The Deaths in Custody Reporting Program (DCRP) is a data collection conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The DCRP began in 2000 under the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-297). BJS quarterly collects data on individual death records for all persons incarcerated in state prison or local jail facilities, and any person who is in the process of arrest.

Jails report the death of any inmate in their custody, even if the inmate was being held for another jurisdiction, such as the state department of corrections, another state or county, or the federal government. Jail deaths include the death of any inmate sent outside the jail facility for medical, mental health or substance abuse treatment services, or for work-release programs. Deaths that occur while an inmate is in transit to or from the jail facility are included. Deaths of jail inmates on temporary furloughs or who escaped from the jail facility are excluded. BJS collects quarterly death records and yearend collections of population and admissions data from all jail jurisdictions nationwide. In each year (from 2000 through 2007), at least 99% of the more than 3,000 jail jurisdictions nationwide responded to the collection.

State prisoner death counts include the death of any inmate held in a private prison facility under contract to the state's department of corrections. State prison death counts include any inmate held in a private prison facility under contract to the state's department of corrections. Deaths of inmates in private facilities are counted in the state that had jurisdiction over the inmate, not the state where the private facility is located. State prisons report the death of any inmate sent outside the prison facility for treatment services or for work-release programs. Deaths that occur while a prisoner is in transit to or from the prison are included. Deaths of prisoners on temporary furloughs or who escaped from the prison facility are excluded. Executions are excluded because capital punishment cases are tracked under the National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) program. In each year (from 2001 through 2007), all 50 state departments of corrections responded to the collection. The District of Columbia submitted prison population data until 2001, then it transferred all custody operations to the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP).

Federal prisons are not covered by P.L. 106-297. These tables do not include mortality data on federal prisoners. When the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2000 was passed, only two states (California and Texas) collected information on all types of arrest-related deaths. For the remaining 48 states and the District of Columbia, the new DCRP collection was the first attempt to perform a comprehensive count of all arrest-related deaths. BJS worked with state officials to determine which agency would collect arrest-related death reports. A state criminal justice commission, commonly administered by the governor's office, was the most common data reporting contact (22 states), followed by the state attorney general and state police department (8 states each). In five states, the department of corrections took a lead role in compiling records. In over 30 states, the reporting office also served as a state criminal justice Statistical Analysis Center (SAC).

Prior to the expiration of the Death in Custody Act of 2000, BJS collected death records quarterly. The quarterly schedule was a requirement of the Act. Given that respondents are asked to base death records on an official death evaluation and given that these evaluations typically take months to complete, BJS gave respondents the option to report on an annual basis. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) assumed responsibility for the juvenile portion of the collection in 2006. BJS began receiving information on deaths occurring under the jurisdiction of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in 2008. In 2008, BJS began collecting more specific information on the manner of death for suicides and intoxication deaths. In 2009, BJS changed and added several items on the data collection forms after receiving feedback from the field. These changes include clarifying language of existing items and adding new items. For jails, new items include asking about whether the deceased ever had an overnight stay in a mental health facility since admission; asking about whether the death was incidental to use of force by facility staff; and specifying the type of intoxication that led to the death. For prisons, BJS dropped the item asking for legal status because nearly all prisoners are convicted at the time of death. For prisons, new items include asking about whether the deceased ever had an overnight stay in a mental health facility since admission; asking about whether the death was incidental to use of force by staff; specifying the type of intoxication that led to the death; and asking about whether a death due to accident, suicide, or homicide took place while the inmate was housed on death row. For arrest-related deaths, new items include asking about whether the deceased ever had an overnight stay in a mental health facility since admission; asking about whether the death was incidental to use of force by staff; specifying the type of intoxication that led to the death; and expanding on the behaviors and actions of the deceased during the fatal event. In addition, the arrest-related death form asks about the behavior and actions of officially booked decedents and arresting officers prior to booking. In prior years, BJS asked about the post-booking actions and behaviors of formally booked decedents and about the pre-booking actions and behaviors of decedents who died prior to formal booking. Jails and prisons have had very stable response rates, but the arrest-related deaths collection has had some changes in reporting over the years.