and sentences prior to 2021, starting January 1, 2023 and with the final phase set for January 1, 2026.
California Ballot Initiative Proposition 36
Proposition 36 passes during the 2024 general election. Reversing some of the changes implemented by Proposition 47, Proposition 36 allows for felony charges and increases sentences for certain drug and theft crimes. Changes in law effective December 18, 2024.
Race Blind Charging
In 2022, the California Legislature passed AB 2778, creating Penal Code 741, commonly known as Race Blind Charging. Effective January 2025, all California District Attorney's Offices must develop a process for evaluating charging, including how to redact identifying information, how to document charging decisions, when a crime is excluded from this process, and complete the requirements to collect and make available for research anonymous data.
This dashboard was created through a partnership of the Alameda County District Attorney's Office, the Prosecutorial Performance Indicators team, and the CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance through the Prosecution Collaborative Initiative. The goal of the dashboard is to ensure that the general public has access to data about the review and prosecution of adult criminal cases in Alameda County. This project has been supported by the staff of the Alameda County District Attorney's Office who have provided the data that make the dashboard possible, and have collaborated on its design, content, and functionality. The involvement of the Prosecution Collaborative has been supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Microsoft Justice Reform Initiative.
