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pdfNational Violent Death Reporting System
Coding Manual
Version 2
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
2004
Produced under contract by the:
National Violent Injury Statistics System (NVISS)
Harvard Injury Control Research Center
Harvard School of Public Health
677 Huntington Avenue, 3rd Floor
Boston, MA 02115
(617) 432-1143
The National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) Coding Manual was developed
through an extensive consultation process. It is published by the National Center for Injury
Prevention and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Julie L Gerberding, M.D., M.P.H., Director
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
Ileana Arias, Ph.D., Acting Director
Division of Violence Prevention
W. Rodney Hammond, Ph.D., Director
Etiology and Surveillance Branch
James A. Mercy, Ph.D., Acting Chief
Use of trade names is for identification purposes only and does not constitute endorsement by
the Department of Health and Human Services. This document and subsequent revisions can
be found at the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control web site:
http://www.cdc.gov/injury
Suggested citation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Violent Death
Reporting System (NVDRS) Coding Manual [Online].(2003). National Center for Injury
Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (producer). Available
from: URL: www.cdc.gov/injury
National Violent Death Reporting System Coding Manual Team
The creation of the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) coding manual has
been a collaborative process involving Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
National Violent Injury Statistics System (NVISS) and InDyne. CDC has taken the lead on
developing the case definition, table structure, the document-based architecture of the system,
and several new data elements. NVISS supplied most of the data elements and definitions
based on an earlier pilot for the NVDRS. The NVISS Child Fatality Module Team developed
the Child Fatality data elements that are being piloted in NVDRS. InDyne, Inc., produced the
software for the system.
CDC:
InDyne:
NVISS:
Child Fatality
Module Team:
Lee Annest
Marvin DeBerry
Leroy Frazier
Jim Mercy
Leonard Paulozzi
Kanika Shaw
Malinda Steenkamp
Sanjeev Thomas
Carrie Driessen
Tim Pruss
Xianding Tao
Andrew Younkman
Deborah Azrael
Catherine Barber
David Hemenway
Jenny Hochstadt
Mallory O’Brien
Jeaneen Riely
Theresa M. Covington
Deborah Radisch
Robert Schackner
Patricia Schnitzer
Romi Webster
Steve Wirtz
Acknowledgments
The NVDRS data elements are drawn in part from the National Violent Injury Statistics
System (NVISS) a pilot for the system. NVISS was developed in 1999 with the financial
support of six private foundations. Without the vision and financial support of these
foundations, the early work to develop the national system would not have been possible.
These foundations include the Atlantic Philanthropies, the Center on Crime, Communities
and Culture of the Open Society Institute, the Joyce Foundation, the John D. and Catherine
T. MacArthur Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and the Annie E.
Casey Foundation. Members of the NVISS Workgroup who collaboratively developed and
tested the NVISS Version 2.0 and 2.1 data elements include:
Katherine Anderson, Maine Medical Center
Nelson Arboleda, University of Miami
Deborah Azrael, Harvard School of Public Health
Catherine Barber, Harvard School of Public Health
David Clark, Maine Medical Center
Lori Corteville, Michigan Public Health Institute
Anna Davis, University of Utah
Maura Dunfey, University of Pennsylvania
Deborah Friedman, Allegheny General Hospital
Erica Gelven, CT Children's Medical Center
Jenny Hochstadt, Harvard School of Public Health
Carolyn Klassen, San Francisco Department of
Public Health
Evelyn Kuhn, Medical College of Wisconsin
Jim Mercy, CDC
Dennis Mitchell, Consultant
Carrie Nie, Medical College of Wisconsin
Mallory O’Brien, Harvard School of
Public Health
Lenora Olson, University of Utah
Constance Parramore, Emory University
Donna Reed, University of Kentucky
Jeaneen Riely, University of Pennsylvania
Judy Schaechter, University of Miami
Abby Schwartz, Michigan Public Health
Institute
Melissa Sitter, University of Pennsylvania
Mary Vassar, UCSF-School of Medicine
Maria Elena Villar, University of Miami
Sabrina Walsh, University of Kentucky
Brian Wiersema, University of Maryland
Margaret Woolgrove, Michigan Public
Health Institute
Table of Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1
Definitions. ............................................................................................................ 5
Entering a Case Data Structure ............................................................................ 13
Data Elements Key .............................................................................................. 20
Incident Variables ..................................................................................... Section 1
Document Variables .................................................................................. Section 2
Person’s Identity ....................................................................................... Section 3
Death Certificate, Main Elements, Multiple Conditions .......................... Section 4
Abstractor (Type of Death) ....................................................................... Section 5
Coroner/Medical Examiner, Main Elements ............................................ Section 6
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances ................................................. Section 7
Homicide Circumstances .......................................................................... Section 8
Unintentional Circumstances .................................................................... Section 9
Police Report, Main Elements, Circumstances ...................................... Section 10
Supplementary Homicide Report ........................................................... Section 11
Hospital Information............................................................................... Section 12
Child Fatality Review, Main Elements, Household and ......................... Section 13
Committee Information, Circumstances
Victim Suspect Relationship ................................................................... Section 14
Abstractor (Weapon Type) ...................................................................... Section 15
Weapon ................................................................................................... Section 16
ATF Trace Information ........................................................................... Section 17
Person to Weapon Relationship .............................................................. Section 18
Validation Rules ...................................................................................... Section 19
Index
Introduction
Purpose of the Coding Manual
The NVDRS Coding Manual is a reference document to be used by state health departments for defining cases, entering data, and checking data once it is entered. It contains
information about individual variables and the way the data are structured. The Coding
Manual is intended to be used in conjunction with the materials provided at the coding
training and the NVDRS Software Manual. It should be kept at hand when doing data
entry or checking, both in the office and in the field. This manual is stored in the software
as an Adobe Acrobat.pdf file and will be available at www.cdc.gov/ncipc/profiles/nvdrs/
publications.htm. Other material related to setting up a state violent death reporting
system can be found in the NVDRS Implementation Manual.
Background on NVDRS
Violence against others or oneself is a major public health problem in the United States,
claiming 50,000 lives each year. It is a particular problem for the young: homicide was
the second and suicide was the third leading cause of death for Americans 1 to 34 years
of age in 2001.
Given the importance of the problem, it is noteworthy that no national surveillance
system for violence exists in the United States. In contrast, the federal government has
supported extensive data collection efforts for the past three decades to record information about other leading causes of death. For example, the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration has recorded the critical details of fatal motor vehicle crashes,
which result in about 40,000 deaths among U.S. residents annually. That system, called
the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), has existed since 1975. The result of that
investment has been a better understanding of the risk factors for motor vehicle deaths —
information that has helped to target safety improvements that have led to a significant
decline in motor vehicle fatalities since the 1970s.
Public health leaders and others are aware of the long-standing gap in information about
violence, and have been pressing the need for a national surveillance system for violent
deaths since 1989. In 1999, the Institute of Medicine recommended that CDC develop
a fatal intentional injury surveillance system modeled after FARS. That same year,
six private foundations pooled their funds to demonstrate that data collection about
violent deaths was feasible and useful. They supported the National Violent Injury
Statistics System (NVISS). NVISS has been administered by the Harvard Injury
Control Research Center and includes 12 participating universities, health departments,
and medical centers.
In 2000, dozens of medical associations, suicide prevention groups, child protection
advocates, and family violence prevention organizations joined a coalition whose purpose
was to secure federal funding to extend NVISS-like surveillance nationwide. Congress
approved $1.5 million in funding to start the new system, called the National Violent
Death Reporting System (NVDRS), in fiscal year 2002. The first cooperative agreements
1
were established with six state health departments in September 2002, including:
Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, South Carolina and Virginia.
Additional funding to add more states was made available in fiscal year 2003
and another seven states were funded (Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina,
Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin). Further funding became available in 2004,
and California, Kentucky, New Mexico, and Utah received funding to begin data
collection in 2005.
NVDRS Methodology
NVDRS will provide a census of violent deaths that occur within the United States
to both residents and nonresidents. The system will define a death due to violence
as “a death resulting from the intentional use of physical force or power against
oneself, another person, or against a group or community,” which is the World Health
Organization (WHO) definition of violence. The case definition includes suicides,
homicides, deaths from legal intervention (a subtype of homicide), deaths from undetermined intent, and unintentional firearm fatalities. Deaths of undetermined intent are
included because this category includes some deaths with some evidence of intent, but
without enough to definitively classify as purposeful. Unintentional firearm injury
deaths, otherwise known as accidental, are included because the category includes some
deaths that are in fact intentional or undetermined. Legal executions, which are considered part of deaths from legal intervention, are excluded from NVDRS as beyond the
scope of public health. (Case definitions are provided in detail with examples in the
following section of the manual.)
The system will be coordinated and funded at the federal level but will depend on
separate data collection efforts in each state managed by the state health departments.
In accordance with the system’s design principles, the data will be incident-based
rather than victim-based. The record for an incident will include information about
all the victims and suspects, their relationships, and any weapon(s) involved in each
incident.
To fully characterize the incidents, states will collect information about each incident
from three primary data sources: Death Certificates (DC), Coroner/Medical Examiner
(CME) records, and Police Records (PR). A fourth source, crime lab records, will be
tapped when a firearm is involved in the incident. (More information about these sources
can be found in the NVDRS Implementation Manual.) Most states will find it easiest to
begin data collection with death certificates because the state health department itself
collects death certificates. At a minimum, 85 unique data elements will be collected for
a relatively simple incident like a firearm suicide by an adult. Many additional variables
are available as options or for more complicated cases. The data are sorted by source
document so the source of each entry can be determined.
Over time, additional data sources that are particularly useful for specific kinds of
death may be added to the system. In the first year of NVDRS, for example, some
of the funded state health departments tested the availability and utility of data from
child fatality review teams, using a module specially designed to take advantage of
the detailed information available from that source.
2
Data collection can be done by either abstraction from the records maintained by the
primary sources at their offices or by transfer of data from the primary sources to the
health department’s NVDRS office. At present, most data must be manually entered
into the software. Data collection will be staged so that basic demographic information
can be published early and more detailed information about potential causal factors can
be published later. Death certificates will probably provide the earliest information, but
this may not be the case in every state. Hopefully, certificate information will be available to the health department and entered into the system within six months. Police and
CME data are expected to become available within 18 months of the occurrence of the
death.
The data are stored in a secure, relational database. Personally identifying variables
will not be forwarded to the national database. A list of those variables is available from
CDC. The list includes names, social security number, street address of injury and
residence, full birth date, source record numbers, and firearm serial number. The software
used to enter and transmit the data is described in a separate NVDRS Software Manual.
Deaths occurring in 2003 will constitute the first year of data for NVDRS.
3
Definitions
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has developed these case definitions
for NVDRS. States should collect information about all cases that meet these definitions.
They may also, however, develop their own, different state definitions. If their definitions
are broader than those shown here, states may also enter cases that meet only their case
definitions into their database. Reports generated by CDC, however, will include only
those cases that meet the CDC definitions. States should cite which definition they are
using, state or federal, when they cite their own data.
I.
Violent Death
A. Conceptual definition
A death that results from the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or a group or community. The
person using the force or power need only have intended to use force or power;
they need not have intended to produce the consequence that actually occurred.
“Physical force” should be interpreted broadly to include the use of poisons or
drugs. The word “power” includes acts of neglect or omission by one person
who has control over another.
In addition, NVDRS captures unintentional firearm deaths. Such deaths are
defined in Section IV. D, below.
B. Operational definition to be used in case ascertainment
1. The underlying cause of death must be coded on the death certificate
as one of the causes listed on Table 1, and
2. The death of a fetus prior to birth that is caused by violence is not
included in the case definition.
II.
Resident and Occurrent Violent Deaths
A. U.S. resident violent death
The decedent was an official resident of the United States, including its
territories, or a resident of a Native American reservation at the time of
injury, according to the death certificate.
B. State resident violent death
The decedent was an official resident of the state (or territory) including those
portions of a Native American reservation within the state at the time of injury,
according to the death certificate.
C. U.S. occurrent violent death
The initial injury must have occurred within the United States, including its
territories, or on a Native American reservation.
D. State occurrent violent death
The initial injury must have occurred within the state or on those portions
of the Native American reservations within the state.
5
Note: The collection of all resident violent deaths is essential for calculating
population-based rates. The collection of all occurrent fatal injuries is essential
for designing and evaluating prevention efforts focused on specific communities.
Usually the state of residence and state of occurrence of a fatal injury will be the
same, but every state will have some exceptions. States are expected to collect both
violent deaths among their residents, wherever they occur, and fatal violent injuries
occurring within their borders irrespective of residence. If the states of residence
and injury occurrence are both NVDRS states, the state of injury occurrence is
responsible for collecting the information.
III. Preliminary Versus Confirmed Violent Death
A. Preliminary violent death
1. The underlying cause of death has not yet been officially coded using
the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related
Health Problems, 10th Revision (ICD-10); and
2. Review of the uncoded death certificate or official police or coroner/
medical examiner (CME) records indicate that the death is likely to
be ultimately coded as one of the ICD codes included in the case
definition above.
B. Confirmed violent death
The underlying cause of death has been officially coded using ICD-10
as one of the codes included in the case definition above.
IV. Violent Death Types
For public health purposes, violent deaths are assigned to types according to the
ICD code assigned to the underlying cause of death indicated on the death
certificate by the CME. However, CMEs may not use the same definitions in all
states. Therefore, NVDRS will also try to achieve some standardization of death
type through these definitions. NVDRS sites should also use these definitions to
identify preliminary cases.
A. Suicide
A death resulting from the intentional use of force against oneself. A preponderance of evidence should indicate that the use of force was intentional.
Specific scenarios that should be classified as suicide:
~ A person committed a suicidal act, then changed his mind, but still died
as a result of the act
~ A person intended only to injure rather than kill himself —
“Russian roulette” played voluntarily with a firearm
~ Assisted suicide involving passive assistance to the decedent,
e.g., supplying only means or information needed to complete the act
~ Intentional, self-inflicted deaths committed while under the influence
of a mind-altering drug taken voluntarily
~ Intentional, self-inflicted deaths committed while under the influence
of a mental illness
6
Specific scenarios that should not be classified as suicide: (The preferred
NVDRS category is shown in parentheses.)
~ The physical consequences of chronic substance abuse, including alcohol
or drugs (natural death)
~ Acute substance abuse including alcohol or drugs with less than a preponderance of evidence of intent to use the substance(s) against oneself
(undetermined or unintentional injury death)
~ Death as a result of autoerotic behavior, e.g., self-strangulation during
sexual activity (unintentional injury death)
B. Homicide1
Homicide is defined as a death resulting from the intentional use of force or
power, threatened or actual, against another person, group, or community. A
preponderance of evidence must indicate that the use of force was intentional.
Such deaths resulting from legal intervention are included in a separate category
below. Two special scenarios the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS)
regards as homicides are included in the NVDRS definition: (1) arson with no
intent to injure a person, and (2) a stabbing with intent unspecified.
Specific scenarios that should be classified as homicide:
~ Deaths when the suspect intended to only injure rather than kill the victim
~ Deaths resulting from heart attacks induced when someone uses force or
power against the decedent
~ A death resulting from a weapon that discharges unintentionally while
being used to control or frighten the victim — Deaths that result when
a person kills an attacker in self-defense
~ Deaths labeled “justifiable homicides” where the person committing the
homicide was not a police officer
~ Deaths that result from a variation of Russian roulette where one person
aims a partially loaded gun at another person and pulls the trigger knowing
that there was at least some chance that the gun would fire
~ Death attributed to “child abuse” without an intent being specified
~ Death of a child after birth that results from a direct injury due to violence
sustained prior to birth
~ Death that results from an intentional act of neglect or omission by
one person against another
Specific scenarios that should not be classified as homicide: (The preferred
NVDRS category is shown in parentheses.)
~ “Vehicular homicide” without a preponderance of evidence of intent to use
force against another (unintentional injury)
~ Hunting “accident” with a gun (unintentional firearm injury)
~ “Accidental” deaths at shooting ranges (unintentional firearm injury)
~ A youth kills someone by playing with a gun he believes is unloaded
(unintentional firearm injury)
~ Deaths that take place in combat in declared or undeclared wars
(operation of war)
7
~ Death of a child after birth that results indirectly from violence sustained
by its mother before its birth, e.g., a death from prematurity following
premature labor brought on by violence (coded as “condition originating
in the perinatal period”.)
C. Undetermined manner of death
A death resulting from the use of force or power against oneself or another
person for which the evidence indicating one manner of death is no more
compelling than the evidence indicating another manner of death.
Specific scenarios that should be classified as undetermined manner of death:
~ Coroner or medical examiner ruling that states: “accident or suicide,”
“accident or homicide,” “undetermined,” “open verdict,” or “jumped or fell”
~ Self-inflicted injuries when the records give no evidence or opinions in favor
or either unintentional or intentional injury
D. Unintentional firearm injury death
A death resulting from a penetrating injury or gunshot wound from a weapon
that uses a powder charge to fire a projectile when there was a preponderance
of evidence that the shooting was not intentionally directed at the victim.
Specific scenarios that should be classified as unintentional firearm deaths:
~ Celebratory firing that was not intended to frighten, control, or harm anyone
~ A person shoots himself when using a gun to frighten, control, or harm
another person
~ A child less than the age of 6 shoots himself or another person
~ A soldier who is shot during field exercises in peacetime
~ A person mistakenly thinks a gun is unloaded and shoots himself or
another person while fooling around with it
~ A child who dies after birth from an unintentional firearm injury that
is sustained prior to birth, i.e., in utero
Specific scenarios that should not be classified as unintentional firearm deaths:
(The preferred NVDRS category is shown in parentheses.)
~ A person unintentionally shoots someone while defending himself
against an aggressor (homicide)
~ A person unintentionally shoots another person while using a gun to
commit a crime (homicide)
~ Firearm injuries caused by unintentionally striking a person with the
firearm, e.g., by dropping it on their head, rather than with a projectile
fired from the firearm (non-firearm unintentional injury)
~ Unintentional injuries from non-powder guns (e.g., BB, pellet, and other
compressed air or gas-powered guns) (non-firearm unintentional injury)
E. Legal intervention death
A death when the decedent was killed by a police officer or other peace officer
(persons with specified legal authority to use deadly force), including military
police, acting in the line of duty.
8
Specific scenarios that should be classified as legal interventions:
~ “Justifiable” and “criminal” homicides meeting the above definition
Specific scenarios that should not be included in the legal intervention category
in NVDRS:
~ Legal executions
F. Terrorism-related death
Terrorism deaths are homicides or suicides that result from events that are
labeled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as acts of terrorism.
Terrorism is a mechanism of death rather than a manner of death. The
manner of such death is either homicide or suicide.
V.
Violent Death Incident
Unlike most public health surveillance systems, that are victim-based, the NVDRS
is incident-based and reports all victims and suspects associated with a given
incident in one record. A violent death incident can be made up of any of the
following:
1. One isolated violent death
2. Two or more homicides, including legal interventions, when:
a. the deaths involve at least one person who is a suspect or victim in the
first death and a suspect or victim in the second death
b. the fatal injuries are inflicted less than 24 hours apart
3. Two or more suicides or undetermined manner deaths, when:
a. there is some evidence that the second or subsequent death was planned
to coincide with or follow the preceding death, and
b. the fatal injuries are inflicted less than 24 hours apart
4. One or more homicides or unintentional firearm deaths combined with one
or more suicides when:
a. the suspect in the first death is the person who commits suicide, and
b. the fatal injuries are inflicted less than 24 hours apart
5. Two or more unintentional firearm deaths when:
a. the same firearm inflicts two or more fatal injuries, and
b. the fatal injuries are inflicted by one shot or burst of shots
Examples of single incidents that involve more than one death:
~ Homicides: A member of Gang A kills a member of Gang B, and
Gang B reciprocates, all during a street brawl. (The members of
Gang A are suspects in the first killing, and one of them becomes
the victim in the second.)
9
~ Homicides: A man kills his family and then drives to work to kill his
supervisor. (The suspect in the first homicide is also the suspect in the
second homicide.)
~ Homicide and legal intervention: Police kill a suspect as he flees the
scene of a homicide. (The first suspect is the victim in the second death.)
~ Suicides: An elderly couple voluntarily commit suicide together. (The
deaths were planned to coincide.)
~ Homicide-suicide: A man kills his wife at home and then kills himself
12 hours later when pulled over by the police.
~ Unintentional firearm-suicide: A boy unintentionally kills his father
while hunting and immediately shoots himself out of guilt.
Examples of separate incidents:
~ Homicides: A sniper kills a person and two days later returns to the
same location and kills another person (more than 24 hours apart).
~ Suicides: Two teenagers agree to commit suicide on the same day. One
kills himself a week after the first victim dies (more than 24 hours apart).
~ Homicide-suicide: A woman learns that her son has murdered her
husband. She kills herself from grief. (The suspect in the first death
is not the person who commits suicide.)
Note: Decisions about whether two or more deaths belong to the same incident
should be based on the timing of the injuries, rather than the timing of
the deaths.
VI. Resident and Occurrent Violent Death Incidents
A. Resident incident
The majority of the deaths must be resident violent deaths. If no jurisdiction
accounts for the majority of victims, the incident would be a resident incident
for the jurisdiction of residence of the first victim.
B. Occurrent incident
The majority of fatal injuries must be occurrent fatal injuries. If no jurisdiction
accounts for the majority of fatal injuries, the incident would be an occurrent
incident for the place of injury of the first victim.
Note: The responsibility for abstracting a violent death falls on the state where the
incident occurred irrespective of where the victim was a resident or died. NVDRS
states should cooperate whenever possible by sending records to the state with
responsibility for abstraction when incidents cross state lines. However, NVDRS
states should also try to abstract the complete incident if one of their own residents
dies violently in a state that is not currently part of NVDRS.
VII. Data Year
A. Year of a violent death
The year of death is the calendar year in which the victim died. So, for example,
if a victim was injured at the end of December 2002, but died in early January
2003, the death would be reported in the 2003 data year. Although the NVDRS
software allows for specific month or date of death to be entered as “Unknown,”
10
the year of death must be filled in. In the case of a true unknown year of death (as
in skeletal remains with unknown year of death, or an unattended death that may
have occurred either shortly before or shortly after January 1), enter the year in
which the body was found as the year of death.
B. Year of a violent death incident
The year of a violent death incident is the first year in which any of the victims
in the incident died. For example, the only exception to this rule occurs when
any of the deaths occurred in a year prior to 2003, the first year of NVDRS. In
that case, place the incident in the first year of death after 2002. In other words,
incidents with deaths in 2002 and 2003 should be placed in 2003. Incidents with
deaths in 2002 and 2004 should be placed in 2004. Incident with deaths in 2003
and 2004 should be placed in 2003.
VIII.Violent Death Rate per Year
The violent death rate per year is the number of resident violent deaths recorded
during the calendar year divided by the resident population of the jurisdiction, as
defined in official U.S. Census figures, and multiplied by 100,000 for a rate per
100,000 population. Preliminary rates include both preliminary and confirmed
deaths. Confirmed rates include only confirmed deaths. Intercensal state population
estimates may be used for intercensal year rates when official U.S. Census figures
are not available. Whether U.S. Census or state estimates are used, the state should
specify the source of the population estimate.
Table 1: ICD-10 External Causes of Death Codes for Manners of
Death Meeting the NVDRS Case Definition
ICD-10 Codes
Manner of Death
Death <1 year
after the injury
Death >1 year
after the injury
Intentional self harm (suicide)
X60–X84
Y87.0
Assault (homicide)
X85–X99, Y00–Y09
Y87.1
Event of undetermined intent
Y10–Y34
Y87.2, Y89.9
Unintentional exposure to
inanimate mechanical forces
(firearms)
W32–W34
Y86 determined to
be due to firearms
Legal intervention excluding
executions, Y35.5
Y35.0–Y35.4
Y35.6–Y35.7
Y89.0
Terrorism
U01, U03
U02
11
End Notes
Use of the term “homicide” can be a point of confusion in a violent death reporting
system. The term literally means the killing of one person by another, whether
intentionally or unintentionally. Law enforcement and many CMEs adhere to this
broader definition of homicide and therefore refer to unintentional car crash deaths
as “vehicular homicides,” and the unintentional death of a person that results from
another’s negligence as “negligent homicides.” Examples of the latter category are
unintentional shootings of one person by another (as in two 12-year-old boys playing
with a gun they believe is unloaded) and negligent acts by a caretaker of a dependent
person (as in a toddler who is left unattended in the bathtub briefly while its mother
answers the phone). The ICD system, on the other hand, uses the term homicide in
its narrower sense to indicate the intentional or assault-related killing of one person
by another. The NVDRS also uses this narrower definition of homicide.
The disjuncture between the law enforcement and public health uses of the term
homicide can lead to coding problems. The ICD system is the basis for coding
underlying cause of death on the death certificate. However, the code is chosen
based on the information supplied by the CME on the death certificate. So, for
example, in the case of the 12-year-old boys playing with the gun they mistakenly
believed was unloaded, the CME is likely to code the manner of death as “homicide”
and supply only medical information in the text fields for underlying cause of death.
The information regarding the unintentional nature of the shooting will be available
only in the narrative report, not on the death certificate itself. The Vital Statistics
coder will likely code the case in the homicide range, not the unintentional range,
because the information that would place it in the unintentional range according
to ICD protocols is not available on the death certificate. This confusion in terms
is one reason that the NVDRS has chosen to include the abstractor-assigned “Type
of Death” code in the reporting system. This code applies a uniform protocol to
categorizing violence-related homicides, unintentional deaths, suicides, and deaths
of unknown intent.
One useful piece of information when attempting to distinguish a violence-related
homicide from a negligent homicide is to check how the case was reported on the
Supplementary Homicide Report form. Violence-related homicides are reported
as “1A – Murder/non-negligent manslaughter” offenses, while unintentional
homicides (e.g., “accidental” shooting while hunting, children playing with a gun)
are coded as “1B – Negligent manslaughter” offenses. See: Barber C, Hochstadt J,
Hemenway D, Azrael D. Underestimates of unintentional firearm fatalities:
Comparing Supplementary Homicide Report data with the National Vital Statistics
System. Injury Prevention 2002;8:252–6.
12
Entering a Case Data Structure
An incident involving one or more violent deaths is the unit of surveillance in NVDRS.
To understand how all the variables fit together in one incident, it may be helpful to think
of them in a hierarchy with four levels:
• The first, or incident level, is information about the incident to be described,
such as how many people were involved and a narrative of the event.
• The second, or component level, divides the incident into its components:
the documents, people, relationships, and weapons involved.
• The third, or data-source level, divides each component into the sources
contributing to it (e.g., information about a person from the death certificate,
from the police, from the CME).
• The fourth, or additional-element level, divides information from a given
source into logical subsets on separate screens when all the elements cannot
fit on one screen.
In outline form, this hierarchy looks like the following:
I. Incident
A. Documents used
B. Person(s), (victims, suspects, or both) involved
1. Multi-sourced identity or demographic
2. Death certificate (DC)
a. Main elements
b. All listed causes of death (“multiple causes”)
3. Coroner/Medical Examiner (CME)
a. Main elements
b. Circumstances
4. Police Reports (PR)
a. Main elements
b. Circumstances
5. Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR)
6. Hospital Information (HOSP)
7. Child Fatality Review (CFR)
a. Main elements
b. Household and Committee Information
c. Circumstances
8. Abstractor-completed
C. Victim-suspect relationships
1. Coroner/Medical Examiner
2. Police
3. Supplementary Homicide Report
D. Weapon(s) involved
1. Abstractor
2. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
trace information
13
3. Coroner/Medical Examiner
4. Police
5. Crime lab
E. Person-weapon relationships
1. ATF-Firearm trace information
2. Coroner/Medical Examiner
3. Police
4. Supplementary Homicide Report
Note: Not every part of the outline can be completed for every incident. If the
incident is an isolated suicide, there will be no victim-suspect relationship. If one of
the persons involved is a suspect who did not die in the incident, there will be no
death certificate information for that person. If the weapon was not a firearm, there
can be no information from ATF, and there will be no crime lab information. The
structure is designed to handle all types of violent deaths. It allows the use of data
from the four primary data sources (death certificate, police, CME, and crime lab)
and three additional ones (hospitals, supplementary homicide reports, and child
fatality review teams), and provides places for input from the abstractor.
Variable or Data Element Priority
Given all the data entry fields available to handle various scenarios, and that there is a
place to put each data item from each data source, the number of data entry locations
is large, approximately 600. Not all the variables are required. Data collection from
hospitals, supplementary homicide reports (SHRs), and Child Fatality Review (CFR)
is optional (unless a state is being funded to pilot test an optional source). Collecting
information about the source documents is optional. In addition, some variables from
the primary data sources are considered to be of lesser importance for surveillance
purposes and are also optional.
Each data element falls into one of three priorities: Early Required (ER), Late Required
(LR), or Optional (O). These are sometimes referred to as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd priority,
respectively. All states should complete the required variables. Early required variables
are those from the death certificate primarily and should be completed within six months
of the date of death. Late required variables are primarily from the other sources and
should be completed within eighteen months of the date of death. Optional variables can
be completed at any point prior to the close of the data year. The priority for each data
element is shown in the body of the Coding Manual. The priority of an element is
reflected in the color used for the variable label in the data entry screens. Note that a
given variable may have different priorities depending on the source from which it is
derived. For example, race is an early required (first priority) variable obtained from the
death certificate, but late required (second priority) variables are derived from other data
sources, which tend to be available later than the death certificate.
The Data Source Concept
The strength of NVDRS is its use of multiple, complementary data sources. Given that
data would be obtained from multiple sources, each with its own documents, and that
data might be entered from one source about an incident before the information is
14
available from a second source, NVDRS was designed to keep the data sorted by source.
The idea is that NVDRS staff can capture the information available in a given location
for a set of incidents and move on to another office, where the information available there
is added to those incidents. This process can be repeated until the incidents are complete.
The table below shows the sources from which data on different topics is to be recorded.
Data Topic
Case status
Number of persons and weapons
Incident narrative
Document tracking
Person type (victim/suspect)
Name, address
Age/sex/race/ethnicity
When and where (injury/death)
Cause of death ICD code(s)
Manner of death
Additional person descriptors
Alcohol and drug tests
Wounds
Associated circumstances
Victim-suspect relationship
History of victim abuse
Suspect was victim caretaker
Weapon type
Firearm trace
Firearm descriptors
Poison details
Weapon used by/on person
Person purchasing firearm
DC CME PR SHR CFRT LAB ATF USER
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
DC=Death Certificate; CME=Coroner/Medical Examiner; PR=Police Report;
SHR=Supplementary Homicide Report; CFRT=Child Fatality Review Team; Lab=Crime Lab;
ATF=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Note: The hospital source was left
out of the table to save space. It only captures whether inpatient or Emergency Department (ED)
care occurred and what International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes were assigned. Tabs
in the application mark the places where data from each source document can be entered.
In addition to allowing independent entry of each source, this approach allows for later
review of what each source contributed and for identifying missing sources. It increases
the validity of comparisons between years and states by allowing comparisons of data
from the same sources. It also allows the generation of reports back to the sources
showing exactly what their records contained. Eventually, once data source documents
are standardized nationally, it can also facilitate direct importation of data.
15
Primacy Among Data Sources
Data sources may not always agree about every fact of a given incident. A way to identify
what is likely the best available information among different sources is needed. Therefore, the data sources have been ranked in terms of their likely accuracy for each data
element. The term used for the ranking is “primacy.” The source with 1st primacy is
considered most reliable for a given variable and will be the source of choice. Lower
primacy sources are the most reliable after 1st primacy and can be used when a higherprimacy source is not available. For example, sex of the victim is taken first from the
death certificate, second from the CME, and finally from the police.
States will retain all the data and can determine their own primacy in their state-specific
analysis files. States may even choose to use different primacy rankings for different
parts of the state or different time periods. However, for nationwide comparisons, the
CDC will use the primacy ranking built into the software. The primacy of each source for
each variable to which it applies is shown in the “Primacy” column of the coding
manual’s variable section.
When different sources have complete but discordant data, the simplest approach is to
use primacy. This is probably adequate for surveillance purposes. For research purposes,
however, states may elect to settle such discordance by case-by-case review to identify
the preferred source for each discordant field.
Auto Filling Across Data Sources
Because much of the information collected will be the same in multiple data sources
for one incident, the software will save time by automatically filling blank fields across
sources for a given data element. To avoid using automatically-filled data when the actual
data is missing for a given source, “auto filled” data has to be confirmed or accepted by
the data-entry person. Auto filled data can also be overwritten by the actual data when
the two sources differ.
Additional Features
Data are coded whenever possible to avoid problems with variant spellings. A number
of range and logic edits exist that can be applied to the case upon completion. Users can
generate a number of reports about the data to search for specific incidents or people or
to get a preliminary look at the aggregate data.
Steps in Starting an Incident
Step 1: Decide what constitutes an “incident.”
See the definition of an incident in the definitions section of this coding manual. This
is mostly a process of deciding whether deaths that are connected in some way belong
in the same incident or different ones.
Step 2: Open a new incident in the software.
(Refer to the Software Manual for instructions.)
16
Step 3: Decide who should be included in the incident and enter that number on the
first screen.
The software initially asks how many people are to be covered in the incident. People in
the incident may be fatally injured victims, suspects in their deaths, or both victims and
suspects. Identifying the victims in the incident is not difficult once you have determined
how to define the incident. Identifying how many suspects to include is more difficult.
There are no suspects for isolated suicides and self-inflicted unintentional firearm deaths.
For homicides, include as suspects people who are listed by the police or the CME as
suspects. For unintentional firearm deaths that are not self-inflicted, include the person
who fired the weapon as a suspect and anyone else listed by the police as a suspect. A
person does not have to be arrested or identified to be listed as a suspect. As long as the
number of persons involved in the death is known, (e.g., police report that the victim was
stabbed by two men), list each as a suspect, even if nothing further is known about them.
See the Person Type variable on the Identity panel in the coding manual for further
details and examples.
Step 4: Decide how many weapons to include in the incident and enter that number.
The concept of a weapon in NVDRS combines the concepts of things used to injure and
actions that lead to injury. Weapons can therefore range from instruments everyone
would call a weapon, such as a gun or bayonet, to actions such as setting fires, pushing
someone over a cliff, or shaking (as in shaken baby syndrome). Additional descriptive
data elements exist only for firearms and poisons.
Because details are collected only about firearms and poisons, enter each one involved in
the incident as a separate weapon. For all other weapon types involved in a violent death,
list the weapon only once per incident. For example, if multiple sharp objects or knives
are used to kill one or more persons in an incident, enter only one weapon to represent all
these sharp objects. If multiple knives and multiple blunt objects are used, one “sharp
instrument” and one “blunt instrument” weapon should be entered.
If a gun is not recovered, but the victim died of a gunshot wound, code the number of
weapons as “1”. Similarly, if a knife is not recovered, but the victim died from wounds
inflicted by a sharp object, code the number of weapons as 1. Guns on the scene that
were not used to shoot the victim (e.g., a gun on the person of the victim), are not
counted as weapons in the incident. Similarly, poisons or drugs on the scene that were
not ingested in a drug overdose are not counted. Basically, anything that injures the
victim is counted as a weapon even though it was not described as the “cause of death”.
Step 5: Determine the number of documents to be used for the incident and enter
that number.
Note: Information about, and the number of documents, does not have to be entered to
open a case. If states choose to use these fields as logbooks or ways to track the completion of a case, the following information may prove helpful:
A document was conceived as a piece of paper or a computerized record that contains
information that is used to complete an incident. References to a document within
another document would usually not be counted as a separate document. The minimum
expected number of documents per incident is three: a death certificate, a police report,
17
and a CME report. Two deaths in one incident would have a minimum of five documents:
two death certificates, two CME reports, and a police report. This is assuming that the
police described both deaths in the incident in one report.
States can count multiple reports contained within a CME or police file as part of one
document. Such files often contain autopsy reports, toxicology reports, gun traces, and
the like. States can also record each of these documents separately, at their discretion.
Once these steps are completed, the software will set up the appropriate number of blank
screens so that the incident can be captured. The user can then complete the case, one
source document at a time. The next section of the coding manual provides details about
the data elements to be completed.
Throughout the manual a standard approach is used to code ‘Unknown’. For numerical
fields, the numbers ‘9’, ‘99’, ‘999’, etc. are mostly used to indicate ‘Unknown’.
Similarly, the numbers ‘8’, ‘88’, ‘888’, etc. are usually used for ‘Not applicable’. It is
suggested that ‘Unk’ be entered for ‘Unknown’ in any relevant text field.
Reabstraction Guidelines
Reabstraction of cases is probably the most important quality control measure of
NVDRS. It is far superior to reviewing completed incidents without access to the
original source documents. The primary purpose of reabstraction is to identify errors in
the coding of key data sources in a timely way. A secondary purpose is to identify data
fields that have low reliability, i.e., they are not completed in the same way by trained
independent observers in a significant percentage of incidents, perhaps because of their
inherent subjectivity.
We suggest the following reabstraction guidelines:
1.
Reabstraction should be done by the person who is most skilled in coding.
This need not always be the supervisor. It should not be done by the same
person who did the original coding.
2.
The reabstractor should have access to all the original records used by the
original abstractor.
3.
The reabstractor should not have access to the original abstractor’s paper
or electronic abstraction when they reabstract the incident. Preferably, to
reduce the chances that they will be biased by the other person’s interpretation, they will not have read the original abstraction before doing the
reabstraction.
4.
The reabstractor should reabstract ten percent of incidents completed in
the previous quarter or previous month. By completed incidents, we mean
incidents that have had data entered from the death certificate, police record,
and CME record.
18
5. Reabstractors should select the incident numbers of the incidents they want
to reabstract along with the necessary identifiers before going into the field.
We suggest using the Reports/Search by/Incident ID report in the application
to create a list of incident IDs from which to select. Eliminate from the list
those incidents that have more than two people listed in the report because it
will not be possible to determine which person in the original abstraction was
intended to correspond to which person in the reabstraction otherwise. Such
matching can be done with only one person in the incident or with two people,
one victim and one suspect.
6. Initially, it is suggested to select every ninth completed record to have a few
backup incident numbers in case some original records are temporarily
unavailable. Over time, experience will suggest the sampling fraction that
will result in successful completion of ten percent.
7. Reabstraction should start soon after the end of the first quarter of data
collection and be done on an ongoing basis so that feedback to abstractors
is timely.
8. Reabstractors should open a new incident for every reabstraction. The
incident should be put in the 2002 database so that it never becomes an
unwanted duplicate in the current year’s file.
9. Note also that you should not select incidents to reabstract that have not
been checked in from a laptop because their incident number may change
when they are checked in.
10. Reabstractions will be sent to the CDC along with all other incidents in
the routine way. CDC will link the originals with their reabstractions and
calculate concordance using kappa statistics for all coded fields that have
been completed by either abstractor.
11. State supervisor/reabstractors will want to compare their results with the
original abstractions themselves manually by printing an incident or by
setting up queries to do record comparisons for specified pairs of incidents.
Any discrepancies noted should be reconciled through discussion with the
original abstractor.
12. It is important to distinguish between the two possible sources of error:
true coder disagreement and data entry error. Retraining or clarification
of coding instructions may help with coder disagreement, while changes
in question format may help with data entry error.
Note: Do not reabstract incidents that have not been checked in from a laptop
because their incident number may change when they are checked in.
19
Data Elements Key
The next sections provide detailed information for each data element captured by NVDRS.
The sections are organized by screens as they appear in the NVDRS software application.
Within each section, the data elements are arranged by location on the screen. Each data
element or group of related data elements begins on a new page and follows the format
below:
The header refers to the screen path of the variable.
Variable Label:
Variable Name
Name
Definition
Variable Name
Definition of variable
Uses
Discusses the uses of the data element or group of data elements.
Discussion
Provides guidance on how to code the data element or group of data elements.
Case Examples
Provides examples of data element,
may not always be present.
Table Options:
Person,
Weapon, etc.
Name
Type of Field Options:
Number; Text;
Checkbox
Label
Table
Primacy Options:
Priority Options:
ER – Early Required
LR – Late Required
O – Optional
Type
Variable Variable Table in which Type
Name
Label: data is stored of field
Response Options:
Variable name
Pick list for variable
ATF – Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms, and Explosive
CFR – Child Fatality Review
CME – Coroner/Medical Examiner
DC – Death Certificate
ED – Hospital Emergency Departments
HOSP – Hospital
LAB – Crime Lab
PR – Police Report
SHR – Supplementary Homicide Report
SYS – System
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Length
of field
Priority of
the variable
Hierarchy of reliability
of source for variable
If this is blank, no drop-down
menu is provided by the
software for this variable
Data Standards and Guidelines
If data standards or guidelines do not exist, this section will be omitted.
20
Section 1
INCIDENT VARIABLES
Site ID:
SiteID
Incident ID: IncID
1-3
Case status: CaseStat
1-5
INCIDENT COUNTERS
1-6
SUPERVISOR CHECK
1-8
Number of nonfatally shot persons in incident: NumInjure
1-9
Narrative of the incident: IncNarr
1-10
Scene investigation by law enforcement: ScenLaw
Scene investigation by the CME:
ScenME
1-12
Witness(es) to fatal incident: Witness
If yes, child witness:
ChldWit
1-13
CFR additional information: CFRTxt
1-14
INCIDENT REABSTRACTION
1-15
Incident
Site ID:
SiteID
Incident ID: IncID
Name
Definition
SiteID
Identifier for the state reporting site
IncID
Identifier used to identify the incident
Uses
Used together, the Site ID and the Incident ID uniquely identify each incident in the
database. The Site and Incident ID are used to link data from all of the tables in the
relational database. The site number can be used to sort data by site for analysis.
Discussion
The Site ID number is the Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) code
assigned to the state. The Incident ID is automatically assigned by the software and
increases by one for each incident. There are no provisions for missing or unknown
information for these two data elements.
Field
Length
Name
Label
Table
Type
Priority Primacy
SiteID
Site ID:
Incident
Number
2
ER
SYS
IncID
Incident ID:
Incident
Text
9
ER
SYS
Response Options:
SiteID
1
Alabama
2
Alaska
4
Arizona
5
Arkansas
6
California
8
Colorado
9
Connecticut
10
Delaware
11
District of Columbia
12
Florida
13
Georgia
15
Hawaii
16
Idaho
17
Illinois
18
Indiana
19
Iowa
20
Kansas
21
Kentucky
1-3
Incident
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
53
54
55
56
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
IncID
Data Standards or Guidelines
FIPS state codes: Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS),
National Institute of Standards and Technologies
1-4
Incident
Case status:
CaseStat
Name
Definition
CaseStat
Status of case
Uses
This field will help the abstractor, supervisor, and CDC identify whether a given case is
complete. For some purposes, it may be sufficient to use any cases for which at least the
early required/(mandatory) variables are completed. For other purposes, the late required
variables should be complete. States may also prefer to keep track of whether the
optional fields have also been completed.
Discussion
When a new case is started, it will be given a case status of 1 (open) by default. This
value can be changed as different stages of data entry are completed to mark progress.
This variable is included in a standard quality control report that can be generated by
NVDRS software to determine how many cases are in each status category. States or
CDC may prefer to restrict the data to incidents of a particular case status before performing analyses. The case status variable will have no bearing on whether individual
incidents are uploaded to CDC during routine uploads; all incidents will be uploaded.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
CaseStat
Case status:
Incident
Number
1
Priority
O
Primacy
SYS
Response Options:
CaseStat
0
Incident abstraction initiated
1
Preliminary early required abstracted
2
Near final early required completed
3
Preliminary late required abstracted
4
Near final late required completed
5
Preliminary optional abstracted
6
Near final optional completed
7
Incident abstraction completed
8
Incident closed to further edits
1-5
Incident
INCIDENT COUNTERS
Number of source documents in incident: NumSrDocs
Number of persons in incident:
NumPersons
Number of weapons in incident:
NumWeapons
Number of victim-suspect relationship
NumVSRels
records in incident:
Number of person-weapon relationship
NumPWRels
records in incident:
Name
Definition
NumSrDocs
Number of source documents
NumPersons
Number of persons in incident
NumWeapons Number of weapons in incident
NumVSRels
Number of victim-suspect relationship records in incident
NumPWRels
Number of person-weapon relationship records in incident
Uses
These variables define the number of key components in the incident.
Discussion
There must be a minimum of one document, one person, and one weapon in each incident. The number of source documents is the total number of death certificates, CME
reports, police reports, etc. that provided information for the incident. People in the
incident are only those who are fatally injured victims, or suspects in their deaths.
Identifying the victims in the incident is not difficult once you have determined how to
define an incident (see Definitions section). Identifying how many suspects to include
may be more difficult. There are no suspects for isolated suicides and self-inflicted
unintentional firearm deaths. For homicides, suspects include people who are listed by
the police or the CME as suspects. For unintentional firearm deaths that are not selfinflicted, include the person who fired the weapon as a suspect and anyone else listed by
the police as a suspect. A person does not have to be arrested or identified to be listed as
a suspect. As long as the number of persons involved in the death is known (e.g., police
report that the victim was stabbed by two males), each should be listed as a suspect, even
if nothing further is known about them. When the number of suspects is not known in
homicides, consider the number of suspects to be zero. The number of persons in such
incidents is therefore equal to the number of victims.
Weapons can range from instruments everyone would call a weapon, such as a gun or
bayonet, to actions such as setting fires, pushing someone over a cliff, or shaking (as in
shaken baby syndrome). Additional descriptive data elements exist only for firearms and
poisons. The weapon type categories other than firearms and poisons are as follows:
1-6
Incident
nonpowder guns (e.g., BB guns), sharp instruments, blunt instruments, hanging/
suffocation, personal weapons (e.g., fist or feet), fall, explosive, drowning, fire, shaking,
motor vehicle, biological weapon, and intentional neglect. Because details are collected
only about firearms and poisons, enter each firearm or poison involved in the incident as
a separate weapon. For all other weapon types involved in a violent death, list the weapon
only once per incident. For example, if multiple sharp objects or knives are used to kill
one or more persons in an incident, enter only one weapon to represent all these sharp
objects. If multiple knives and blunt objects are used, one “sharp instrument” and
one “blunt instrument” weapon record should be entered. Guns on the scene known not
used to shoot the victim, (e.g., a gun on the person of the victim), are not counted as
weapons in the incident. Similarly, poisons or drugs on the scene that were not ingested
in a drug overdose are not counted. Evidence that it was taken as an overdose would be
indicated in a statement that the person took an overdose, that the drug helped cause the
death, or that drug levels were more than therapeutic or beyond the normal range.
The numbers of Victim Suspect Relationships and Person Weapon Relationships are
automatically calculated by the software.
Label
NumSrDocs
Number of source documents
in incident:
Incident
Number
4
ER
SYS
NumPersons
Number of persons
in incident:
Incident
Number
4
ER
SYS
Incident
Number
4
ER
SYS
NumVSRels
Number of victim-suspect
relationship records
in incident:
Incident
Number
4
LR
SYS
NumPWRels
Number of person-weapon
relationship records
in incident:
Incident
Number
4
LR
SYS
Number of weapons
NumWeapons in incident:
Table
Type
Field
Length Priority Primacy
Name
Response Options:
NumSrDocs
NumPersons
NumWeapons
NumVSRels
NumPWRels
1-7
Incident
SUPERVISOR CHECK
Date supervisor checked incident:
Date supervisor rechecked incident:
Supervisor note field:
DtSuper
DtReSuper
SuperTxt
Name
Definition
DtSuper
Date supervisor checked incident
DtReSuper
Date supervisor rechecked incident
SuperTxt
Supervisor note field
Uses
Supervisors can use these fields to track whether they have checked the incident.
Problems or questions noted in the supervisor’s review can be placed in the supervisor
note field. In Version 1, states marked reabstracted incidents in the 2002 database with
the following text string in the supervisor field: “dup/siteID/yyyy/IncID”. This information is needed for linking the reabstraction incident to the original incident for cases
entered in Version 1.
From Version 2 of the software onwards, two data elements (‘ReabstractYr’ and
‘ReabstractInc’) were added to the 2002 data year panel to make the linking of
reabstracted incidents to original incidents easier. Please see page 1-15.
Discussion
These fields are optional.
Label
Table
DtSuper
Date supervisor
checked incident:
Incident
Text
10
O
SYS
DtReSuper
Date supervisor
rechecked incident:
Incident
Text
10
O
SYS
SuperTxt
Supervisor note field:
Incident
Text
1000
O
SYS
Response Options:
DtSuper
DtReSuper
SuperTxt
1-8
Type
Field
Length
Name
Priority
Primacy
Incident
Number of nonfatally shot persons in incident:
NumInjure
Name
Definition
NumInjure
Number of nonfatal gunshot wound victims associated with the report
Uses
Can be used to assess the extent of multiple-victim incidents and the association of
nonfatal injuries with fatal incidents. Appears in PR and CME panels only.
Discussion
Record the total number of victims who sustained a projectile wound from a firearm
during the course of the incident and survived. Victims of pistol whipping should not
be counted here. This variable appears in PR and CME sections of Incident screen.
Enter “0” if there is no indication of a nonfatal shooting. Enter “9999” if the number
of such persons is unknown.
Name
NumInjure
Label
Number of nonfatally
shot persons
in incident:
Table
Incident
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Number
4
LR/LR
CME/PR
Response Options:
NumInjure
0
None
9999 Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
1-9
Incident
Narrative of the incident:
IncNarr
Name
Definition
IncNarr
Narrative of the incident
Uses
There are a number of purposes for collecting a narrative account of the incident.
●
The first is to briefly summarize what happened, and why, and
include important information that is not otherwise captured in
the coded variables.
●
The second is to facilitate data quality control checks on the coding
of key variables — particularly type of death, person type, circumstance, and victim-suspect relationship.
●
The narrative also provides the context for understanding the
incident.
●
Lastly, the narrative records information that cannot be captured
elsewhere.
Discussion
Incident narratives are written based on a single data source. Consequently, there is an
incident narrative that summarizes the police findings, a narrative that describes the
CME’s findings, and one that records additional information from the Child Fatality
Review Team (CFRT). Please do not include personally identifying information in
narratives such as names of people, towns, streets, police departments, and hospitals.
Also avoid using specific dates. Describe, in a few sentences:
●
Who was injured by whom,
●
The relationship between victim and suspect if other
than self-inflicted,
●
Where the incident occurred, and
●
The precipitating circumstances according to the data source.
Each circumstance variable that is positively endorsed on the circumstance screen should
be mentioned in the narrative. Please include sex and age of person(s) involved. Avoid
using abbreviations, with the exception of V for Victim, S for Suspect, and V/S for
persons who are both victims and suspects.
An example of a homicide narrative is: “V was a 20 year old male who was a passenger
in a taxi cab who was shot by the male cab driver, S, after an altercation over the amount
of the cab fare. The two were not previously acquainted. The V had been drinking at a
bar.”
1-10
Incident
An example of a suicide narrative is: “Male victim was 45 years old and was found in his
parked car in the driveway of his home with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
No suicide note was found. His wife reports he was despondent over the loss of his job
four months ago and had talked about suicide but never previously attempted. CME
report does not document any mental health or substance abuse history.”
Try to keep the narratives relatively short. Avoid using incomplete sentences, as they are
hard to understand. Do not adopt the ‘tone’ of the source document. There is no need to
document timing, who found the body, body position, wound information, treatment
information, etc. The following is a poor example of an incident narrative: “Victim
approached by 2 AMs IFO Store 24 on Fresno Blvd. at approximately 11:50 p.m. First
AM dropped to his knees, took aim, and shot V in left leg. V raises hand to block shot.
Second S shoots V in hand and chest. V crawls to pay phone. EMS responds. V to
Bruckner Hospital; ICU three days; life support withdrawn 3/12/03.” Instead, this
could be worded as follows: “V was approached and shot on the street by two males.
No information about precipitating circumstance or victim-offender relationship was
reported.” If multiple police records conflict about the narrative details, record what
you believe to be in the most accurate narrative. Do the same for multiple CME records.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
IncNarr
Narrative of the incident:
Incident
Text
1000
Priority
Primacy
LR/LR
CME/PR
Response Options:
IncNarr
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
1-11
Incident
Scene investigation by law enforcement:
Scene investigation by the CME:
ScenLaw
ScenME
Name
Definition
ScenLaw
Did the police conduct an on-scene investigation?
ScenME
Did the CME office conduct an on-scene investigation?
Uses
These variables are part of the Child Fatality Review (CFR) Module. Many CFR programs
have developed protocols for investigating child deaths. They generally recommend that
CMEs and/or police conduct investigations at the scene of a child’s death in the case of injury
deaths and medical deaths occurring outside a health care setting. Investigations that rely
only on examining the body after its removal from the incident scene may fail to reveal
information that could aid in identifying homicides. These data elements document whether
on-scene investigations occurred and will be useful for determining the extent to which
recommended investigation protocols are followed in the case of child suicides, homicides,
and unintentional gun deaths.
Discussion
If there is no empirical evidence that the specified parties conducted an investigation, these
variables should be coded “No”. If the CFRT does not ask, code “Not collected by reporting
site”. If the CFRT asks, but the information is not available, code “Unknown”.
Label
Table
ScenLaw
Scene investigation
by law enforcement:
Incident Number
1
O
CFR
ScenME
Scene investigation
by the CME:
Incident Number
1
O
CFR
Response Options:
ScenLaw
and
ScenME
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by reporting site
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
1-12
Type
Field
Length
Name
Priority Primacy
Incident
Witness(es) to fatal incident:
If yes, child witness:
Witness
ChldWit
Name
Definition
Witness
Were there any witnesses to the incident?
ChldWit
Were there any child witnesses to the fatal incident?
Uses
Information about witnesses may provide insight into potential risk factors for violent
child deaths and may also be useful for planning services and interventions for those
who witnessed the violence.
Discussion
Witness(es) include any person(s) other than a suspect who was present and observed
the incident that led to the child’s death. The supervisor can be considered a witness,
but only if that person was not also the perpetrator. A child witness is defined as a
person under 18 years of age who was present and observed the fatal incident. These
two variables are part of the CFR module.
Field
Length
Name
Label
Table
Type
Priority Primacy
Witness
Witness(es) to
fatal incident:
Incident
Number
1
O
CFR
ChldWit
If yes,
child witness:
Incident
Number
1
O
CFR
Response Options:
Witness
and
ChldWit
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by reporting site
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
1-13
Incident
CFR additional information:
CFRTxt
Name
Definition
CFRTxt
Text field for describing additional relevant information provided
by the Child Fatality Review data source
Uses
The CFR data source may provide information that is relevant to the death but is not
available from other sources.
Discussion
As a text field, use this area to clarify circumstances surrounding the death that may not
be clear from the CFR data elements or other NVDRS data sources. For example,
unusual circumstances surrounding the death, household composition, supervision, or
CFR committee decisions would be helpful in this text box. Also, coding options for
several variables require further explanation in the incident narrative; that information
should be included here. This box should only reflect unique information gathered from
CFR, as it is a document-based system.
Name
Label
CFRTxt
CFR additional
information:
Table
Type
Incident
Text
Response Options:
CFRTxt
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
1-14
Field
Length
1000
Priority
Primacy
O
CFR
Incident
INCIDENT REABSTRACTION (2002 data year panel only)
Reabstraction from data year: ReabstractYr
Of incident number:
ReabstractInc
Name
Definition
ReabstractYr
The year of the incident that is being reabstracted
ReabstractInc
The incident number of the case that is being reabstracted
Uses
States use the 2002 data year incident panel to enter reabstracted incidents. These fields
are used to link the reabstracted incidents to the original incident. The primary purpose
of reabstraction is to identify errors in the coding of key data sources in a timely way.
A secondary purpose is to identify data fields that have low reliability, i.e., they are not
completed in the same way by trained independent observers in a significant percentage
of incident, perhaps because of their inherent subjectivity.
Discussion
Ten percent of the incidents completed from the previous quarter or previous month
should be reabstracted. Completed incidents refer to incidents that have data entered
from the death certificate, police record, and CME record.
Incident Selection
Reabstractors should select the incident numbers of the incidents they want to reabstract
along with the necessary identifiers prior to the reabstraction. We suggest using the
Reports/Search by/Incident ID report in the NVDRS software to create a list of incident
ID numbers that can be reabstracted. Eliminate from the list those incidents that have
more than two people listed in the report because it will be impossible to determine
match the person in the original abstraction to the person in the reabstraction. Such
matching can be done with only one person in the incident or with two people, one
victim and one suspect. We further suggest selecting every ninth completed record
initially to have a few backup incident numbers in case some original records are temporarily unavailable. Over time, experience will suggest the sampling fraction that will
result in successful completion of ten percent.
Reabstraction
Reabstraction should start soon after the first completed quarter of data collection and be
done on an ongoing basis so that feedback to abstractors is timely. Reabstractors should
open a new incident for every reabstraction. The reabstracted incident should be put in
the 2002 database so that it never becomes an unwanted duplicate in the current year’s
file. Reabstraction should be completed by the individual who is most skilled in coding,
not necessarily the supervisor. It should not be completed by the same person who
originally coded the incident. To reduce the chances that the reabstractor will be biased
1-15
Incident
by another person’s interpretation of the incident, they should not have read the original
abstraction before doing the reabstraction and they should not have access to the original
abstractor’s paper or electronic abstraction when they reabstract the incident. The
reabstractor should have access to all the original records used by the original abstractor.
Reabstracted cases will be sent to the CDC along with all other incidents in the routine
way. CDC will link the originals with their reabstractions and calculate concordance
using kappa statistics for all coded fields that have been completed by either abstractor.
State supervisor/reabstractors will want to compare their results with the original abstractions themselves manually by printing an incident or by setting up queries to do record
comparisons for specified pairs of incidents. Any discrepancies noted should be reconciled through discussion with the original abstractor. It will be important to distinguish
between the two possible sources of error: true coder disagreement and data entry error.
Retraining or clarification of coding instructions may help with coder disagreement,
while changes in question format may help with data entry error.
Note: Do not reabstract incidents that have not been checked in from a laptop because
their incident number may change when they are checked in.
Label
ReabstractYr
Reabstraction from
data year:
Incident
Text
4
O
SYS
ReabstractInc
Of incident number:
Incident
Text
4
O
SYS
Response Options:
ReabstractYr
ReabstractInc
1-16
Table
Type
Field
Length
Name
Priority
Primacy
Section 2
DOCUMENT VARIABLES
DOCUMENT VARIABLES
2-3
Documents
DOCUMENT VARIABLES
Document type:
Source agency requested from:
Source agency’s internal record number:
Person who entered record:
Date record requested/expected/sought:
Date record rerequested/re-searched:
Date record received:
Date record abstracted/imported:
Date entered data checked:
Document determined to be unavailable:
Document notes field:
Name
Definition
DocTyp
Document type
SrAgen
Source agency requested from
AgenNum
Source agency’s internal record number
UserID
Person who entered record
DtReqs
Date record requested, expected, sought
DtReReqs
Date record re-requested, re-searched
DtRecd
Date record received
DtAbst
Date record abstracted, imported
DtChk
Date entered data checked
DocUnav
Document determined to be unavailable
DocTxt
Document notes field
DocTyp
SrAgen
AgenNum
UserID
DtReqs
DtReReqs
DtRecd
DtAbst
DtChk
DocUnav
DocTxt
Uses
These variables allow a record to be kept of the sources of information used for each
incident. This can be useful in checking information, but they can also be used as an
abstractor “logbook” to track the status of records that have been requested but not
yet received. Moreover, they can be used for measuring timeliness by calculating the
median interval between date of death and date abstracted for each abstractor. See the
Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about handling variables that
identify individual persons or agencies.
2-3
Documents
Discussion
These variables are optional, but their use is encouraged. A press release from a law
enforcement agency or prosecutor should be considered a police report rather than a
newspaper article.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Document type:
Document
Number
2
O
SYS
SrAgen
Source agency
requested from:
Document
Text
50
O
SYS
AgenNum
Source agency’s
internal record number:
Document
Text
50
O
SYS
UserID
Person who entered
record:
Document
Text
15
O
SYS
DtReqs
Date record requested/
expected/sought:
Document
Text
10
O
SYS
DtReReqs
Date record re-requested/
re-searched:
Document
Text
10
O
SYS
DtRecd
Date record received:
Document
Text
10
O
SYS
DtAbst
Date record
abstracted/imported:
Document
Text
10
O
SYS
DtChk
Date entered
data checked:
Document
Text
10
O
SYS
DocUnav
Document determined
to be unavailable:
Document
Number
1
O
SYS
DocTxt
Document notes field:
Document
Text
1000
O
SYS
Name
Label
DocTyp
Response Options:
DocTyp
1
Death certificate
2
Medical examiner report
3
Coroner report
4
Police report
5
SHR
6
NIBRS
7
Crime lab report
8
Toxicology report
9
Hospital discharge record
2-4
Priority Primacy
Documents
Response Options: (Continued)
10
ED record
11
Gun trace
12
EMS report
13
CFRT report
14
Newspaper article
88
Other
SrAgen
AgenNm
UserID
DtReqs
DtReReqs
None
DtRecd
None
DtAbst
and
DtChk
None
DocUnav
0
No
1
Yes
DocTxt
None
2-5
Section 3
PERSON’S IDENTITY
Person type:
PType
3-3
NAME
3-4
Social Security #:
SSN
3-5
AGE
Person’s sex:
3-6
Sex
3-8
RACE
Hispanic/Latino/Spanish:
ADDRESS
3-9
Ethnic
3-11
3-12
Person/Identity
Person type:
PType
Name
Definition
PType
Indicates whether the person is a victim, suspect, or both
Uses
Used to identify a person’s role in an incident.
Discussion
Victims are people who died in a suicide, violence-related homicide, legal intervention,
as the result of a firearm injury, or from an undetermined manner. A baby who dies as
the result of direct, violent injuries sustained before birth should not be recorded as a
victim unless he or she was delivered and lived outside the womb for any period of
time and was issued both a birth certificate and a death certificate.
Suspects are those suspected of having killed another person in an incident, whether
intentionally or (in the case of firearm injuries) unintentionally. When two or more
people attack a victim in an incident, all of the attackers should be recorded as suspects,
regardless of who actually dealt the fatal blow. For example, in the case of two armed
robbers who hold up a store, even if only one actually pulled the trigger, both robbers
should be listed as suspected offenders in the homicide.
Both are victims who also killed someone else in the incident. For example, a person who
kills his wife and himself would have a Ptype of “Both” as would a person who kills a
police officer and is then shot dead himself by another police officer. A suicide victim
has a Ptype of “Victim”, not “Both”, unless they also killed someone else in the incident.
A person’s status as a victim, suspect, or both should be assigned only with reference to
fatal injuries.
One source may report more people in an incident than another, e.g., a suspect may be
mentioned in a police report, but not in the medical examiner records. The value ‘4’ can
be entered for the person(s) not mentioned by a source.
Name
Label
Table
PType
Person type: Person
Type
Number
Field
Length
1
Priority
LR/ER/LR/O
Primacy
CME/DC/PR/SHR
Response Options:
PType
1
Victim
2
Suspect
3
Both victim and suspect
4
This source does not mention this person
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
3-3
Person/Identity
NAME
Last name:
First name:
Middle name:
LName
FName
MName
Name
Definition
LName
Last name of victim or suspect
FName
First name of victim or suspect
MName
Middle name of victim or suspect
Uses
Personal identifiers are used to uniquely identify an individual for linking data across
data sources and for identifying duplicate records. See the Introduction section of this
manual for a discussion about handling variables that can identify individual persons
or agencies.
Discussion
Names are not always accurate unique identifiers, as alternate spellings and versions
of a name are common. Some victims and suspects also use one or more aliases. In
some reporting sites, an individual data source will require that unique identifiers, such
as name or social security number, be stored in hard copy only and not in the electronic
database. If this is the case, it is acceptable to leave these fields blank.
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Text
50
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Person
Text
50
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Middle name: Person
Text
50
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Name
Label
Table
LName
Last name:
Person
FName
First name:
MName
Response Options:
LName
FName
MName
Unk Unknown
3-4
Type
Person/Identity
Social Security #:
SSN
Name
Definition
SSN
Social Security number of victim or suspect
Uses
Personal identifiers are used to uniquely identify an individual for linking data across
data sources and for identifying duplicate records. See the Introduction section of this
manual for a discussion about handling variables that can identify individual persons or
agencies.
Discussion
At some reporting sites, an individual data source will require that unique identifiers,
such as name or social security number be stored in hard copy only, and not in the
electronic database. If this is the case, it is acceptable to leave these fields blank.
Name
SSN
Label
Table
Social Security #: Person
Response Options:
SSN
999999999
Type
Number
Field
Length
9
Priority
Primacy
LR/ER
CME/DC
Unknown
3-5
Person/Identity
AGE
Date of birth:
Age:
Age unit:
DOB
Age
AgeTyp
Name
Definition
DOB
Date of birth of victim or suspect
Age
Age of victim or suspect
AgeTyp
Type of unit (e.g., years, hours) used to report age
Uses
Age is standard demographic information used in epidemiologic analyses. Date of
birth is used to verify age and to assist in uniquely identifying an individual. See the
Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about handling variables that can
identify individual persons or agencies.
Discussion
Age is reported using the same conventions that vital statistics data uses to facilitate
more precise reporting of newborn and infant ages. It is reported in two variables:
“Age” identifies the number of years, months, other units of the victim, and “AgeTyp”
identifies the type of unit used. So, for example, a two-month-old baby has an Age of 2,
and an AgeTyp of 2 (months). In some cases, the victim’s or suspect’s exact age will not
be known. If age is provided within a five-year age range or less, choose the midpoint
of the range; round to the lower year if the midpoint calculation results in a half year.
For example, a suspect reported to be 20 to 25 years of age would be entered as 22.
If an age range of > 5 years is provided, enter the age as unknown. Do not calculate age
from date of birth and date of incident. If age is not provided, code as “Unknown”. For
victims, use the age at the time of death. For suspects, use the age as given in the record
in question whether it is the age at injury or at arrest.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
DOB
Date of birth:
Person
Text
10
Age
Age:
Person
Number
3
LR/ER/LR/O
AgeTyp
Age unit:
Person
Number
1
LR/ER/LR
Response Options:
DOB
Age
999
Unknown
3-6
Priority
LR/ER
Primacy
CME/DC
CME/DC/PR/SHR
CME/DC/PR
Person/Identity
AgeTyp
1
2
3
4
5
6
9
Years
Months
Weeks
Days
Hours
Minutes
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
3-7
Person/Identity
Person’s sex:
Sex
Name
Definition
Sex
Sex of the victim or suspect
Uses
The person’s sex is standard demographic information used in epidemiologic analyses.
Discussion
None
Name
Label
Table
Type
Sex
Person’s sex:
Person
Number
Response Options:
Sex
1
Male
2
Female
9
Unknown
3-8
Field
Length
1
Priority
ER/LR/O/LR
Primacy
DC/CME/SHR/PR
Person/Identity
RACE
White:
Black:
Asian:
Pacific Islander:
American Indian:
Other:
Unspecified:
White
Black
Asian
PacIsland
AmerIndian
OtherRace
Unspecified
Name
Definition
White
Person with origins among any of the original peoples of Europe,
North Africa, or the Middle East
Black
Person with origins among any of the black racial groups of Africa
Asian
Person with origins among any of the original peoples of the Far East,
Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent
PacIsland
Person with origins among any of the original peoples of the
Pacific Islands
AmerIndian
Person with origins among any of the original peoples of
North America and who maintains cultural identification
through tribal affiliation or community recognition
OtherRace
Other
Unspecified
Unspecified
Uses
Although the biological significance of race has been questioned, data on race are used
frequently in public health surveillance and epidemiologic, clinical, and health services
research.
Discussion
Racial categories are neither precise nor mutually exclusive, and the concept of race
lacks clear scientific definition. Starting in 1977, the federal government sought to
standardize data on race and ethnicity among its agencies through the Office of
Management and Budget’s (OMB) Statistical Policy Directive Number 15: Race and
Ethnic Standards for Federal Statistics and Administrative Reporting (OMB 1978).
Statistical Policy Directive Number 15 was replaced and superseded on October 30,
1997. According to the standards, the racial and ethnic categories set forth should not
be interpreted as being primarily biological or genetic in reference. Race and ethnicity
may be thought of in terms of social and cultural characteristics, and ancestry.
3-9
Person/Identity
The following major changes regarding race were made to the standards: (1) The Asian
or Pacific Islander category was separated into two, replacing the existing four categories
with five; (2) When self-identification is used, there should be a method for reporting
more than one race that should take the form of multiple responses to a single question
and should not include a “multiracial” category; (3) Some changes were made to the
definitions of the categories, e.g., Central and South American Indians should be classified as American Indian. If a person’s ethnicity is provided in place of their race,
e.g., race is given as “Hispanic”, and no other valid race value is given, mark their race as
“unspecified”. For SHR data, if race is left blank, enter “Unspecified”. If “Asian/Pacific
Islander” is indicated, check both “Asian” and “PacIsland”.
These new standards were used by the U.S. Census Bureau in the 2000 decennial census.
Other Federal programs have been instructed to adopt the standards as soon as possible,
but not later than January 1, 2003, for household surveys, administrative forms and
records, and other data collections. Most state health departments have not adopted the
new race categories in their vital statistics registries for 2003; rather, each state has set its
own start-up date for the new format and these dates range over the next few years.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
White
White:
Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
Black
Black:
Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
Asian
Asian:
Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
PacIsland
Pacific Islander:
Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
AmerIndian American Indian: Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
OtherRace
Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
Person
Checkbox
1
ER/LR/O/LR
DC/CME/SHR/PR
Other:
Unspecified Unspecified:
Response Options:
White
Black
Asian
PacIsland
AmerIndian
OtherRace
Unspecified
0
No
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
Office of Management and Budget, Revisions to the Standards for Classification
of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg/
ombdir15.html.
3-10
Person/Identity
Hispanic/Latino/Spanish:
Ethnic
Name
Definition
Ethnic
Ethnicity of the victim or suspect of Mexican, Puerto Rican,
Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture
or origin, regardless of race
Uses
Data on ethnicity can be used in public health surveillance, and in epidemiologic,
clinical, and health services research.
Discussion
Ethnicity is a concept used to differentiate population groups on the basis of shared
cultural characteristics or geographic origins. A variety of cultural attributes contribute
to ethnic differentiation, including language, patterns of social interaction, religion, and
styles of dress. However, ethnic differentiation is imprecise and fluid. It is contingent
upon a sense of group identity that can change over time and that involves subjective and
attitudinal influences. Since 1977, the federal government has sought to standardize data
on race and ethnicity among its agencies through the Office of Management and Budget’s
(OMB) Statistical Policy Directive Number 15: Race and Ethnic Standards for Federal
Statistics and Administrative Reporting (OMB 1978). The revision to Directive Number
15 replaces the two ethnic categories — Hispanic and Not of Hispanic Origin — with
“Hispanic or Latino” and “Not Hispanic or Latino”.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Ethnic
Hispanic/Latino/
Spanish:
Person
Number
1
Priority
Primacy
ER/LR/O/LR DC/CME/SHR/PR
Response Options:
Ethnic
0
Not Hispanic or Latino
1
Hispanic or Latino
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
Office of Management and Budget, Revisions to the Standards for Classification
of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg/
ombdir15.html.
3-11
Person/Identity
ADDRESS
State:
County:
City:
Address:
ZIP code:
Country:
US Census tract:
US Census block group:
ResState
ResCounty
Place
ResAddres
ResZip
Countr
CensSt
CensBl
Name
Definition
ResState
Residential state address of victim or suspect,
FIPS 2-digit state code
ResCounty
Residential county address of victim or suspect,
FIPS 3-digit county code
Place
Residential city address of the victim or suspect,
FIPS 5-digit city/town code (“place” code)
ResAddres
Residential street address of the victim or suspect
ResZip
Residential zip code, 5-digit zip code
Countr
Residential country of victim or suspect
CensSt
U.S. Census tract of residence of victim or suspect
CensBl
U.S. Census block group of residence of victim or suspect
Uses
The address is useful to determine the agency responsible for potential public health
interventions, to undertake geocoding, and to calculate population-based injury rates.
The address can also be used to gain access to U.S. Census information about the
socioeconomic status of the victim’s neighborhood. These data elements also identify
non-U.S. residents. See the Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about
handling variables that can identify individual persons or agencies.
Discussion
If a person is currently residing in a short-term facility such as a rehabilitation hospital,
drug treatment program, jail, etc., use his or her home address as their residential
address. If a person is residing in a long-term facility, such as a college dormitory, prison,
or residential nursing home, use the institution’s address. If they are living in a short-term
facility and no residential address is noted, use the address of the short-term facility. The
address information should be collected at the local level in a format that meets the local
standards for geocoding. Reporting sites planning to geocode their data at the local level
3-12
Person/Identity
can generate the census block group and tract in which the incident occurred from a
geocoding program. In some states, the vital statistics registry or police department will
have already geocoded the address and will have census tract and block group information available. The person’s city/town (“place”) and county are coded using standard
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) codes. If the state or country of residence is unknown, enter 99. If the person is a resident of a U.S. territory, enter the FIPS
code for that territory (see the following list). If the person is not a resident of a U.S. state
or territory, enter 88 for “Not applicable”. In general, use whatever is coded on the death
certificate as the place of residence. This should handle tourists, itinerants, part-time
residents, etc. If there is no death certificate, as for living suspects, use whatever state of
residence is provided by the CME and police. Native American reservations should be
coded as the state in which it is located. The NVDRS software provides these codes in
drop-down menus with a convenient user interface. For out-of-state addresses, the
following website supplies FIPS place and county codes: http://geonames.usgs.gov/
fips55.html. FIPS place codes are frequently more specific than standard city/town
designations. For example, they frequently supply codes for neighborhoods of cities.
Note: Vital Statistics data use two coding systems for states: FIPS and their own system.
Please use the FIPS version here. It is okay to look up the zip code in a directory if it is
not provided.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
ResState
State:
Person
Number
100
LR/ER/LR
CME/DC/PR
ResCounty County:
Person
Number
3
LR/ER/LR
CME/DC/PR
Place
Person
Number
5
LR/ER/LR
CME/DC/PR
ResAddres Address:
Person
Text
50
LR/ER/LR
CME/DC/PR
ResZip
ZIP code:
Person
Number
5
LR/ER/LR
CME/DC/PR
Countr
Country:
Person
Text
45
O/O/O
CME/DC/PR
CensSt
US Census
tract:
Person
Text
7
O
DC
CensBl
US Census
block group:
Person
Text
1
O
DC
City:
Response Options:
ResState
1
Alabama
2
Alaska
4
Arizona
5
Arkansas
3-13
Person/Identity
6
8
9
10
11
12
13
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
53
54
55
56
60
3-14
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
American Samoa
Person/Identity
64
Federated States of Micronesia
66
Guam
68
Marshall Islands
69
Northern Mariana Islands
70
Palau
74
U.S. Minor Outlying Islands
78
Virgin Islands of the U.S.
88
Not applicable
99
Unknown
ResCounty
Place
ResAddres
9
Unknown
ResZip
99999 Unknown
Countr
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
American Samoa
Andorra
Angola
Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Aruba
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahamas, The
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
British Virgin
IslandsBrunei Darussalam
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China
Christmas Island
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Colombia
Comoros
Congo, Democratic Republic
of the Congo, Republic of the
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Cote d’Ivoire
Croatia
Cuba
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
3-15
Person/Identity
Falkland Islands
Faroe IslandsFiji
FinlandFrance
French Guiana
French Polynesia
Gabon
Gambia, The
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Gibraltar
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Guyana
Haiti
Holy See
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Jan Mayen
Japan
Jersey
Jordan
Kazakstan
Kenya
Kiribati
Korea-North
Korea-South
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Latvia
Lebanon
3-16
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macao
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Man
Marshall Islands
Martinique
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mayotte
Mexico
Micronesia
Moldova
Monaco
Mongolia
Montserrat
Morocco
Mozambique
Myanmar
Namibia
Nauru
Nepal
Netherlands
Netherlands Antilles
New Caledonia
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niger
Nigeria
Niue
Norfolk Island
Northern Mariana
Islands
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palau
Palestine
Panama
Person/Identity
Papua New GuineaParaguay
Peru
Philippines
Pitcairn
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Reunion
Romania
Russia
Rwanda
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
San Marino
Sao Tome and Principe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Africa
Spain
Sri Lanka
St. Helena
Sudan, The
Suriname
Svalbard
Swasiland
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Thailand
Togo
Tokelau
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago
Tunisia
Turkey
Turkmenistan
Turks and Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Venezuela
Vietnam
Virgin Islands of the U.S.
Wallis and Futuna
Western Sahara
Yemen
Yugoslavia
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Other
Unknown
CensSt
9999.99
Unknown
9999.99
Unknown
CensBl
Data Standards or Guidelines
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS); National Institute of Standards
and Technologies; U.S. Bureau of the Census; U.S. Postal Service
3-17
Section 4
DEATH CERTIFICATE
MAIN ELEMENTS
MULTIPLE CONDITIONS
Death Certificate number: DthCrtNum
Birth place:
BthPlc
Country of birth if not listed: BthTxt
Veteran status: Vetran
Marital status: MarStat
Place of death: Dthplace
Place of death if other: PDthTx
Date pronounced dead: PrncdDt
Date of death: DthDt
State of death: DthState
4-3
4-4
4-9
4-10
4-11
CAUSE OF DEATH
4-13
Underlying cause of death code: ICD_10
4th: 4th_ICD
5th: 5th_ICD
4-14
Autopsy performed: Autpsy
Person was pregnant: Preg
Manner of death: Manner
Date of injury: IDate
Time of injury: ITime
Type of location where injured: LocTyp
Injured at work: AtWork
4-18
4-19
4-20
4-21
4-22
4-24
INJURY ADDRESS
4-26
Survival time no. of units: Surviv
Unit of time used in survival time: Sunit
Education: Educ
Number years education: OldEduc
4-30
4-6
4-7
4-8
4-31
USUAL OCCUPATION
4-34
Multiple conditions on Death Certificate
1-20: Mult1001 through Mult1020
Mult1001D4 through Mult1020D5
Mult1001D5 through Mult1020D5
4-36
Person/DC/Main Elements
Death Certificate number:
DthCrtNum
Name
Definition
DthCrtNum
Victim’s death certificate number
Uses
The death certificate number is used only for data linkage and tracking purposes. See the
Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about handling variables that can
identify individual persons or agencies.
Discussion
None
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
DthCrtNum
Death Certificate number:
Person
Text
50
Priority Primacy
ER
DC
Response Options:
DthCrtNum
4-3
Person/DC/Main Elements
Birth place:
Country of birth if not listed:
BthPlc
BthTxt
Name
Definition
BthPlc
Person’s state of birth
BthTxt
Person’s country of birth, if not U.S.
Uses
Used for identifying immigrants.
Discussion
The state of birth is indicated on the death certificate and is coded by the vital statistics
registry using the code list below. Note: the code list used for place of birth is not a FIPS
code list, it is the National Center for Health Statistics code list. If the victim was not
born in the United States, please enter the victim’s country of birth and refer to code list
for Country.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
BthPlc
Birth place:
Person
Number
2
LR/LR
DC/CME
BthTxt
Country of birth
if not listed:
Person
Text
30
O/O
DC/CME
Response Options:
BthPlc
1
Alabama
2
Alaska
3
Arizona
4
Arkansas
5
California
6
Colorado
7
Connecticut
8
Delaware
9
District of Columbia
10
Florida
11
Georgia
12
Hawaii
13
Idaho
14
Illinois
15
Indiana
16
Iowa
17
Kansas
18
Kentucky
19
Louisiana
20
Maine
4-4
Person/DC/Main Elements
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
61
62
88
99
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Puerto Rico
Virgin Island
Guam
Canada
Cuba
Mexico
American Samoa
Northern Marianas
Remainder of the world (specify in birthplace text)
Unknown
BthTxt
Refer to Countr
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-5
Person/DC/Main Elements
Veteran status: Vetran
Name
Definition
Vetran
Has the person ever served in the U.S. Armed Forces?
Uses
Used to examine violent injury deaths among veterans.
Discussion
Veteran status is indicated on the death certificate in section “Ever in U.S. Armed
Forces”. If a state’s death certificate has the variant wording, “If U.S. War veteran,
specify war,” a blank or missing response should be coded as “Unknown” rather than
“No”.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Vetran
Veteran status:
Person
Number
1
LR
DC
Response Options:
Vetran
0
No
1
Yes
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-6
Person/DC/Main Elements
Marital status:
MarStat
Name
Definition
MarStat
Person’s marital status
Uses
The victim’s marital status is standard demographic information used in epidemiologic
analyses. It can be used to explore whether certain types of marital status are a risk factor
for violent death (such as widowhood as a risk for suicide).
Discussion
Marital status is regularly completed on the death certificate and often noted in law
enforcement or medical examiner records. Marital status should be completed for
persons of all ages, including children. If the marital status is not explicitly noted, code
as 9, “Unknown”. In an incident in which a person kills their spouse, their marital status
should be coded as “Married”, not “Widowed”. Use “Widowed” for a person of either sex
whose spouse has died. Use the “Single” option when this term is used in CME records
and it is not clear whether the person was never married, widowed, divorced, or separated. Consider a person in a common-law marriage to be “Married”.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
MarStat
Marital status:
Person
Number
1
LR/LR
DC/CME
Response Options:
MarStat
1
Married
2
Never Married
3
Widowed
4
Divorced
5
Married, but separated
6
Single, not otherwise specified
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-7
Person/DC/Main Elements
Place of death:
Place of death if other:
Dthplace
PDthTx
Name
Definition
Dthplace
Victim’s place of death
PDthTx
Text if place of death is “other”
Uses
The place of death may be useful for emergency response planning and to assist in
evaluating hospital or EMS services.
Discussion
The code list for Place of Death is the list used on the new standard U.S. death certificate.
The older standard certificate uses slightly different codes (e.g., there is no separate code
for “Hospice,” and “residence” is used rather than “Decedent’s home”.) If your state uses
the older code list, “residence” is comparable to “Decedent’s home” (although this may
sometimes be incorrect). Some deaths will be coded on the death certificate as “Other”
for place of death. This will usually refer to “Scene” deaths (e.g., a homicide victim who
dies on the street). If “Other” is coded on the death certificate, enter the place of death in
the free text field if the place is specified on the death certificate. If it is not, leave the
text field blank. Do not enter the information supplied in the death certificate’s item,
“Place of injury”, as this may be a different location than the place where the victim
actually died. “Body location” can be used as place of death if there is no indication that
the person died elsewhere.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Dthplace
Place of death:
Person
Number
1
ER/LR
DC/CME
PDthTx
Place of death if other:
Person
Text
30
O/O
DC/CME
Response Options:
Dthplace
1
Hospital inpatient
2
ED/outpatient
3
Dead on arrival
4
Hospice facility
5
Nursing home, long-term care facility
6
Decedent’s home
7
Other (specify)
9
Undetermined
PDthTx
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-8
Person/DC/Main Elements
Date pronounced dead: PrncdDt
Name
Definition
PrncdDt
Date on which the victim was found or pronounced dead
Uses
This variable is useful when a person is found dead and the actual date of death is
unclear. It provides a date that the death must have preceded.
Discussion
This field is found on the standard death certificate as Item 24, “Date pronounced dead”.
It should differ from the actual date of death only when death was not observed and may
have occurred prior to the date the body was found. This date should be known in every
case, whereas the day, month, or even year of actual death may be unknown.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
PrncdDt
Date pronounced
dead:
Person
Text
10
ER
DC
Response Options:
PrncdDt
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-9
Person/DC/Main Elements
Date of death:
DthDt
Name
Definition
DthDt
Date of victim’s death
Uses
Date of death determines the data year in which the victim will be counted in conjunction
with date and time of the incident and with survival time. It can be used for emergency
response planning and to assist in evaluating the effectiveness of EMS services and
hospital care. See the Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about handling
variables that can identify individual persons or agencies.
Discussion
When recording the information from the death certificate, enter the date of death exactly
as it appears in the “Date of Death” field, even if the word “found” or “pronounced”
precedes it on the hard copy. If the date on the CME report is referred to as an actual date
of death, record it. If the date is referred to as the date on which the body was found or
the death was pronounced, and it is unknown on which date the death actually occurred,
enter only that portion of the date that is known. For example, if a person was last seen
on a Friday and their body was discovered on a Monday and it is unknown when they
died, enter the actual month and year, but enter “99” for the day.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
DthDt
Date of death:
Person
Text
10
ER/LR
DC/CME
Response Options:
DthDt
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
4-10
Person/DC/Main Elements
State of death:
DthState
Name
Definition
DthState
State in which the death occurred
Uses
Identifies the state in which the death certificate was filed. This variable will be used to
facilitate data sharing across states when state of injury and state of death differ.
Discussion
State of death will usually be the same as state of injury; however, on occasion the two
will differ. This is true for victims who are injured in one state and transported to another
state for emergency medical care. If the state of death is unknown, enter the state in
which the person was pronounced dead, i.e., the state that issued the death certificate. If
the person was pronounced dead in a U.S. territory, enter the FIPS code for that territory.
If the person was not pronounced dead in any U.S. state or territory, enter 88, for “Not
applicable”. Native American reservations should be coded as the state where it is
located.
Name
Label
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Number
2
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Table
DthState State of death: Person
Response Options:
DthState
1
Alabama
2
Alaska
4
Arizona
5
Arkansas
6
California
8
Colorado
9
Connecticut
10
Delaware
11
District of Columbia
12
Florida
13
Georgia
15
Hawaii
16
Idaho
17
Illinois
18
Indiana
19
Iowa
20
Kansas
21
Kentucky
22
Louisiana
23
Maine
24
Maryland
25
Massachusetts
4-11
Person/DC/Main Elements
26
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
53
54
55
56
60
64
66
68
69
70
74
78
88
99
Michigan
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
American Samoa
Federated States of Micronesia
Guam
Marshall Islands
Northern Mariana Islands
Palau
U.S. Minor Outlying Islands
Virgin Islands of the U.S.
Not applicable
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS); National Institute of
Standards and Technologies; U.S. Postal Service
4-12
Person/DC/Main Elements
CAUSE OF DEATH
Immediate cause of death text:
Cause leading to immediate cause text:
Next antecedent cause of death text:
Underlying cause of death text:
CausIA
CausIB
CausIC
CausID
Name
Definition
CausIA
Immediate cause of death (text)
CausIB
Cause leading to immediate cause of death (text)
CausIC
Next antecedent cause of death (text)
CausID
Underlying cause of death (text)
Uses
The text that the death certifier supplies on the death certificate regarding the causes of
death can be used to identify reportable cases in a timely manner. While coded data that
captures the underlying cause of death using ICD codes is an efficient means of identifying confirmed cases, these coded data will not be available in some states for many
months.
Discussion
Enter the text exactly as it appears on the death certificate. The letters in the variable
names correspond to the lettered lines appearing on the death certificate. Some death
certificates will not have an entry on all four lines, so not all four variables need to be
completed.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
CausIA
Immediate cause of death text:
Person
Text
120
ER
DC
CausIB
Cause leading to immediate
cause text:
Person
Text
120
O
DC
CausIC
Next antecedent cause of death text:
Person
Text
120
O
DC
CausID
Underlying cause of death text:
Person
Text
120
O
DC
Priority Primacy
Response Options:
CausIA
CausIB
CausIC
CausID
None
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-13
Person/DC/Main Elements
Underlying cause of death code:
4th:
5th:
ICD_10
4th_ICD
5th_ICD
Name
Definition
ICD_10
Underlying cause-of-death code (ICD-10)
4th_ICD
4th
5th_ICD
5th
Uses
The underlying cause of death assigned on the death certificate is the basis for the
nation’s official count of deaths due to homicide, suicide, and other causes. A comparison
of this variable and the CME variable “Manner”, and the abstractor variable “Type of
Death”, will indicate the degree to which data sources vary in classifying deaths.
Discussion
Cause of death is coded using the system established by the World Health Organization’s
International Classification of Diseases (ICD). A variable should be coded exactly as it
appears in the underlying cause of death field in death certificate data. If death certificate
data are not available at the time that the reporting site is gathering data on the case, code
as Unknown. These data may be reported at a later update. Use the decimal point following the second digit. Do not use trailing zeros after the decimal point (unless a true zero
is part of the actual code). The code options listed below indicate codes in the reportable
range.
The fourth ICD-10 digit in the underlying cause of death code is used with some
external cause code categories to identify the place of occurrence of the external cause
where relevant. The fifth ICD-10 digit is provided for optional use in a supplementary
character position with some categories to indicate the activity of the injured person at
the time the event occurred. This subclassification should not be confused with, or be
used instead of, the recommended fourth-character subdivisions provided to indicate
the place of occurrence.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
ICD_10
Underlying cause of death code: Person
Text
6
O
DC
4th_ICD
4th
Person
Text
1
O
DC
5th_ICD
5th
Person
Text
1
O
DC
4-14
Person/DC/Main Elements
Response Options:
ICD_10
Format: L##.## (the first character must be a letter, followed by at least two
and up to four digits)
ICD-10 coding of first 3 to 4 characters (cause of injury):
U01
Assault by terrorism
U01.0 Assault by terrorism by explosion of marine weapons
U01.1 Assault by terrorism involving destruction of aircraft
U01.2 Assault by terrorism involving other explosions and fragments
U01.3 Assault by terrorism involving fires, conflagration, hot substances
U01.4 Assault by terrorism involving firearms
U01.5 Assault by terrorism involving nuclear weapons
U01.6 Assault by terrorism involving biological weapons
U01.7 Assault by terrorism involving chemical weapons
U01.8 Assault by terrorism, other specified
U01.9 Assault by terrorism, unspecified
U02
Sequelae of terrorism
U03
Intentional self-harm by terrorism
U03.0 Intentional self-harm by terrorism involving explosions and fragments
U03.9 Intentional self-harm by terrorism by other and unspecified means
W32 Accidental handgun discharge
W33 Accidental rifle, shotgun, and larger firearm discharge
W34 Accidental discharge from other and unspecified firearms (this code does
not discriminate between firearms and nonpowder guns)
X60–X69 Intentional self-poisoning
X70
Intentional self-harm by hanging, strangulation, and suffocation
X71
Intentional self-harm by drowning and submersion
X72
Intentional self-harm by handgun discharge
X73
Intentional self-harm by rifle, shotgun, and larger firearm discharge
X74
Intentional self-harm by other and unspecified firearm discharge
X75
Intentional self-harm by explosive material
X76
Intentional self-harm by smoke, fire, and flames
X77
Intentional self-harm by steam, hot vapors, and hot objects
X78
Intentional self-harm by sharp object
X79
Intentional self-harm by blunt object
X80
Intentional self-harm by jumping from a high place
X81
Intentional self-harm by jumping or lying before moving object
X82
Intentional self-harm by crashing a motor vehicle
X83
Intentional self-harm by other specified means
X84
Intentional self-harm by unspecified means
X85
Assault by drugs, medicaments, and biological substances
X86
Assault by corrosive substance
X87
Assault by pesticides
X88
Assault by gases and vapors
X89
Assault by other specified chemicals and noxious substances
X90
Assault by other unspecified chemicals and noxious substances
X91
Assault by hanging, strangulation, and suffocation
X92
Assault by drowning and submersion
4-15
Person/DC/Main Elements
X93
X94
X95
X96
X97
X98
X99
Y00
Y01
Y02
Y03
Y04
Y05
Y06
Y07
Y08
Y09
Y10
Y11
Y12
Y13
Y14
Y15
Y16
Y17
Y18
Y19
Y20
Y21
Y22
Y23
Y24
Y25
Y26
Y27
Y28
Y29
Y30
Y31
4-16
Assault by handgun discharge
Assault by rifle, shotgun, and larger firearm discharge
Assault by other and unspecified firearm discharge
Assault by explosive material
Assault by smoke, fire, and flames
Assault by steam, hot vapors, and hot objects
Assault by sharp object
Assault by blunt object
Assault by pushing from high place
Assault by pushing or placing victim before moving object
Assault by crashing a motor vehicle
Assault by bodily force (unarmed brawl or fight)
Sexual assault by bodily force
Neglect and abandonment
Other maltreatment syndromes (physical or sexual abuse, torture)
Assault by other specified means
Assault by unspecified means
Poisoning by and exposure to nonopioid analgesics, antipyretics,
and antirheumatics undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to antiepileptic, sedative-hypnotic,
antiparkinsonism, and psychotropic drugs, not elsewhere classified,
undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to narcotics and psychodysleptics
hallucinogens, not elsewhere classified, undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to other drugs acting on the autonomic
nervous system, undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified drugs, medicaments,
and biological substances, undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to alcohol, undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to organic solvents and halogenated
hydrocarbons and their vapors, undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to other gases and vapors,
undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to pesticides, undetermined intent
Poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified chemicals
and noxious substances, undetermined intent
Hanging, strangulation, and suffocation, undetermined intent
Drowning and submersion, undetermined intent
Handgun discharge, undetermined intent
Rifle, shotgun, and larger firearm discharge, undetermined intent
Other and unspecified firearm discharge, undetermined intent
Contact with explosive material, undetermined intent
Exposure to smoke, fire, and flames, undetermined intent
Contact with steam, hot vapors, and hot objects, undetermined intent
Contact with sharp object, undetermined intent
Contact with blunt object, undetermined intent
Falling, jumping, or pushed from a high place, undetermined intent
Falling, lying, or running before or into moving object,
undetermined intent
Person/DC/Main Elements
Y32
Y33
Y34
Y35.0
Y35.1
Y35.2
Y35.3
Y35.4
Y35.6
Y35.7
Y86
Y87.0
Y87.1
Y87.2
Y89.0
Y89.9
L88.88
L99.99
Crashing of motor vehicle, undetermined intent
Other specified events, undetermined intent
Unspecified event, undetermined intent
Legal intervention involving firearm discharge
Legal intervention involving explosives
Legal intervention involving gas
Legal intervention involving blunt objects
Legal intervention involving sharp objects
Legal intervention involving other specified means
Legal intervention, means unspecified
Sequelae of other accidents (where determined to be due to firearms)
Sequelae of intentional self-harm
Sequelae of assault
Sequelae of events of undetermined intent
Sequelae of legal intervention
Sequelae of unspecified external cause
Not applicable*
Unknown or missing*
* Not an ICD-10 code, but an added code
4th_ICD
ICD-10 coding of 4th character (type of place of occurrence) — applies only
to codes in the W32 to Y34 range above, except Y06 and Y07.
0
Home
1
Residential institution
2
School, institution, public administrative area
(e.g., courthouse, hospital, daycare center)
3
Sports and athletic area
4
Street and highway
5
Trade and service area
6
Industrial and construction (e.g., factory, shipyard)
7
Farm
8
Other
9
Unspecified
5th_ICD
ICD-10 Coding of 5th character (type of activity when injured) — applies only
to codes in the W32 to Y34 range above.
0
While engaged in sports activity
1
While engaged in leisure activity
2
While working for income
3
While engaged in other types of work (e.g., chores, school)
4
While resting, sleeping, eating, or engaging in other
vital activities
5
While engaged in other specified activities
6
While engaged in unspecified activities
Data Standards or Guidelines
(ICD-10) International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health
Problems: 10th Revision: Geneva: World Health Organization 1992.
4-17
Person/DC/Main Elements
Autopsy performed:
Autpsy
Name
Definition
Autpsy
Autopsy performed on the victim?
Uses
Decedents who have been autopsied are likely to have more reliable cause of death codes
and pregnancy findings.
Discussion
A yes/no item appears on the death certificate to indicate if an autopsy was performed.
Autopsies are not always performed on every case that comes to the attention of a CME.
For example, a witnessed suicide may not be autopsied. In some cases, a partial autopsy
may be performed. For example, a person who kills him or herself with a gunshot wound
to the head may receive a head-only autopsy. A “visual-only autopsy” (that is, the body
was visually inspected, but not physically examined) does not qualify as an autopsy here.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Autpsy
Autopsy performed:
Person
Number
1
LR/ER
CME/DC
Response Options:
Autpsy
0
Not autopsied
1
Autopsied (full or partial)
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-18
Person/DC/Main Elements
Person was pregnant:
Preg
Name
Definition
Preg
Person was pregnant or recently pregnant at the time of death
Uses
This variable is used to identify pregnant or recently pregnant victims and to document
types of violence against pregnant and postpartum women. It is also useful in documenting a potentially precipitating circumstance in suicide cases.
Discussion
Victim’s pregnancy status is often noted on the death certificate and in the CME report.
Findings are more likely to be authoritative if a full autopsy has been performed. This
variable should be coded for all female victims regardless of age. The variable will not
apply to males. It is based on the codes used on the new U.S. standard death certificate.
As such, it collects pregnancy status at the time of death, not at the time of injury. So, for
example, if a pregnant woman was assaulted, miscarried, and died a month later, she
would be coded in the CME version of the variable as “Not pregnant but pregnant within
42 days of death,” not as “Pregnant at time of death”. Code “Unknown”, regardless of the
victim’s age, if the victim’s pregnancy status is not mentioned on the record for the CME
version of the variable or for states that have added their own pregnancy variable to their
death certificate. If the victim is noted by the CME or death certificate as “Not pregnant”,
but there is no mention as to whether she was pregnant in the year preceding her death,
code the variable as “Unknown”. If your state’s death certificate has a pregnancy variable
that does not match the national standard, use the 4 and 5 options to capture this information on the DC screen. Continue to use the 0–3 options to code this information on the
CME screen.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Preg
Person was pregnant:
Person
Number
1
LR/LR
CME/DC
Response Options:
Preg
0
Not pregnant within last year
1
Pregnant at time of death
2
Not pregnant but pregnant w/in 42 days of death
3
Not pregnant but pregnant 43 days to 1 year before death
4
Not pregnant, not otherwise specified
5
Pregnant, not otherwise specified
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown if pregnant within past year
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-19
Person/DC/Main Elements
Manner of death:
Manner
Name
Definition
Manner
Manner of death
Uses
Manner of death is a broad classification of the cause of death as natural, accidental,
suicide, homicide, pending investigation, or not determined. Manner is determined by
the coroner or medical examiner and, when considered in conjunction with the narrative
cause of death statements on the death certificate, is the basis for how the official underlying cause of death is coded in vital statistics data. Data describing the manner of death
are useful for public health surveillance, for health care planning and administration, and
for clinical and health services, and epidemiologic research. Because the CME’s manner
of death sometimes contradicts the manner implied by the death certificate’s underlying
cause-of-death code, the police designation of the death, or the death type assigned to
the victim by the abstractor, it is useful to document manner by source.
Discussion
CMEs investigate suspicious injury deaths and determine the likely manner of death
using a check box on the death certificate. Record the manner of death exactly as it
appears on the death certificate and CME report. If a manner is noted as “Pending
investigation,” check back on the case later to update the manner. “Pending” is considered a temporary designation. Since states’ death certificates may have a state-added
code to indicate “Legal intervention” as the manner of death, code “Legal intervention”
only if it is presented on the death certificate. Do not use the DC manner for the CME
manner field even if the DC is found in the ME records. Record the manner from the
CME records.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Manner
Manner of death:
Person
Number
1
LR/ER
CME/DC
Response Options:
Manner
1
Natural
2
Accident
3
Suicide
4
Homicide
5
Pending investigation
6
Could not be determined
7
Legal intervention
9
Record not available or blank
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-20
Person/DC/Main Elements
Date of injury:
Time of injury:
IDate
ITime
Name
Definition
IDate
Date of injury
ITime
Time of Injury
Uses
Date of injury can be used to examine trends over time in violent deaths, to detect epidemics, and to test for seasonal effects on violent death. Time of injury can be used to identify
times of day incidents may be more likely to occur. Date and time of injury can also be
used to interpret toxicology test results. See the Introduction section of this manual for a
discussion about handling variables that can identify individual persons or agencies.
Discussion
Exact date and time of injury are sometimes unknown, as in an unwitnessed suicide or
homicide. Do not enter date that the victim was last seen if actual date of injury is
unknown. The software allows for partially known date information to be entered.
For example, if a suicide victim was last seen July 6th and the body was discovered
July 7th, but the day the victim was injured was unknown, date of injury can be coded
as 07/99/2003. If month and day are unknown, but the year is known, code the date as
99/99/2003. If no information is known about when the incident occurred (as in when
skeletal remains are found), it is acceptable to code date of injury as 99/99/9999. If a
range of greater than one hour is noted for the time of injury (e.g., “sometime between
9:30 a.m. and noon”), treat time as unknown. If a range of less than an hour is given
(e.g., “around 9:30 a.m.” or “between 9:30 and 10:30”), code that as the lowest time in
the range (0930 in both cases). Time of injury is coded using the 24-hour military format.
Midnight is 0000.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
IDate
Date of injury:
Person
Text
10
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
ITime
Time of injury:
Person
Text
5
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Response Options:
IDate
mm\dd\yyyy
ITime
####
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
4-21
Person/DC/Main Elements
Type of location where injured:
LocTyp
Name
Definition
LocTyp
Type of place at which the injury occurred
Uses
Data on the type of place at which an injury occurred help to describe the injuryproducing event and are valuable for planning and evaluating prevention programs.
Discussion
Code the location at which the victim was injured. Designations of specific buildings
(such as “House, apartment” or “Bar, nightclub”) include both the building itself and the
area directly outside, such as a driveway, porch, or front walk. If a victim was injured in
a variety of locations (e.g., the victim was stabbed on a bus and was pursued by the
attacker off the bus and into a store and stabbed a second time), code the location at
which the victim was first injured. Events that occur on public sidewalks should be
coded as “Street”, with the exception of those occurring on sidewalks that are the private
property of an adjacent building. Those should be coded to the building. For example,
an incident that occurs on a walkway on the front lawn of a home should be coded as
“House, apartment”. If an incident occurs in a garage at a private home, code “House,
apartment”. If an incident occurs in a commercial parking garage, parking lot, or a garage
used by four or more different households (e.g., a garage serving a large apartment
building), code the location as “12 – Parking lot/public parking garage”. If an incident
occurs while the victim is in a motor vehicle, please code “4 – Motor vehicle” rather than
the location of the motor vehicle. Injury “site”, injury “location”, and injury “scene” can
all be used as synonyms. If the injury occurred in a “home,” put down “House, apartment” even if it is not certain that this was the victim’s home.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
LocTyp
Type of location
where injured:
Person
Number
2
ER/LR/LR
DC/PR/CME
Response Options:
LocTyp
1
House, apartment, including driveway, porch, yard
2
Street/road, sidewalk, alley
3
Highway, freeway
4
Motor vehicle (excluding school bus, 15 and public transportation, 21)
5
Bar, nightclub
6
Service station
7
Bank, credit union, ATM location
8
Liquor store
9
Other commercial establishment (e.g., grocery store,
retail outlet, laundromat), including parking lot
10
Industrial or construction areas (e.g., factory, warehouse)
4-22
Person/DC/Main Elements
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
66
99
Office building
Parking lot/public parking garage (e.g., parking lot at mall,
parking lot shared by four or more households)
Abandoned house, building, or warehouse
Sports or athletic area (e.g., stadium, baseball field, gymnasium,
recreation center)
School bus
Child care center, daycare, preschool
Elementary school, middle school (i.e., K-8) including school
dormitory, residential school
High school. including school dormitory, residential school
College/University, including dormitory, fraternity/sorority
Unspecified school
Public transportation or station (e.g., bus, train, plane, airport,
depot, taxi)
Synagogue, church, temple
Hospital or medical facility
Supervised residential facility (e.g., shelter, halfway house,
group home)
Farm
Jail, prison, detention facility
Park, playground, public use area
Natural area (e.g., field, river, beaches, woods)
Hotel/motel
Other (e.g., on railroad tracks)
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
4-23
Person/DC/Main Elements
Injured at work:
AtWork
Name
Definition
AtWork
Injury occurred at work or while the person was working
Uses
Knowing the relationship of the incident to a person’s work can help determine the
impact of violence and suicide in the workplace and can be used to plan and develop
work-related violence prevention programs.
Discussion
“AtWork” includes those incidents that occur while the person is at work or working.
These injuries could occur at the person’s place of work or off-site during the course of
work-related activities. For example, a person who is murdered while driving a truck to
deliver produce should be coded as a work-related injury. However, a person who is shot
while commuting between work and home would not be considered to have suffered a
work-related injury. The AtWork definition applies only to current jobs. The “Injured at
work” item on the death certificate is supposed to be filled out for all injury victims with
the exception of those less than age 14 (unless warranted for a younger child injured at
work). “Not applicable” can therefore be coded for victims ages 13 years and younger.
An injury at work can occur:
• on employer premises while engaged in work activity, apprenticing, or
in vocational training (regardless of the relationship between the victim
and suspect);
• on employer premises while on break, in hallways, rest room, cafeteria,
or storage area;
• on employer parking lots while working, arriving or leaving;
• while working for pay or compensation, including at home;
• while working as a volunteer EMS, firefighter, or law enforcement officer;
• while working in a family business, including family farm (activity should
be clearly related to a profit-oriented business);
• while traveling on business, including to and from customer/business contacts;
• while engaged in work activity where a vehicle is considered the work
environment.
An injury at work does not include:
• commuting to or from work;
• engaging in criminal activity as a means of economic support;
• engaging in recreational activities on employer controlled facilities
(e.g., games) for personal enjoyment on employer premises;
• on employer premises while victim was visiting for non-work purposes
(i.e., not on official business);
• working as a homemaker at homemaking activities;
4-24
Person/DC/Main Elements
•
engaging in school activities while enrolled as a student;
•
working for self or for no profit (e.g., mowing yard, repairing own roof,
hobby, recreational activities)
•
operating a vehicle (personal or commercial) for non-work purposes
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
AtWork
Injured at work:
Person
Number
1
ER/LR/LR
DC/PR/CME
Response Options:
AtWork
0
No, injury did not occur at work or while the victim was working
1
Yes, injury occurred at work or while the victim was working
8
Not applicable (e.g., child, unemployed, retiree)
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-25
Person/DC/Main Elements
INJURY ADDRESS
State of injury FIPS code:
County of Injury:
City of injury FIPS code:
Street and number of injury site:
US Census block group of injury:
US Census tract of injury:
InjState
County
InjPlace
InjAddres
CnsBlk
CnsTrt
Name
Definition
InjState
State in which injury was inflicted
County
County in which injury occurred (FIPS code)
InjPlace
City/town in which injury was inflicted
InjAddres
Street address at which injury was inflicted
CnsBlk
Census block in which injury was inflicted
CnsTrt
Census tract in which injury was inflicted
Uses
The address of the incident is used to determine the agency responsible for potential
public health interventions; to gain information about the socioeconomic status (SES)
of the neighborhoods where injuries occur (via U.S. Census data); to map incidents;
and to conduct analyses of the distribution of cases by SES and geographic area. See
the Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about handling variables that
can identify individual persons or agencies.
Discussion
If the incident covers more than one address, code the address where the first injury
was inflicted. In some cases, there will not be an explicit address for the injury incident
(e.g., in a field or park). In these cases, record the nearest address or cross streets. If the
nearest street address or intersection is not available from the records, enter the place
name, e.g., the name of the park or beach. The address information should be collected
at the local level in a format that meets the local standards for geocoding. Reporting sites
planning to geocode their data at the local level can generate the census block group and
tract where the incident occurred from a geocoding program. In some states, the vital
statistics registry or police department will have already geocoded the address and will
have census tract and block group information available.
The person’s city/town (“Place”) is coded using standard Federal Information Processing
Standards (FIPS) codes. The NVDRS software provides these codes in drop-down menus
with a convenient user interface. For out-of-state addresses, the following website will
supply FIPS place codes: http://geonames.usgs.gov/fips55.html. FIPS place codes are
frequently more specific than standard city/town designations. For example, they
frequently supply codes for neighborhoods of cities.
4-26
Person/DC/Main Elements
The county is coded using standard Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)
codes. These codes are provided in drop-down menus in the NVDRS software. For
out-of-state addresses, the following website will supply FIPS county codes:
http://geonames.usgs.gov/fips55.html.
If the state of injury or country of injury is unknown, enter 99. If the place of injury is a
U.S. territory, enter the FIPS code for that territory. If the place of injury was known to
be outside of the U.S. and its territories, enter 88 for “Not applicable”. Native American
reservations should be coded as the state in which it is located.
Note: Vital Statistics data use two coding systems for states: FIPS and their own system.
Please use the FIPS version here.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
InjState
State of injury
FIPS code:
Person
Number
2
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
County
County of Injury:
Person
Number
3
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
InjPlace
City of injury
FIPS code:
Person
Number
5
ER/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Person
Text
100
O/LR/LR
DC/CME/PR
Street and number
InjAddres of injury site:
CnsBlk
US Census block
group of injury:
Person
Text
1
O
DC
CnsTrt
US Census tract
of injury:
Person
Text
7
O
DC
Response Options:
InjState
1
2
4
5
6
8
9
10
11
12
13
15
16
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
4-27
Person/DC/Main Elements
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
53
54
55
56
60
64
66
68
69
70
74
78
88
99
4-28
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
American Samoa
Federated States of Micronesia
Guam
Marshall Islands
Northern Mariana Islands
Palau
U.S. Minor Outlying Islands
Virgin Islands of the U.S.
Not applicable
Unknown
Person/DC/Main Elements
County
999
InjPlace
99999
InjAddres
9
CnsBlk
9
CnsTrt
9999.99
Unknown
Unknown
Unknown
Unknown
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS); National Institute of Standards
and Technologies; U.S. Bureau of the Census; U.S. Postal Service
4-29
Person/DC/Main Elements
Survival time no. of units:
Unit of time used in survival time:
Surviv
Sunit
Name
Definition
Surviv
Interval between injury and death
Sunit
Unit used to report interval between injury and death
Uses
Survival time can be used to evaluate health outcome data and EMS system needs. It
can also be useful in interpreting toxicology test results.
Discussion
Survival time is noted on the death certificate in the section called “Approximate
interval between onset and death” to the right of the cause of death text. It is often either
explicitly mentioned in the CME’s report or it can be calculated based on date and time
of injury and death. If date and time of injury or death are not known, do not calculate
survival based on the interval between the time the person was last seen and the body
found (unless that was under two hours). Use only the survival time listed for the
violent injury. Do not use the survival time listed for the consequences or complications
of injury. Do not add the survival times listed next to each cause of death listed on the
death certificate. Indicate the length of survival interval in Surviv and the units of measurement for the interval (e.g., minutes, hours, days) in Sunit. For under two hours, use
minutes; for two hours through 47 hours, use hours; for 48 hours and over, use days.
For 365 or more days, use years. Round to the nearest unit. If survival time was noted
as a range, use the high end of the range (e.g., 15–30 minutes, use 30). If survival
time is not precisely noted, indicate 999 in Surviv and the applicable unit in Sunit
(e.g., “patient survived a few minutes” would be 999 in Surviv and 1 [minutes] in Sunit).
If death is described as “immediate,” “sudden,” or “instantaneous,” indicate 0 in Surviv
and 1 [minutes] in Sunit.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Surviv
Survival time
no. of units:
Person
Number
3
O/O
DC/CME
Sunit
Unit of time used
in survival time:
Person
Number
1
O/O
DC/CME
4-30
Person/DC/Main Elements
Response Options:
Surviv
999
Unknown
Sunit
1
Minutes
2
Hours
3
Days
4
Years
5
Months
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
4-31
Person/DC/Main Elements
Education:
Number years education:
Educ
OldEduc
Name
Definition
Educ
Person’s education level
OldEduc
Number of years of education
Uses
The victim’s educational level is an important indicator of socioeconomic status and is
used in epidemiologic and other scientific analyses. For very young children who are
not in school, code as 0.
Discussion
The options for the “Education” variable are those on the 2003 death certificate. Since
not all states will have moved to the new format by 2003, the pre-2003 education format
is provided in the “Number years education” variable. Only one of the two options has
to be completed on the DC Main Elements screen. Vocational and trade school should
be coded as “High school graduate”.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Educ
Education:
Person
Number
1
O/O
DC/CME
Person
Number
2
O
DC
Number years
OldEduc education:
Response Options:
Educ
0
8th grade or less
1
9th to 12th grade; no diploma
2
High school graduate or GED completed
3
Some college credit, but no degree
4
Associate’s degree (e.g., AA, AS)
5
Bachelor’s degree (e.g., BA, AB, BS)
6
Master’s degree (e.g., MA, MS, Mend, Med, MSW, MBA)
7
Doctorate (e.g., PhD, EdD) or Professional degree
(e.g., MD, DDS, DVM, LLB, JD)
9
Unknown
OldEduc
0
0 years
1
1 year
2
2 years
3
3 years
4
4 years
5
5 years
6
6 years
4-32
Person/DC/Main Elements
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
99
7 years
8 years
9 years
10 years
11 years
12 years
13 years
14 years
15 years
16 years
17 years
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
U.S. standard death certificate
4-33
Person/DC/Main Elements
USUAL OCCUPATION
Usual occupation code:
Usual occupation text:
Kind of business/industry code:
Usual industry text:
UsuOcc
UsOcTx
Indust
IndTxt
Name
Definition
UsuOcc
Usual occupation of the victim as recorded on the death certificate
UsOcTx
Victim’s usual occupation text
Indust
Victim’s usual business or industry code
IndTxt
Victim’s usual business/industry text
Uses
The victim’s usual occupation is an indicator of socioeconomic status and may be
associated with an increased risk of intentional injury. “Usual industry” is the kind
of business or industry to which the victim’s occupation is related, such as insurance,
farming, or government.
Discussion
Most states’ registry of vital records encodes the decedent’s usual occupation and industry on the death certificate. Usual occupation/industry is not necessarily the victim’s
current occupation/industry. Provide information exactly as it appears in the death
certificate data. If the text descriptor is recorded on the death certificate, and a numeric
code is not provided, report only the text information and use the code “080” to indicate
that the actual code is unavailable. The codes 999 for occupation and 090 for industry
are assigned by the Occupation and Industry coder to indicate “blank, unknown, or NA”.
These codes should only be used if they appear in the death certificate data. If text is
provided describing the occupation and industry, but no code is provided, sites should
not code the information themselves, as industry and occupation coding requires special
training. If the death certificate is blank, use the code “080” to indicate unavailable and
use the text field to indicate blank, unknown, or not available.
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Number
3
O
DC
Person
Text
50
O
DC
Kind of business/
industry code:
Person
Number
3
O
DC
Usual industry text:
Person
Text
50
O
DC
Name
Label
UsuOcc
Usual occupation code: Person
UsOcTx
Usual occupation text:
Indust
IndTxt
4-34
Table
Person/DC/Main Elements
Response Options:
UsuOcc
UsOcTx
Indust
IndTxt
Data Standards or Guidelines
For occupation and industry codes: U.S. Bureau of the Census; Classified index
of industries and occupations; 1990 Census of Population and Housing; First
Edition; U.S. Government Printing Office, April 1992. For codes designating
those without occupations (such as “student”): Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Public use data file
Documentation: Multiple Cause of Death for ICD-9 1997 Data.
4-35
Person/DC/Multiple Conditions
Multiple conditions on Death Certificate 1-20:
(Mult1001 through Mult1020)
4th: (Mult1004D4 through Mult1020D4)
5th: (Mult1004D5 through Mult1020D5)
Name
Definition
Mult1001
through
Mult 1020
Describes the nature of the injury and other conditions leading to death.
Up to 20 multiple condition codes can be entered
Mult1004D4
through
Mult1020D4
4th
Mult1004D5
through
Mult1020D5
5th
Uses
The “nature of injury” (or “multiple condition”) codes assigned to the death certificate
specify the anatomic location and nature of the injuries. This information may assist in
evaluating emergency medical response.
Discussion
Multiple condition codes are assigned by the registry of vital records to death certificate
records to indicate the nature of injuries and diseases leading to death. Codes are based
on the International Classification of Diseases 10th edition coding protocols, thus
“Mult10”. The underlying cause of death code is captured in a separate variable on the
DC Main Elements screen. The Mult10 elements should be coded exactly as they are
coded in the multiple cause of death fields in death certificate data. These codes can
include both diagnosis codes (nature of injury and disease) and external cause of injury
codes. Codes should be entered with decimal points in the fourth position. No more than
20 codes can be entered.
The fourth ICD-10 digit in the underlying cause of death code is used with external cause
code categories W00 to Y34 (except for Y06. and Y07.) to identify the place of occurrence of the external cause where relevant. The fifth digit is provided for optional use in
a supplementary character position with external cause categories W00 to Y34 to indicate
the activity of the injured person at the time the event occurred. This subclassification
should not be confused with, or be used instead of, the recommended fourth-character
subdivisions provided to indicate the place of occurrence.
4-36
Person/DC/Multiple Conditions
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Mult1001
Multiple conditions
on Death Certificate 1:
Person
Text
6
O
DC
Mult1002
Multiple conditions
on Death Certificate 2:
Person
Text
6
O
DC
Multiple conditions
on Death Certificate 20: Person
Text
6
O
DC
Person Text
1
O
DC
Mult1020D4 4th
Person Text
1
O
DC
Mult1001D5 5th
Person Text
1
O
DC
Person Text
1
O
DC
…through
Mult1020
Mult1001D4 4th
...through
...through
Mult1020D5 5th
Response Options:
Mult1001
thru
Mult1020
Mult1001D4
thru
Mult1020D4
Mult1001D5
thru
Mult1020D5
Format: L##.## (the first character must be a letter, followed by at least
two and up to four digits)
L88.88
Not applicable*
L99.99
Unknown or missing*
*Not an ICD-10 code, but an added code (See page 4-17)
Data Standards or Guidelines
ICD-10: International Statistical Classification of Diseases and
Related Health Problems: 10th Revision.
4-37
Section 5
ABSTRACTOR (TYPE OF DEATH)
Death type: IncTyp
5-3
Person/Abstractor
Death type: IncTyp
Name
Definition
IncTyp
Type of incident leading to the victim’s injury (e.g., homicide, suicide)
as assigned by the abstractor according to the NVDRS protocol
Uses
A coding system to differentiate victims of interpersonal violence, intentional self-harm,
and unintentional injury is vital to any injury surveillance system because of the importance of intent type to prevention strategies. This variable provides a uniform protocol
for categorizing intent type.
Discussion
The code is assigned by surveillance personnel based on reading CME reports and police
information about the case. In some cases, Death Type may differ from the manner of
death assigned by the medical examiner because of the slight difference in categories
used and because medical examiner protocols for defining intent vary across jurisdictions
and across individual CMEs. A clear unintentional shooting of one child by another, for
example, may be categorized as an accident by one medical examiner and a homicide by
another. The protocol for defining Death Type is included in the Definition section of the
manual. Please read this section. If the facts of the case are clear and not in dispute, apply
the NVDRS definitions in assigning Death Type. If the facts of the case are unclear or in
dispute, default to the CME’s determination of manner. For example, if the record states,
“Two 13-year-old adolescents were playing around with a gun that they thought was
unloaded when one unintentionally shot the other,” even if the coroner classified the case
as a homicide, code “IncTyp” as “4-Unintentional, inflicted by other person”. However,
if the record stated “A 13-year-old teenager shot another 13-year-old; conflicting reports
exist as to whether the shooting was intentional,” default to the CME’s classification of
manner of death. The purpose of this variable is not to second guess the CME or to
enable an abstractor to come to his or her own conclusion about the case; rather the
purpose is to characterize the conclusions of the official death investigation about the
intent type of the incident by using a uniform set of definitions of each intent type code.
Name
Label
IncTyp Death type:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Person
Number
1
LR
SYS
Response Options:
IncTyp
1
Suicide or intentional self-harm
2
Homicide
3
Unintentional – self-inflicted
4
Unintentional – inflicted by other person
5
Unintentional – unknown who inflicted
5-3
Person/Abstractor
6
7
8
9
Legal intervention (by police or other authority)
Terrorism homicide
Terrorism suicide
Undetermined intent
Data Standards or Guidelines
Based on International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, broad
“external cause of injury” categories.
5-4
Section 6
CORONER/MEDICAL EXAMINER
MAIN ELEMENTS
Person attempted suicide after incident: Suic
6-3
ZIP code of injury: Zip
6-5
At person’s home: Reside
6-6
EMS at scene: EMS
6-7
Homeless status: Homles
6-8
Current occupation: Occup
6-9
Victim in custody when injured: Custody
6-10
Alcohol use suspected: Intox
6-11
Date specimens were collected: SpcDt
Time specimens were collected: SpcTme
6-12
Testing for alcohol: AlchTs
Alcohol test results: AlchRs
6-13
Blood alcohol concentration results: BAC
6-14
TOXICOLOGY TESTING
6-15
TOXICOLOGY RESULTS
6-17
WOUND LOCATION
6-19
Person/CME/Main Elements
Person attempted suicide after incident: Suic
Name
Definition
Suic
Suspect attempted (or completed) suicide during the incident
Uses
Although the incident-based nature of NVDRS enables researchers to identify cases
involving murder/suicide, there may be a scenario when a suspect injures himself but
survives. This data element, therefore enables researchers to capture the range of murder/
suicide and murder/attempted suicide incidents. Murder/suicides are a violence subtype
prominent in cases of intimate partner violence and mass public shootings.
Discussion
This variable is suspect specific. Code as “Yes” if a suspect attempted (or completed)
suicide during the incident.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Suic
Person attempted suicide
after incident:
Person
Checkbox
1
LR/LR
CME/PR
Response Options:
Suic
0
No, Not Collected, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-3
Person/CME/Main Elements
Date of death:
Manner of death:
Place of death:
Place of death if other:
State of death:
State of injury FIPS code:
County of Injury:
City of injury FIPS code:
Street and number of injury site:
Injured at work:
Type of location where injured:
Time of injury:
Date of injury:
Survival time no. of units:
Unit of time used in survival time:
Birth place:
Country of birth if not listed:
Marital status:
Person was pregnant:
Education:
Autopsy performed:
DthDt
Manner
Dthplace
PDthTx
DthState
InjState
County
InjPlace
InjAddres
AtWork
LocTyp
ITime
Date
Surviv
SUnit
BthPlc
BthTxt
MarStat
Preg
Educ
Autpsy
See Person/DC/Main Elements section for information
regarding variables appearing above.
6-4
Person/CME/Main Elements
ZIP code of injury:
Zip
Name
Definition
Zip
Zip code in which injury occurred
Uses
The address of the incident is used to determine the agency responsible for potential
public health interventions; to gain information about the socioeconomic status (SES)
of the neighborhoods in which injuries occur (via U.S. Census data); to map incidents;
and to conduct analyses of the case distribution by SES and geographic area. See the
Introduction section of this manual for a discussion about handling variables that can
identify individual persons or agencies. It is okay to look up the zip code in a directory
if it is not provided.
Discussion
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Zip
ZIP code of injury:
Person
Number
5
O/O
CME/PR
Response Options:
Zip
99999 Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS); National Institute of Standards
and Technologies; U.S. Postal Service
6-5
Person/CME/Main Elements
At person’s home:
Reside
Name
Definition
Reside
Incident occurred at the person’s residence
Uses
Data about whether the incident occurred in the person’s residence can be used to further
characterize the injury incident, and may be valuable for planning and evaluating injury
prevention programs. It can be used, for example, to evaluate the impact of laws or
policies regulating the use of firearms in public versus private locations, or to inform
domestic violence interventions.
Discussion
This variable is completed for each victim in an incident and is person-specific. For
example, if a man shot his wife and his wife’s sister at the sister’s house, Reside is
“No” for the wife, but “Yes” for the sister.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Reside
At person’s home:
Person
Number
1
LR/LR
CME/PR
Response Options:
Reside
0
No
1
Yes
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-6
Person/CME/Main Elements
EMS at scene:
EMS
Name
Definition
EMS
Were emergency medical services present at the scene of the injury incident?
Uses
EMS status can be used to describe the involvement of emergency medical services in
violent injury cases. This may assist in planning and evaluating EMS services and in
capturing costs associated with violence.
Discussion
Code only to indicate the presence of EMS at the scene, not to indicate whether any
medical services were delivered.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
EMS
EMS at scene:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Response Options:
EMS
0
No, EMS not at scene
1
Yes, EMS at scene
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-7
Person/CME/Main Elements
Homeless status:
Homles
Name
Definition
Homles
Was person homeless at the time of the incident?
Uses
This variable helps to describe how frequently the homeless are victims of violence.
Discussion
Homeless is defined here as having no fixed address and living in a shelter, on the street,
in a car, or in makeshift quarters in an outdoor setting. A person who has no home of
their own, but is staying indefinitely with friends or family is not considered homeless
here. Marking this variable “Yes” means that there was some positive statement about
being homeless such as living in a car. Use the “Unknown” option when the residential
address is stated as unknown. Otherwise, mark this variable “No”.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Homles
Homeless status:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Response Options:
Homles
0
No
1
Yes
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-8
Person/CME/Main Elements
Current occupation:
Occup
Name
Definition
Occup
Victim’s employment status, and, if employed, current occupation
Uses
Employment status and occupation are indicators of socioeconomic status. Certain
occupations may also be associated with an increased risk of suicide or homicide.
Discussion
Report the occupation in a text field exactly as it appears on the CME report or other
report. The information can later be coded at the national level using Standard
Occupational Classifications. Note that “current occupation” is different from “usual
occupation”, which is recorded on the death certificate. If the person is not employed,
enter one of the standard text options listed below. These are not currently available on
a drop-down menu, so please be careful to enter them exactly as they appear below and
not in an abbreviated version. People who work 17.5 hours or more per week are considered employed; people who work less than that are not.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
length
Priority
Primacy
Occup
Current occupation:
Person
Text
50
O/O
CME/PR
Response Options:
Occup
Enter person’s current occupation in free text, or enter:
Unemployed
Homemaker
Retired
Student
Disabled
NA (under age 14)
Unknown
6-9
Person/CME/Main Elements
Victim in custody when injured:
Custody
Name
Definition
Custody
Person was in public custody when injury occurred
Uses
Violent injuries that occur while a victim is in public custody are an issue of public
concern and a potential indicator of systemic problems that require change.
Discussion
A person is in public custody if they are under arrest, in foster care, or remanded by law
to an institution, such as a jail, prison, detention center, psychiatric ward, psychiatric
hospital, or other institution. Custody is coded on the basis of when the injury was
inflicted or when the death occurred. If the injury was inflicted while the person was
not in custody, but they died in custody, code Custody as “Yes”. An example of such a
scenario is a robber who is shot by a storeowner, arrested, and dies two days later from
the shooting. The code “Committed to mental hospital or ward” covers involuntary
commitments and involuntary observations at psychiatric wards within standard hospitals
or at psychiatric institutions. People who voluntarily commit themselves should not be
coded as in custody. The code “In jail or prison” also covers incarcerations in juvenile
detention facilities and other detention facilities.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Custody
Victim in custody
when injured:
Person
Number
1
O/O
PR/CME
Response Options:
Custody
0
Not in custody
1
In jail or prison
2
Under arrest but not in jail
3
Committed to mental hospital or ward
4
Resident of other state institution
5
In foster care
6
Injured prior to arrest
9
Unknown
6-10
Person/CME/Main Elements
Alcohol use suspected: Intox
Name
Definition
Intox
Victim’s suspected alcohol use in the hours preceding the incident
Uses
This variable can be used to explore the role of alcohol use among victims of violent
death. The other alcohol variables (AlchRs and BAC) summarize results from toxicology
tests conducted as part of the death investigation. This variable uses a broader definition
of suspected alcohol use to capture information. It should be noted, however, that
because circumstantial evidence is considered sufficient for coding “suspected alcohol
use,” there will be some false positives.
Discussion
“Alcohol use” can be coded as “Yes” based on witness or investigator reports
(e.g., police note that the victim “had been drinking heavily”), or circumstantial
evidence (e.g., empty six pack scattered around suicide victim). This variable refers
only to alcohol use and not drug use. Therefore, if a person was said to have been
smoking crack on the day of the incident, but they tested negative for alcohol and
there is no evidence that they were drinking, “Intox” should be coded as “No”. The
phrase “in the hours preceding the incident” can be interpreted relatively broadly. For
example, if friends report that a suicide victim was drinking heavily at a party and
returned home that evening and killed himself sometime later that night, “Intox”
should be coded as “Yes”. If there is no evidence of intoxication, code this variable
as “No”. Use the “Unknown” option only if the source does not have a narrative that
could provide the evidence of intoxication.
Name
Label
Table
Intox
Alcohol use suspected: Person
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Number
1
LR/LR
CME/PR
Response Options:
Intox
0
No
1
Yes
8
Not Applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-11
Person/CME/Main Elements
Date specimens were collected:
Time specimens were collected:
SpcDt
SpcTme
Name
Definition
SpcDt
Date on which body specimens were collected for toxicologic screen
SpcTme
Time at which body specimens were collected for toxicologic screen
Uses
Date and time of collection of body specimens, in conjunction with date and time of
death and injury, can be used to assess the validity of alcohol and drug testing results and
the possible contribution of drugs or alcohol to the injury. For example, blood specimens
drawn long after death will not accurately reflect intoxication level at the time of death.
Discussion
Time is in the military time format HHMM. For example, if blood was drawn at
10:30 p.m., code as 2230; code midnight as 0000. See the Introduction section of this
manual for a discussion about handling variables that can identify individual persons
or agencies. The date of the postmortem exam can be used as the date specimens were
collected in the absence of other information.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
SpcDt
Date specimens
were collected:
Person
Text
10
LR
CME
SpcTme
Time specimens
were collected:
Person
Text
4
LR
CME
Response Options:
SpcDt
MM/DD/YYYY
88/88/8888
99/99/9999
SpcTme
0000…2359
7777
8888
9999
6-12
Date specimens were collected
Not applicable (no specimens collected)
Unknown
Military time
Not collected by reporting site
Not applicable
Unknown
Person/CME/Main Elements
Testing for alcohol:
Alcohol test results:
AlchTs
AlchRs
Name
Definition
AlchTs
Victim’s blood was tested for presence of alcohol
AlchRs
Results of blood alcohol test
Uses
Alcohol intoxication is a risk factor in many types of injury deaths. Identifying victims
for whom objective evidence of alcohol ingestion exists will be useful to those researchers exploring the role of alcohol in violent injury.
Discussion
Coding should be based on toxicologic screening of blood samples conducted as part
of the CME’s investigation. Breathalyzer or hospital-based test results should not be
reflected in this variable, nor should results based on urine specimens. This information
will be most useful in jurisdictions that routinely analyze blood alcohol levels in victims
of homicide and/or suicide, as opposed to those that only sporadically do so.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
AlchTs
Testing for alcohol:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
AlchRs
Alcohol test results:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
Response Options:
AlchTs
1
Tested
2
Not tested
9
Unknown
AlchRs
1
Present
2
Not present
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-13
Person/CME/Main Elements
Blood alcohol concentration results:
Name
Definition
BAC
Blood alcohol level
BAC
Uses
This variable enables researchers to categorize victims by blood alcohol level. These data
will assist in exploring the relationship between alcohol intoxication and violent death
when interpreted in conjunction with data on time of injury, time of death, and time at
which body specimens were drawn.
Discussion
Blood alcohol levels are coded in terms of percent by volume (serum %). Percent by
volume equals the milligrams of alcohol found per deciliter of blood (mg/dl) divided by
1000. For example, a level of 30 mg/dl would be 0.03% alcohol. How labs report blood
alcohol concentrations (BAC) varies. Many use the format used here (serum %), while
others report BAC as milligrams of alcohol per deciliter of blood (mg/dl) — as in
30 mg/dl. To convert mg/dl results to serum % results, divide by 1,000. Only BAC
levels should be entered here; levels based on other body fluids such as vitreous fluid
should not. Use caution when interpreting BAC levels because variation in the time
elapsed between ingestion of substances, time of death, and time of drawing body
specimens for toxicological analysis will affect the outcome. BACs reported as “<0.01%”
are below the detection limit of 0.01%. This should be reported as 0.00% and interpreted
as “Not present” in the alcohol test results field. Alcohol that appears in the blood as a
result of decomposition rather than ingestion does not generally measure more than
0.04%. BAC results reported as “Trace” should be recorded as 0.01%. BACs reported as
<0.01% or “Nondetectable” should be reported as 0.00%, and Alcohol Test Results
should be reported as “Not Present”.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
BAC
Blood alcohol
concentration results:
Person
Number
3
LR
CME
Response Options:
BAC
0.88 Not applicable, no testing
0.99 Unknown
Format: 0.##
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-14
Person/CME/Main Elements
TOXICOLOGY TESTING
Testing for amphetamines:
Testing for antidepressants:
Testing for cocaine:
Testing for marijuana:
Testing for opiate(s):
Testing for other substances:
AmphTs
AntiTs
CokeTs
MarjTs
OpiaTs
OtDrTs
Name
Definition
AmphTs
Toxicologic screening for amphetamines conducted
AntiTs
Toxicologic screening for antidepressants conducted
CokeTs
Toxicologic screening for cocaine conducted
MarjTs
Toxicologic screening for marijuana conducted
OpiaTs
Toxicologic screening for opiate(s) conducted
OtDrTs
Toxicologic screening for other substances conducted
Uses
This set of variables identifies victims whose bodily fluids were tested during the death
investigation for drugs.
Discussion
These variables indicate whether the victim’s blood, urine, vitreous humor (ocular fluid),
bile, or other tissues were tested for a variety of drugs or their metabolites by any
standard toxicologic screening method.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
Testing for
antidepressants:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
CokeTs
Testing for cocaine:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
MarjTs
Testing for marijuana:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
OpiaTs
Testing for opiate(s):
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
OtDrTs
Testing for other
substances:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
Name
Label
Testing for
AmphTs amphetamines:
AntiTs
6-15
Person/CME/Main Elements
Response Options:
AmphTs
thru
OtDrTs
1
Tested
2
Not tested
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-16
Person/CME/Main Elements
TOXICOLOGY RESULTS
Amphetamine test results:
Antidepressant test results:
Cocaine test results:
Marijuana test results:
Opiate test results:
Other drug/substance test results:
Type of other substance:
AmphRs
AntiRs
CokeRs
MarjRs
OpiaRs
OtDrRs
OthDrg
Name
Definition
AmphRs
Amphetamines test results
AntiRs
Antidepressants test results
CokeRs
Cocaine test results
MarjRs
Marijuana test results
OpiaRs
Opiate test results
OtDrRs
Other drug/substance test results
OthDrg
Type of other substance for which person tested positive
Uses
This set of variables identifies whether the tests for various drugs or their metabolites
were positive or negative. Findings can assist in exploring the relationship between
recreational drug use and violent death. The variables can also be used to document
the presence of certain psychiatric medications among suicide victims in jurisdictions
that test for these substances. The drug variables will be most useful in jurisdictions
that routinely run toxicology tests on victims, as opposed to those that only sporadically
do so.
Discussion
Drug/substance test results can be coded based on results from any body fluid; it is not
restricted to blood only, as is the case for reporting blood alcohol levels. Many labs report
test results by reporting both the specific substance that a person tested positive for and
the class that the substance falls under. Some, however, report only the substance. In
those cases, use the drug/substance list provided in the training manual to identify which
broad categories the substance falls under. The drug/substance test result variables can be
coded as “Yes” if the lab report or CME summary notes the substance as “positive,”
“presumptive presence,” or having a numeric level greater than 0. If there is testing for a
drug/substance that does not fall into any of these categories, code “Other” and record the
name of the drug/substance in “Type of other substance”. Enter the names of all other
6-17
Person/CME/Main Elements
drugs/substances that tested positive. Do not enter the names of other drugs/substances
that tested negative. The presence of a metabolite for a drug/substance being tested can
be considered sufficient evidence that the drug/substance itself was present. Questions
about whether a chemical is a metabolite can be referred to CDC. If whether testing was
done is “Unknown”, code the results fields as “Not applicable” rather than “Unknown”.
Name
Label
Amphetamine
AmphRs test results:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
AntiRs
Antidepressant
test results:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
CokeRs
Cocaine test results:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
MarjRs
Marijuana test results:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
OpiaRs
Opiate test results:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
OtDrRs
Other drug/substance
test results:
Person
Number
1
LR
CME
OthDrg
Type of other
substance:
Person
Text
200
LR
CME
Response Options:
AmphRs
thru
OtDrRs
1
Present
2
Not present
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
OthDrg
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
6-18
Person/CME/Main Elements
WOUND LOCATION
Number of wounds:
Number of bullets that hit victim:
Wound to the head:
Wound to the face:
Wound to the neck:
Wound to the upper extremity:
Wound to the spine:
Wound to the thorax:
Wound to the abdomen:
Wound to the lower extremity:
NumWou
NumBul
Head
Face
Neck
UpExt
Spine
Thorax
Abdomn
LowExt
Name
Definition
NumWou
Number of wounds to the victim
NumBul
Number of bullets that hit the victim
Head
Presence of wound to the head
Face
Presence of wound to the face (e.g., mouth, nose, eyes, ears)
Neck
Presence of wound to the neck
UpExt
Presence of wound in the upper extremities (shoulders, arms, hands)
Spine
Presence of wound to the spine
Thorax
Presence of wound to the thorax, chest, or upper back
Abdomn
Presence of wound to the abdomen, pelvic contents (including
genital area), or lower back
LowExt
Presence of wound to the lower extremities (feet, hips, legs)
Uses
These codes help describe the relationship between incident circumstance and wound
location.
Discussion
These data elements apply to firearm injuries and sharp instrument wounds only. For
“NumWou,” code the total number of penetrating wounds on the victim. For “NumBul”
(for gunshot wound victims only), code the total number of bullets that hit the victim.
(See figure on next page for body regions.) For example, if one bullet entered the cheek
and exited the back of the head, code “NumWou” as 2, “NumBul” as 1, “Head” as
6-19
Person/CME/Main Elements
“Present” and “Face” as “Present”. Code the wound locations of penetrating wounds
only; do not code the locations of superficial grazing wounds or blunt trauma wounds.
Code only the location of the external entrance or exit wound. When determining the
number of wounds and bullets for shotgun injuries, treat each shotgun blast as one injury
and each shotgun shell as one bullet. For victims injured by both a gun and a knife, count
all wounds from both weapon types and code all wound locations. If the record refers
only to a “wound” in the singular, the number of wounds is 1. If it refers only to
“wounds,” the number of wounds is “Multiple, unspecified”.
Name
Label
NumWou Number of wounds:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Person
Number
2
O/O
CME/PR
NumBul
Number of bullets
that hit victim:
Person
Number
2
O/O
CME/PR
Head
Wound to the head:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Face
Wound to the face:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Neck
Wound to the neck:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
UpExt
Wound to the upper
extremity:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Spine
Wound to the spine:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Thorax
Wound to the thorax:
Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Abdomn Wound to the abdomen: Person
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
Number
1
O/O
CME/PR
LowExt
Wound to the lower
extremity:
Person
Response Options:
NumWou and NumBul
75
75 or more
76
Multiple, unspecified
88
Not applicable
99
Unknown
Head
thru
LowExt
0
Absent (not wounded)
1
Present (wounded)
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards and Guidelines
NVISS
6-20
Section 7
SUICIDE
OR
UNDETERMINED CIRCUMSTANCES
Circumstances known: Circ
7-3
Current depressed mood: Depres
7-4
Current mental health problem: Mental
7-5
DIAGNOSIS
7-7
Current treatment for mental illness: TxMent
Ever treated for mental illness:
HistMental
7-9
Alcohol problem:
Other substance problem:
Alcoh
Subst
7-11
Person left a suicide note: SNote
7-13
Disclosed intent to commit suicide: SuiInt
7-14
History of suicide attempts: SuiHst
7-16
Crisis in past 2 wks: Crisis
7-17
Physical health problem: Health
7-19
Intimate partner problem: IPProb
7-20
Other relationship problem: Relat
7-21
Job problem: Job
7-22
School problem: School
7-23
Financial problem: FinProb
7-24
Suicide of friend or family in past five years: RecSui
7-25
Other death of friend or family: FamDeath
7-26
Recent criminal legal problem: RecCrm
7-27
Other legal problems: Legal
7-28
Perpetrator of interpersonal violence past mo.: PIPV
7-29
Victim of interpersonal violence past mo.: PIPVVict
7-30
Other suicide circumstance: SuiOth
7-31
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Circumstances known:
Circ
Name
Definition
Circ
Indicates if any information is available about the circumstances
associated with the incident
Uses
This variable operates as a stem question.
Discussion
Do not code this variable as “No” until you have reviewed all of the data from this source
that you intend to review for this case.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Circ
Circumstances known:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Circ
0
No
1
Yes
7-3
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Current depressed mood:
Depres
Name
Definition
Depres
Current depressed mood
Uses
Identifies suicide victims who were documented as having a current depressed mood. A
family member frequently reports that the suicide victim “had been depressed lately,” but
the record does not supply information about whether the person was diagnosed with a
depressive disorder. Rather than coding such a victim as suffering from depression
(which may or may not be true), this variable captures the available information more
appropriately.
Discussion
Code this variable as “Yes” if the victim was perceived by self or others to be depressed.
Other words that can trigger coding this variable besides “depressed” are sad, despondent, down, blue, low, unhappy, etc. Words that should not trigger coding this variable
are upset, up and down, agitated, angry, mad, anxious, overwrought, etc. The depressed
mood may be part of a clinical depression or a short-term sadness. Depressed mood
should not be inferred by the coder based on the circumstances; rather it must be noted
in the record.
Case Examples
Yes
• Mother reports that victim has been depressed for the past few months.
• Husband states that his wife was suffering from depression at the time
she took her life.
• Decedent was saddened by his brother’s death a year ago and had not
been himself since.
No
• Victim was agitated over news that he may receive a pink slip at work.
• Victim was upset because he had just discovered his girlfriend was cheating on him.
• Elderly victim lived alone, was facing foreclosure, was in failing health, and had
learned that her grown son was going to prison. (The victim may well have been
depressed, given the sad circumstances, but without an affirmative statement in the
record about her mood, the variable should not be coded as “Yes”.)
Name
Label
Table
Type
Depres
Current depressed mood:
Person
Checkbox
Response Options:
Depres
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-4
Field
Length
1
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Current mental health problem:
Mental
Name
Definition
Mental
Current mental health problem
Uses
This variable can be used to examine the role of mental health problems as risk factors
for suicide.
Discussion
Code a victim as “Yes” for “Mental” if he or she has been identified as having a mental
health problem. Mental health problems include those disorders and syndromes listed in
the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Revision)
with the exception of alcohol and other substance dependence (as these are captured in
separate variables). Examples of disorders qualifying as mental health problems include
not only diagnoses such as major depression, schizophrenia, and generalized anxiety
disorder, but developmental disorders (such as mental retardation, autism, attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder), eating disorders, personality disorders, and organic mental
disorders such as Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Also indicate “Yes” if it is mentioned
in the CME report that the victim was being treated for a mental health problem, even if
the nature of the problem is unclear (e.g., “was being treated for various psychiatric
problems”). It is acceptable to endorse this variable on the basis of past treatment of a
mental health problem, unless it is specifically noted that the problem has been resolved.
For example, if the record states “Victim was hospitalized twice in the past for mental
problems,” that is adequate basis for coding “Mental” as “Yes”. It is also acceptable to
endorse if a mental health problem is noted, but the timeframe is unclear (as in “victim
has history of depression”), or if the victim was seeking mental health treatment or
someone was seeking treatment on his or her behalf (e.g., “Family was attempting to
have him hospitalized for psychiatric problems”). “Mental” should also be coded as
“Yes” if the victim has a prescription for an antidepressant or other psychiatric medication. The drug list provided in the training notebook identifies drugs that can be
considered psychiatric medications. We have separate questions for substance abuse,
“alcohol dependence”, and “other substance dependence” questions. Therefore, do not
include substance abuse as a “current mental health problem”.
Case Examples
Yes
• Toxicology report from CME indicates that the victim tested positive for
sertraline (an antidepressant).
• Victim had PTSD — or, Post-traumatic stress disorder.
• History of depression.
• Was under the care of a psychiatrist.
No
• A neighbor indicates that the victim was not acting normally.
• Victim was depressed over a recent break-up.
[Code “Current depressed mood”. ]
7-5
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Mental
Current mental
health problem:
Person
Checkbox
1
Priority
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Mental
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Revision
7-6
Primacy
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
DIAGNOSIS
Type of first mental illness diagnosis:
Type of second mental illness diagnosis:
Other mental health diagnosis:
MDiag1
MDiag2
MenTxt
Name
Definition
MDiag1
Type of mental illness diagnosis
MDiag2
Additional type of mental illness diagnosis
MenTxt
Other type of mental illness diagnosis
Uses
For victims who were noted as having a mental health problem, and whose mental health
problem has been assessed by a mental health practitioner, these variables identify the
victim’s diagnoses.
Discussion
These variables indicate the nature of the victim’s mental health problem (their diagnosis), if available. Code up to two diagnoses. If a diagnosis is not on the code list, code
“Other” and record the diagnosis in the text field, “MenTxt”. If the record indicates more
than two diagnoses, note the additional diagnoses in “MenTxt”. For cases in which the
victim was noted as being treated for a mental health problem, but the actual diagnosis is
not documented, code “MDiag1” as “Unknown”. If the victim had a mental health
problem (“Mental” = “Yes”), but the nature of the problem has not been diagnosed
(e.g., “victim was hearing voices and having paranoid delusions; family was attempting
to have victim committed”), code “MDiag1” as “Not applicable” since he had not been
treated or diagnosed. Do not attempt to apply a diagnosis based on reading the symptoms. While it is acceptable to endorse “Mental health problem” based on the victim’s
prescription for a psychiatric medication, please do not infer a specific diagnosis based
on the medication.
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Number
2
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person
Number
2
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person
Text
50
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Name
Label
Table
Type
MDiag1
Type of first mental
illness diagnosis:
Person
MDiag2
Type of second mental
illness diagnosis:
MenTxt
Other mental
health diagnosis:
7-7
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Response Options:
MDiag1
and
MDiag2
1
Depression/dysthymia
2
Bipolar disorder
3
Schizophrenia
4
Anxiety disorder
5
Post-traumatic stress disorder
6
ADD or hyperactivity disorder
7
Eating disorder
8
Obsessive-compulsive disorder
66
Other (specify in diagnosis text), including mental retardation,
autism, personality disorders, Alzheimer’s, etc.
88
Not applicable
99
Unknown
MenTxt
7-8
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Current treatment for mental illness:
Ever treated for mental illness:
TxMent
HistMental
Name
Definition
TxMent
Currently in treatment for a mental health problem
HistMental
History of ever being treated for a mental health problem
Uses
This variable can be used to assess the proportion of suicide victims who were currently
or formerly in mental health treatment. The information can be helpful in planning and
delivering mental health services and in evaluating quality of care.
Discussion
The variable “TxMent” (current mental health treatment) should be coded “Yes” if the
victim was in current treatment (that is, had a current prescription for a psychiatric
medication or saw a mental health professional within the past two months.) Treatment
includes seeing a psychiatrist, psychologist, medical doctor, therapist, or other counselor
for a mental health or substance abuse problem; receiving a prescription for an antidepressant or other psychiatric medicine (see training notebook for list of psychiatric
drugs); attending anger management classes; or residing in an inpatient or halfway house
facility for mental health problems.
The variable “HistMental” indicates whether the victim was noted as ever having
received professional treatment for a mental health problem, either at the time of death
or in the past. If a victim is in current treatment, by definition “HistMental” (ever in
treatment) should be endorsed. If a decedent died as the result of an overdose from
multiple medications and it is not clear whether the medications were his or her own
(as in a victim swallowing everything in the family’s medicine cabinet), the existence
of an antidepressant or other psychiatric medication in the victim’s bloodstream is not
sufficient evidence of mental health treatment. For victims who die by other means than
drug overdose (e.g., shooting, hanging), toxicologic test results indicating the presence
of a psychiatric medication is sufficient evidence of mental health treatment.
Case Examples
Current treatment for mental illness
Yes
• A recently filled, unopened prescription belonging to the victim for an
antidepressant is found in the medicine cabinet.
• The victim has been in treatment for depression for the last 10 years.
• The victim was released from inpatient care for bipolar disorder a
week ago.
No
• Victim was taking St. John’s Wort (non-prescription herb) for depression
because of a magazine article he had read.
• Victim was taking sleeping pills for insomnia.
7-9
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Ever treated for mental illness
Yes
• Several years ago the victim was treated for bipolar disorder.
• The decedent had begun seeing a psychiatrist recently, but had
previously never been in treatment.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
TxMent
Current treatment
for mental illness:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Ever treated
HistMental for mental illness:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
Response Options:
TxMent
None
HistMental
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-10
Priority
Primacy
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Alcohol problem:
Other substance problem:
Alcoh
Subst
Name
Definition
Alcoh
Person has alcohol dependence or alcohol problem
Subst
Person has substance abuse problem
Uses
Can be used to assess the proportion of suicide victims who were identified as having
alcohol, drug, or other substance abuse problems. The information can be helpful in
exploring the role of substance abuse in suicide and planning substance abuse services
delivery.
Discussion
Code a victim as “Yes” for “Alcoh” or “Subst” if the victim was perceived by self or
others to have a problem with, or to be addicted to, alcohol or other drugs. A victim who
is noted as participating in a drug or alcohol rehabilitation program or treatment —
including self-help groups and 12-step programs — should be coded as “Yes” for “Subst”
or “Alcoh” respectively even if the victim was noted as being currently clean and sober.
A problem from the past (i.e., five years or more ago) that has resolved and no longer
appears to apply should not be coded. Do not code “Alcoh” as “Yes” if victim was using
alcohol in the hours preceding the incident and there is no evidence of dependence or a
problem (these cases should be coded “Yes” for “Intox”).
“Subst” can be endorsed if a victim was noted as using illegal drugs (such as heroin or
cocaine), abusing prescription medications (such as pain relievers or Valium), or regularly using inhalants (e.g., sniffing gas). If the victim is mentioned as using illegal drugs
— even if addiction or abuse is not specifically mentioned — code “Subst” as “Yes”. The
exception to this is marijuana use. For marijuana, the use must be noted as chronic,
abusive, or problematic (e.g., “victim smoked marijuana regularly,” “victim’s family
indicated he had been stoned much of the past month”). A victim who takes methadone
can be assumed to be in treatment for heroin addiction. The phrase “history of drug
abuse” is sufficient to justify endorsing “Subst”, unless it is noted that the victim is no
longer a drug user. Previously attempting suicide via overdose is not sufficient justification for endorsing “Subst” in the absence of other information. If marijuana was used at
the time of the incident, and there is no evidence of regular use, addiction, or abuse, code
to “Other suicide circumstance”.
Case Examples
Alcoh
Yes
• CME report indicates the patient was in an alcohol rehabilitation program
last year.
• Called AA sponsor the day before the incident.
• Noted in CME report that the victim had been drinking a lot lately and
family was concerned.
7-11
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
No
• CME report indicates that 20 years ago the victim had trouble with drugs
and alcohol as a teenager, but not since then.
Subst
Yes
• CME report indicates that the victim abuses his own painkiller
prescription.
• Victim made regular visits to a methadone clinic.
• Victim had track marks and drug paraphernalia at his apartment.
• Shot himself after a fight with his wife over his drug use and
mounting debts.
No
• Victim smoked marijuana occasionally.
• Victim attempted suicide via medication overdose on two previous
occasions. No evidence of substance use or abuse.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Alcoh
Alcohol problem:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O CFR/CME/PR
Subst
Other substance
problem:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Alcoh
and
Subst
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-12
Priority
Primacy
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Person left a suicide note:
SNote
Name
Definition
SNote
Victim left a suicide note
Uses
A suicide note is a marker for an intentional suicide.
Discussion
Code “SNote” as “Yes” if the victim left a note, e-mail, video, or other written communication that they intended to commit suicide. A will or folder of financial papers near the
victim does not constitute a suicide note. If the record states the person left a “note”, you
can infer it was a suicide note in the absence of information indicating that the note had
some other purpose.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim left a letter to her son indicating that she was ending her life.
• “The pain stops today. Goodbye” was the message scrawled on the mirror
next to the victim.
No
• A woman is terminally ill. She writes and signs her will. The next day she
commits suicide.
Name
Label
Table
SNote
Person left a suicide note: Person
Type
Field
Length
Checkbox
1
Priority
Primacy
O/O/O CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
SNote
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
Medical College of Wisconsin Firearm Injury Reporting System
7-13
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Disclosed intent to commit suicide:
SuiInt
Name
Definition
SuiInt
Victim disclosed to another person their intention to commit suicide
Uses
This variable can be used to identify the subset of suicides for which opportunities to
intervene and prevent the death may have been present. It is also useful for exploring
stated intent as a risk factor for suicide.
Discussion
Code “SuiInt” as “Yes” if the victim had previously expressed suicidal feelings to
another person, whether explicitly (e.g., “I’m considering killing myself”) or indirectly
(e.g., “I think everyone would be better off without me” or “I know how to put a permanent end to this pain”). Code this variable as “Yes” if there was opportunity to intervene
between the time the person disclosed their intent and the injury event. Do not code this
variable as “Yes” if the victim disclosed their intention to kill themselves only at the
moment of the suicide (i.e., when there was no opportunity to intervene to stop the
suicide). Also, do not endorse this variable if the victim had talked about suicide sometime in the distant past, but had not disclosed their current intent to commit suicide to
anyone. When the police, or CME document whether the victim stated their intent to
commit suicide, they are doing so less for the purpose of documenting a missed opportunity for intervention and more for the purpose of indicating why the death is being
treated as a suicide and not a potential homicide. Therefore, the records may be unclear
about timing. For example, the record may state, “Victim has spoken of suicide in the
past,” and it is not entirely clear whether the talk about suicide was only in the past or
was related to the current incident. This will frequently be a gray area for coding. If the
record indicates disclosure of intent in the past but affirmatively states that there was no
disclosure for the current incident, code “SuiInt” as “No”. If the record indicates disclosure of intent, but is unclear about the timeframe, code “SuiInt” as “Yes”. This will
sometimes be incorrect; however the specificity to allow precise coding is too often
missing in the records to justify using a narrower interpretation.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim told his wife that he was planning to end his suffering and
was going to stop being a burden on her.
• The victim has mentioned on and off to friends that he was considering
suicide; no one thought he would do it.
No
• The victim has spoken of suicide in the past, but not in the past few
months when things seemed to be going better for him.
• Family members were unaware of any suicidal feelings. During a heated
argument over being grounded, the young victim shouted, “I’m gonna
blow my head off, and it’s your fault.” He left the room and shot himself.
7-14
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
SuiInt
Disclosed intent
to commit suicide:
Person
Checkbox
1
Priority
Primacy
O/O/O CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
SuiInt
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-15
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
History of suicide attempts:
SuiHst
Name
Definition
SuiHst
Victim has a history of attempting suicide
Uses
This variable is useful for exploring suicide attempts as a risk factor for completed
suicides and as an opportunity for preventive intervention.
Discussion
Code SuiHst as “Yes” if the victim was known to have made previous suicide attempts,
regardless of the severity of those attempts.
Name
Label
Table
Type
SuiHst
History of
suicide attempts:
Person
Checkbox
Field
Length
1
Response Options:
SuiHst
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
Medical College of Wisconsin Firearm Injury Reporting System
7-16
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Crisis in past 2 wks:
Crisis
Name
Definition
Crisis
Victim experienced a crisis within two weeks of the suicide, or a
crisis was imminent within two weeks of the suicide
Uses
This variable can be used to identify suicides that appear to involve an element
of impulsivity.
Discussion
The variable “Crisis” identifies those cases in which a very current crisis or acute precipitating event appears to have contributed to the suicide (e.g., the victim was just arrested;
the divorce papers were served that day; the victim was about to be laid off; they had a
major argument with their spouse the night before). Coding a case as being related to a
crisis does not mean that there aren’t also chronic conditions that have contributed to the
victim’s decision to end their life. Examples of crises include a very recent or impending
arrest, job loss, argument or fight, relationship break-up, police pursuit, financial loss,
loss in social standing, eviction, or other loss. “Crisis” is in the eyes of the victim. This is
particularly relevant for young victims whose crises — such as a bad grade or a dispute
with parents over a curfew — may be relatively minor.
The qualifier “recent” means that the crisis either occurred within the past two weeks or
is expected to occur within the next two weeks. An actual time period is unlikely to be
mentioned in the records, so use language as a clue. For example, “decedent was experiencing financial difficulties after losing his job” would not trigger coding a recent crisis
because the timeframe is unclear, whereas “decedent had just received a pink slip at
work” would be clear. A patient whose chronic health problem is worsening should not
trigger coding “Crisis” as “Yes”; however a person who just received the news that he or
she has a terminal illness should be regarded as having experienced a recent crisis. A
homicide-suicide should always be coded as “Yes” for “Crisis” unless the two deaths
were both clearly consensual and planned in advance (in effect, a double suicide).
Release from a jail, prison, or hospital within the past two weeks should be coded as
a “Crisis”. If you check that a crisis has occurred, you must also indicate the type of
crisis by checking at least one of the circumstances below it on the list, e.g., physical
health or job problem.
Yes
• The victim’s husband announced that day that he was divorcing her.
• A 15-year-old adolescent had a heated argument with his mother, stormed
out of the room, and shot himself.
• The decedent killed his ex-wife and then himself.
• A few days prior to the suicide, the victim was questioned about his
suspected sexual abuse of his two nephews by police.
• The victim was about to be returned to prison in a few days.
• After a recent break-up, the decedent went to his girlfriend’s house to attempt
a reconciliation. She refused, and he shot himself in her driveway.
7-17
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
• An elderly man fell in the bathtub the week before, breaking his hip. The day
before this, his doctor told him that he would need to go to a nursing home.
• Police were pursuing a suspect. As they drew near, the man turned the
gun on himself and fired.
• Victim had just received a lay-off notice at work.
• Victim was released from jail earlier that day.
No
• A 45-year-old man was unemployed and experiencing financial difficulties.
(Had this statement been added to his case, “was to be evicted from his
apartment the following weekend” the case would qualify as a “Yes”.)
• The victim had emphysema and the condition was worsening.
• The victim was in the process of divorcing her husband.
• The decedent was despondent over recent job loss. (Timeframe is non-specific;
job loss could have been a week or six months ago.)
Name
Label
Table
Crisis
Crisis in past 2 wks:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Response Options:
Crisis
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-18
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Physical health problem:
Health
Name
Definition
Health
Physical health problems appear to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are health-related. Identifying the specific circumstances that play a precipitative role in suicide will assist in identifying, developing, and
evaluating preventive interventions.
Discussion
The victim was experiencing physical health problems (e.g., terminal disease, debilitating condition, chronic pain) that were relevant to the suicide event. If the precipitants are
known, endorse this variable only if a health problem is noted as contributing to the
suicide. CME reports generally include the decedent’s existing medical problems. The
simple mention of a health problem, therefore, should not trigger coding the suicide as
health-related, unless there is some indication that the suicide is linked in part to the
health problem or concern. There are some exceptions to this rule, however. If there is no
information in the record about why the victim killed him or herself, but it is noted that
they had a terminal or very debilitating illness, it is acceptable to endorse Health. Health
conditions are coded from the perspective of the victim.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was told
that she had two months to live.
• An elderly man fell in the bathtub the week before, breaking his hip. He
feared that this injury would require him to sell his house and move into
a nursing home.
• The victim suspected he might have AIDS and killed himself before he
received his test results.
• The victim is still in pain from injuries sustained in a car crash five years ago.
No
• Victim was fleeing from police. He ran into a restroom and shot himself.
He has a history of arrests for violent crime, and his health history indicates
diabetes. (No mention of health condition being related to the suicide.)
Name
Label
Table
Health
Physical health problem: Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length Priority
1
Primacy
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Health
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-19
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Intimate partner problem:
IPProb
Name
Definition
IPProb
Problems with a current or former intimate partner that appear to
have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to friction or conflict between intimate
partners. Identifying specific circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in
suicide will help identify, develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “IPProb” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was experiencing problems with a current or former intimate partner, such as a divorce, break-up, argument,
jealousy, conflict, or discord. The burden of caring for an ill spouse should not be coded
as an intimate partner problem unless there is also evidence of relationship problems.
These should be coded as “Other” (SuiOth). Phrases such as “victim was having relationship problems” can be assumed to indicate intimate partner problems. If a victim kills or
attacks his or her current or former intimate partner, code “IPProb” as “Yes”. The only
exception to this rule is if the death was clearly a consensual act, as in a mercy killing
followed by homicide. Extreme caution should be used when identifying a case as a
mercy killing; see discussion of the variable Mercy (mercy killing).
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim goes to his old house, shoots his estranged wife, and then shoots himself.
• The victim was engaged in a bitter custody dispute with her ex-husband.
• Police arrested the victim a week ago for violating a restraining order that his girl
friend had filed.
• A wife reports that she and the victim had been arguing, and she spent the night
at her mother’s.
• The victim was having relationship problems.
No
• The CME report indicates that the victim is a divorced, 50-year-old white male
with two grown children; he was recently arrested on his third drunk driving
offense and hung himself the day he was released from jail.
• Victim was lonely and felt isolated.
Name
Label
Table
IPProb
Intimate partner problem:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Response Options:
IPProb
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-20
Field
Length Priority
1
Primacy
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Other relationship problem:
Relat
Name
Definition
Relat
Problems with a family member, friend, or associate (other than
an intimate partner) that appear to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to friction or conflict with friends and
family. Identifying the specific circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in
suicide will help to identify, develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “Relat” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was experiencing an
interpersonal problem with someone other than an intimate partner (e.g., a family
member, friend, or schoolmate). Problems with a person at work should be coded as
job problems, not “Relat”. If the report indicates that the victim was “having relationship
problems”, these should be assumed to be intimate partner problems, and not problems
with other friends or family.
Case Examples
Yes
• A teenager was arguing with his parents because they refused to let him go
on a weekend ski trip with his friends.
• A 20 year-old had recently been kicked out of his house by his parents
because of arguments and drug use.
No
•
Victim was having relationship problems. (Code as intimate partner problem).
Name
Relat
Label
Table
Other relationship problem: Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
1
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Relat
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-21
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Job problem:
Job
Name
Definition
Job
Job problems appear to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to job problems. Identifying specific
circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in suicide will help to identify,
develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “Job” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was either experiencing a
problem at work (such as tensions with a co-worker, poor performance reviews, increased
pressure, feared layoff) or was having a problem with joblessness (e.g., recently laid off,
having difficulty finding a job). Do not endorse Job if a person left their job as part of
their suicide plan (e.g., “Victim left work four days ago and checked into a hotel; the
body was found after co-workers contacted the victim’s family to try to locate him”).
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim was in the midst of a sexual harassment action at work.
• The victim was recently laid off at work.
No
• A 66-year-old retired man was found dead in the garage from carbon
monoxide poisoning. There is no information available about the
circumstances.
Name
Label
Job
Job problem:
Table
Person
Type
Checkbox
Response Options:
Job
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-22
Field
Length
1
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
School problem:
School
Name
Definition
School
Problems at school appear to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to problems at school. Identifying
specific circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in suicide will help to
identify, develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “School” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was experiencing a
problem such as poor grades, bullying, social exclusion at school, or performance
pressures.
Case Examples
Yes
• A graduate student with a history of alcoholism and depression was feeling
overwhelmed by academic pressure.
• Rumors were circulating at the school about the victim, and she had recently
lost her circle of friends as a result of the rumors.
• A ninth grader killed himself after bringing home a report card that showed
a drop in his grades.
●
A student was skipping school, but there is no other evidence suggesting
any problems related to the student not attending school.
Name
Label
Table
School
School problem:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
School
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-23
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Financial problem:
FinProb
Name
Definition
FinProb
Financial problems appear to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to financial problems. Identifying specific circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in suicide will help to identify,
develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “FinProb” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was experiencing a
problem such as bankruptcy, overwhelming debts, or foreclosure of a home or business.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim had a gambling problem and mounting debts.
• The bank was in the process of foreclosing on the victim’s home.
• The victim and his wife were arguing about money problems.
Name
Label
Table
FinProb
Financial problem: Person
Type
Field
Length
Checkbox
1
Response Options:
FinProb
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-24
Priority
Primacy
O/O/O CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Suicide of friend or family in past five years:
RecSui
Name
Definition
RecSui
Suicide of a family member or friend within the past five years
appears to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to other suicides. This may be useful
for identifying suicide clusters. Identifying specific circumstances that appear to play
a precipitative role in suicide will help to identify, develop, and evaluate preventive
interventions.
Discussion
Code “RecSui” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was distraught over, or
reacting to, a relatively recent (within five years) suicide of a friend or family member.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim had been depressed since the death of his brother who
committed suicide a year ago.
No
• The victim is a 36-year-old woman. Her mother committed suicide
when she was 12 years old. (Code as “Other suicide circumstance”).
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
RecSui
Suicide of friend
or family in past
five years:
Person
Checkbox
1
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
RecSui
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-25
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Other death of friend or family:
FamDeath
Name
Definition
FamDeath
Death of a family member or friend within the last five years that
appears to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to the loss of a loved one through means
other than suicide. Identifying the specific circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in suicide will help to identify, develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “FamDeath” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was distraught over,
or reacting to, a relatively recent (within five years) death of a friend or family member.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim had been depressed since the death of his wife two years ago.
• The victim was a high school student diagnosed with bipolar disorder;
a friend had died in a car crash the month before, and the victim was
distraught over his loss.
No
• The victim was a widow who was living with her grown daughter.
(No mention of timeframe or relationship of the death to the suicide decision.)
Name
FamDeath
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Other death of
friend or family:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
FamDeath
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-26
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Recent criminal legal problem:
RecCrm
Name
Definition
RecCrm
Criminal legal problems appear to have contributed to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to criminal problems. Identifying the
specific circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in suicide will help to
identify, develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “RecCrm” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was facing criminal
legal problems (recent or impending arrest, police pursuit, impending criminal court
date, etc.). Include military crimes such as AWOL here too. Committing a crime alone
is not sufficient basis for endorsing RecCrm; there must be evidence of negative legal
or law enforcement consequences that appear to be associated with the suicide. Criminal
legal problems, as opposed to civil legal problems, are those resulting from conduct
considered so harmful to society as a whole that it is prohibited by statute and prosecuted
by the government.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim has been convicted of a crime and is awaiting his court
appearance for sentencing.
• The victim was in jail on a drunk driving arrest.
• Police were in pursuit of the victim who was suspected in a recent robbery.
No
• The evening before the victim killed himself he went to his ex-girlfriend’s
house and sexually assaulted her. (No mention of actual or impending
criminal legal or law enforcement problems arising from the criminal activity.)
Name
Label
Table
RecCrm
Recent criminal
legal problem:
Person
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
RecCrm
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-27
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Other legal problems:
Legal
Name
Definition
Legal
Legal (non-criminal) problems appear to have contributed
to the suicide
Uses
This variable identifies suicides that are related to legal problems. Identifying the specific
circumstances that appear to play a precipitative role in suicide will help to identify,
develop, and evaluate preventive interventions.
Discussion
Code “Legal” as “Yes” if at the time of the incident the victim was facing civil legal
problems, such as a custody dispute or civil lawsuit, or legal problems that were
unspecified as either criminal or civil.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim is in the midst of a heated custody battle with his ex-wife.
• The victim is being sued by a former business partner.
• The suicide note refers to the victim’s legal problems. (Legal Problem is
endorsed rather than Criminal Problem since it is unclear whether the
problems are criminal or civil.)
No
• The victim has been arrested for driving while intoxicated. (Code as a
Criminal Problem.)
Name
Label
Table
Legal
Other legal problems:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Response Options:
Legal
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-28
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Perpetrator of interpersonal violence past mo.:
PIPV
Name
Definition
PIPV
Victim was a perpetrator of interpersonal violence within the past month
Uses
This variable can be helpful in exploring whether violence perpetration is a risk factor
for suicide.
Discussion
The victim of the suicide was also the perpetrator of violent crime or interpersonal
violence during the month prior to death. “PIPV” should also be coded “Yes” if a
restraining order has been filed against the victim within the past month.
Case Examples
Yes
• The suicide victim was also the suspect in the homicide of his wife.
• The victim was being sought by police for a string of robberies and assaults.
• The decedent was distraught over a recent break-up with his girlfriend;
she had a restraining order against him.
No
• The police report indicates no recent arrests; although victim was arrested
three years ago on an assault charge. (Not recent and no mention of a link
to the suicide.)
Name
Label
Table
PIPV
Perpetrator of interpersonal
violence past mo.:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
PIPV
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-29
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Victim of interpersonal violence past mo.:
PIPVVict
Name
Definition
PIPVVict
Suicide victim was a victim of interpersonal violence in the past month
Uses
This variable can be helpful in exploring whether violence victimization is a risk factor
for suicide.
Discussion
The victim was a current or recent (within the past month) victim of interpersonal
violence.
Case Examples
Yes
• A teenage girl had been the victim of repeated sexual assaults by her
stepfather before she took her life.
• The victim was being abused by her spouse.
No
• A 30-year-old victim had been abused as a child.
Name
Label
Table
Victim of interpersonal
PIPVVict violence past mo.:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Response Options:
PIPVVict
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-30
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/
Suicide or Undetermined Circumstances
Other suicide circumstance:
SuiOth
Name
Definition
SuiOth
Other specified problems contributed to the victim’s suicide
Uses
“SuiOth” serves as a check on the reporting system; if a high proportion of suicide cases
endorse “SuiOth”, the reporting system may not have codes that adequately capture the
major precipitative circumstances associated with suicide.
Discussion
“SuiOth” should only be used if a noted contributory circumstance is not already covered
by existing variables in the reporting system. Be sure to describe the circumstance in the
text field provided.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim died from starvation during a hunger strike for a political cause.
• The victim was attacked by three men last summer and was in treatment for
PTSD; family states he has been unable to sleep through the night since that
incident.
●
A parent of the victim committed suicide when the deceased was a child
(i.e., the parent’s suicide occurred more than five years ago).
●
The victim used marijuana at the time of the incident, and there is NO
evidence of regular use, addiction, or abuse.
No
• The victim is a teenage boy whose friends have ostracized him. (The case
can be coded as Other Relationship Problem and therefore does not need
an “other” code.)
• The victim’s body was not discovered for two weeks. Hikers found the
body and a helicopter was flown in to remove the body. (These details
do not describe a precipitative circumstance.)
●
The victim used marijuana at the time of the incident and there is evidence
of regular use, addiction, or abuse.
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Other suicide
SuiOth circumstance:
Person
Text
50
Name
Priority
O/LR/LR
Primacy
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
SuiOth
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
7-31
Section 8
HOMICIDE CIRCUMSTANCES
Circumstances known:
Circ
8-3
Precipitated by another crime: Crime
8-4
Nature of first other crime:
NtCrm1
Nature of second other crime: NtCrm2
8-6
First other crime in progress: InProg
8-8
Argument over money/property: Argue
8-9
Jealousy (lovers’ triangle): Jealous
8-10
Intimate partner violence related: IPV
8-11
Other argument, abuse, conflict: OthArg
8-13
Drug involvement: Drug
8-14
Gang related: Gang
8-16
OTHER HOMICIDE PRECIPITATING CIRCUMSTANCE
8-17
Justifiable self defense/law enforcement: Defens
8-20
Victim used weapon: UsedWeap
8-22
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Circumstances known:
Circ
Name
Definition
Circ
Indicates if any information is available about the circumstances
associated with the incident
Uses
This variable operates as a stem question.
Discussion
Do not code this variable as “No” until you have reviewed all of the data from this source
that you intend to review for this case.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Circ
Circumstances known:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Circ
0
No
1
Yes
8-3
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Precipitated by another crime:
Crime
Name
Definition
Crime
The homicide was precipitated by another serious crime
(e.g., drug dealing, robbery)
Uses
This variable identifies the proportion of homicides that are related to other criminal
activity. The criminology literature often divides homicides into two broad categories:
felony-related (e.g., stemming from a felony such as robbery or drug-trafficking) and
non-felony-related (e.g., stemming from interpersonal issues such as arguments, insults,
abuse, jealousy, mental illness). This variable identifies those that fall into the first
category. It uses a somewhat broader definition than that used by the Supplementary
Homicide Report system — which counts felony-related homicides as only those that
occur while another felony is in progress.
Discussion
Code a victim as “Yes” for “Crime” if the incident occurred as the result of another
serious crime. Serious crimes, such as drug trafficking, robbery, burglary, motor vehicle
theft, arson, and witness intimidation/elimination are felonies. These are crimes that
carry a sentence of one or more years in prison. Misdemeanors such as traffic infractions,
shoplifting, petty larceny (e.g., stealing someone’s jacket), public drunkenness, and
minor assaults (no injury or deadly weapon involved) are not considered serious crimes.
This variable uses a broader definition of felony-related than is used in the SHR and
includes homicides committed in revenge over a previous felony or to protect ongoing
criminal activity. The simple existence of an additional crime other than the homicide in
an incident is not sufficient grounds for endorsing “Crime”, as homicide suspects are
frequently charged with more than one crime (e.g., carrying a gun without a permit,
destroying evidence). The other crime must be a precipitative factor in order for a
“Crime” to be endorsed.
Case Examples
Yes
• A robbery of a convenience store is in progress and one of the customers
is shot.
• A man kills the person who murdered his brother to avenge his death.
• A drug dealer kills a rival dealer who was encroaching on his territory.
• A drug dealer kills the man who robbed him last week to dissuade other
would-be robbers.
• An arsonist torched an apartment building and an elderly woman dies
in the blaze.
• A man is attempting to rob a couple. One of them pulls out a gun and
shoots him.
8-4
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
No
• A woman killed her husband during an argument; she then set the house
on fire in an attempt to cover up the crime. (While intentionally setting
fire to property is a felony, the arson was not a precipitative event.)
• A youth shot another boy after having accused him of stealing his gym
shoes. (While the suspected theft was a precipitative factor, it was not a
serious crime.)
• The suspect violated a restraining order, broke into his ex-wife’s house,
tortured her over a period of several hours, and then shot her with a stolen
gun. (While there are many crimes going on in this incident, all of the
offenses were part of the violence itself. There was not a separate crime
type like a robbery or a drug deal that lead to the homicide. The precipitative
factor was the intimate partner violence itself.)
Name
Label
Table
Crime
Precipitated by
another crime:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Crime
0
No, Not available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
8-5
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Nature of first other crime:
NtCrm1
Nature of second other crime: NtCrm2
Name
Definition
NtCrm1
Nature of the first crime that precipitated the homicide
(Applies only to crime-related homicides)
NtCrm2
Nature of the second crime that precipitated the homicide
(Applies only to crime-related homicides with more than
one precipitative crime)
Uses
For cases in which the homicide was precipitated by another serious crime, these
two variables identify the specific type of crime involved. The information is used
to better characterize the types of criminal violence that lead to homicide.
Discussion
Code definitions:
Drug trade – The buying, selling, or passing of drugs from one person to another in
exchange for goods or money.
Robbery – Taking, or attempting to take, anything of value from another person or
persons by force or threat of force or violence. If money or goods are stolen without
force or threat of force (e.g., a bookkeeper stealing money from a company, thieves
stealing equipment from a loading dock), the theft is not a robbery, but larceny, and
should be coded as “Other”.
Burglary – The unlawful entry into a building or other structure without the owner’s
consent with the intent to commit a felony or a theft.
Motor vehicle theft – The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle, includes the stealing
of automobiles, trucks, buses, motorcycles, motorscooters, snowmobiles, etc. Does not
include taking a motor vehicle for temporary use by those persons having lawful access,
nor does it include stealing motor vehicle parts. Stealing motor vehicle parts without
force or the threat of force is larceny and should be coded as “Other”.
Arson – To unlawfully and intentionally damage, or attempt to damage, any building, real
estate, or personal property by fire or incendiary device. This code will generally be used
for deaths that occur when an arsonist or building owner burns down a building for
economic advantage and someone dies in the fire. The victims are considered victims of
a criminal homicide even if their deaths were not intended. This code also applies when
“firebugs” set fire to a building or property for kicks and someone dies in the blaze. It
does not apply when arson is used to cover up a homicide (because the arson was not a
precipitative event).
Rape, sexual assault – Sexual contact without consent. Includes sex with a minor with
or without consent. Ranges from the non-consensual touching of an intimate part of the
body to forced, manipulated, or coerced penetration. It can involve verbal coercion and
threats, physical restraint, intimidation, or violence.
8-6
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Gambling – To play games of chance for money or other stakes with the hope of gaining
something beyond the amount played. This includes dealing, operating, or maintaining
any game.
Assault/homicide – An unlawful fatal or nonfatal attack by one person upon another. To
qualify as a serious crime, the assault should be an aggravated assault (one that involves
bodily injury or threat with a deadly weapon). The following cases would qualify as
Crime-Related, and “NtCrm1” should be coded as Assault/homicide: gang kills a rival
gang member in retaliation for a previous homicide (the current homicide was precipitated in part by the previous homicide); police shoot a man who is stabbing a woman
(the aggravated assault on the woman precipitated the officer shooting). The following
case would NOT qualify as Crime-Related: two men are engaged in a fistfight; the fight
escalates and one man shoots the other. (In an incident involving mutual assault that
escalates to homicide, the initial assault is an integral part of the incident and not a
separate precipitative crime).
Witness intimidation/elimination – To prevent a witness from providing information to
the authorities about a crime either by killing, harming, or removing the witness, or by
intentionally saying or doing something that would cause the witness to be fearful of
providing information.
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Number
2
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Number
2
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Name
Label
Table
Type
NtCrm1
Nature of first
other crime:
Person
NtCrm2
Nature of second
other crime:
Person
Response Options:
NtCrm1
and
NtCrim2
1
Drug trade
2
Robbery
3
Burglary
5
Motor vehicle theft
6
Arson
7
Rape, sexual assault
9
Gambling
10
Assault, homicide
11
Witness intimidation/elimination
66
Other (specify in narrative)
88
Not applicable
99
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
8-7
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
First other crime in progress:
InProg
Name
Definition
InProg
The precipitative crime was in progress at the time of the homicide
Uses
For homicides that are precipitated by criminal activity such as drug dealing and robbery,
InProg identifies whether the associated crime was in progress. The Supplementary
Homicide Report system defines felony-related homicides only in terms of in-progress
felonies. Because NVDRS uses a broader definition, this variable identifies only those
that qualify as felony-related using the narrower definition.
Discussion
An in-progress crime is one that is being committed or attempted at the time of the
homicide. This includes fleeing the scene.
Name
Label
Table
Type
InProg
First other crime
in progress:
Person
Checkbox
Response Options:
InProg
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
8-8
Field
Length
1
Priority
O/LR/LR
Primacy
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Argument over money/property:
Argue
Name
Definition
Argue
An argument or conflict over money or property led to the homicide
Uses
This variable distinguishes homicide incidents that involve conflicts over money or
property from more general interpersonal conflicts. This is useful for specifying the
context in which drug-related homicides occur.
Discussion
Code when an interpersonal conflict between a victim and suspect involves conflict
over money, property, or drugs.
Case Examples
Yes
• The victim and suspect are overheard arguing about who owns a sofa
that belonged to the victim, but was left in the suspect’s apartment.
• The victim and suspect argue about how to divide up the cocaine they
just purchased.
• The victim owed the suspect money.
No
• The victim and the suspect, who were cousins, were heard arguing.
The subject of the argument is unknown.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Argue
Argument over
money/property:
Person
Checkbox
Field
Length
1
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Argue
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Supplementary Homicide Report
8-9
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Jealousy (lovers’ triangle):
Jealous
Name
Definition
Jealous
Identifies cases in which jealousy or distress over an intimate
partner’s relationship or suspected relationship with another
person lead to the homicide
Uses
This variable will better specify the nature of violence between intimate partners and
sexual rivals, for more accurate characterization of these incidents.
Discussion
In general, assume that if an incident involves sexual rivals; “Jealous” should be coded
as “Yes” unless the circumstances clearly do not involve jealousy.
Case Examples
Yes
• An ex-wife is getting married to new boyfriend. Ex-husband waits for them
to leave ex-wife’s apartment, then shoots both.
• A woman stabs her boyfriend after learning that he has been cheating on her.
No
• An ex-boyfriend is buying drugs from his ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend when
the new boyfriend is shot. Records indicate that the homicide was drug-related
and do not indicate jealousy as a factor.
Name
Label
Table
Jealous
Jealousy (lovers’ triangle):
Person
Response Options:
Jealous
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Supplementary Homicide Report
8-10
Type
Field
Length
Checkbox
1
Priority
Primacy
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Intimate partner violence related:
IPV
Name
Definition
IPV
Identifies cases in which a homicide is related to conflict between
current or former intimate partners
Uses
This variable will (1) track homicides in which one intimate partner kills another and
(2) track deaths that are associated with intimate partner conflict/violence but are not
deaths of the intimate partners themselves. It will be used to evaluate policies and
programs aimed at reducing domestic violence.
Discussion
An intimate partner is defined as a current or former girlfriend/boyfriend, date, or spouse.
If other people are also killed (a child, friend of the victim, a bystander) or if the intimate
partner is not (the child of the intimate partner is the victim), code “Yes” for those
victims as well. It will be apparent in the Victim-Suspect Relationship variable whether
the victim and suspect were intimate partners or not. The definition of intimate partner
includes first dates.
Case Examples
Yes
• A woman and her lawyer are getting into a car; the woman’s ex-boyfriend
walks up to the woman and shoots her and the lawyer. (Code “Yes” for
both the woman and the lawyer.)
• A man and his boyfriend are out at a party. The ex-boyfriend of the man is
outraged that he would show up at a party with his new boyfriend. The
ex-boyfriend pulls out a gun and shoots both. (Also code “Jealous” as “Yes”.)
• A man and woman are out on their first date. They go back to her apartment
after the date. The man tries to force the woman into bed and strangles her
to death.
• A man shoots the child of his ex-girlfriend to get back at her for leaving him.
The woman is not killed.
• A man is beating his ex-girlfriend. The son of the woman intervenes and
stabs the boyfriend to death.
No
• A man administers an overdose to his terminally-ill wife in a mercy killing.
Wife leaves note indicating her request that her husband end her life.
8-11
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Name
Label
Table
Type
IPV
Intimate partner
violence related:
Person
Checkbox
Response Options:
IPV
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
8-12
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Other argument, abuse, conflict:
OthArg
Name
Definition
OthArg
An argument or other interpersonal conflict such as abuse, insult,
grudge, or personal revenge that precipitated the killing. Excludes
arguments over money/property (Argue), intimate partner violence
(IPV), and jealousy between intimate partners (Jealous)
Uses
In conjunction with Argue, IPV, and Jealous, this variable can be used to assess how often
violence-related deaths are associated with interpersonal conflict or abuse.
Discussion
This variable is designed to capture all other types of interpersonal conflicts, arguments
or abuse that are not already covered by “Argument over money,” “Jealousy,” or
“Intimate partner violence related.” Cases that appear to involve child abuse, elder abuse,
and abuse by a caretaker should be coded “Yes” for “OthArg”. It may seem awkward not
to have a specific variable called “abuse.” However, different practitioners in the various
fields of abuse prevention apply different definitions of abuse. For example, some
definitions require that the suspect be a caretaker of the victim (information that is
captured in the variable, CareTk) and some require that there be a history of ongoing
abuse (captured in the variable Abuse), both of which are in the victim-suspect
relationship table. Using a combination of OthArg, CareTk, Victim-suspect relationship,
and Abuse should give analysts flexibility in identifying cases that appear to be abuserelated according to a variety of definitions.
Case Examples
Yes
• The suspect was trying to quiet a crying baby when he lost his temper
and shook the baby to death. Also indicate whether there was evidence
of ongoing abuse on the victim-suspect relationship table.
• The victim and suspect were arguing over a parking spot.
• The victim is killed by an acquaintance in retaliation for a dispute they
had on the basketball court earlier in the evening.
No
• The victim is shot by an acquaintance for an unknown reason.
Name
Label
Table
OthArg
Other argument,
abuse, conflict:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
OthArg
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
8-13
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Drug involvement:
Drug
Name
Definition
Drug
Drug dealing or illegal drug use is suspected to have played a role in
precipitating the homicide
Uses
Identifying drug involvement homicides will assist in more fully measuring the social
costs of drug activity and evaluating the impact of policies and programs aimed at
reducing drug trafficking and use.
Discussion
Code “Drug” as “Yes” if the homicide was related to illegally trafficking a controlled
substance (e.g., drug deal gone bad, drug market turf battle, theft of drugs or money from
a dealer during a drug deal, etc.) or drug use (e.g., addict committing robbery to obtain
money for drugs, arguments over drugs). This variable can be coded based on suspicion
of drug-relatedness. For example, if the victim’s body was found in a crack house or the
victim had illegal drugs on their person at the time of death, code “Drug” as “Yes” unless
it is noted in the record that the precipitative circumstance was not drug-related.
Case Examples
Yes
• A drug purchaser argues with a drug dealer about being cheated on the
last deal and the dealer shoots him.
• A young dealer kills his grandmother because she will not allow him to
sell drugs out of her home.
• A drug dealer has a rival drug dealer murdered because he has been
encroaching on the first dealer’s territory.
• A crack addict robs someone on the street for money to buy drugs.
• A 16 year-old addict kills his mother during a fight after she flushes
his drugs down the toilet.
• Two men break into the apartment of a drug dealer because they know
he’s holding on to a large sum of cash from a recent deal; they kill him
and take the money.
• A homicide victim is found in his car with a large quantity of crack
cocaine on the seat next to him; no other information is available
about what precipitated the homicide.
No
• A known drug dealer is murdered by his girlfriend after she discovers
that he has been sleeping with another woman. (Although he is a known
drug dealer, the facts of the case are known to be related to sexual jealousy
and intimate partner violence, not drug dealing.)
8-14
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Name
Label
Table
Drug
Drug involvement:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Drug
0
No, Not available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
8-15
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Gang related:
Gang
Name
Definition
Gang
Gang rivalry or gang activities that are suspected to have played a
role in precipitating the homicide
Uses
This variable identifies the proportion of homicides that are attributable to gang activity.
It can be used to evaluate the impact of programs or policies aimed at redirecting gang
activity or reducing gang membership.
Discussion
Gang members are persons who are members of an association or organization that has,
as one of its purposes, the commission of crime. Gangs include both youth gangs and
organized crime gangs. Code “Gang” as “Yes” if the police or CME report indicates that
the homicide resulted, or is suspected to have resulted, from gang rivalry or gang activity.
Do not endorse “Gang” if the victim or suspect is a gang member, but the homicide did
not appear to result from gang activity.
Case Examples
Yes
• A gang member shoots a rival gang member in revenge over an earlier
shooting.
• A member of a gang that controls drug trafficking in the neighborhood
shoots a man who robbed one of their dealers.
No
• A man shoots another young man over an insult the young man made about
the suspect’s girlfriend. The victim is a gang member. (Although the victim
is a gang member, the incident is not related to gang activity. Indicate in the
narrative that the victim is a gang member.)
Name
Label
Table
Gang
Gang related:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Field
Length
Priority
1
O/LR/LR
Response Options:
Gang
0
No, Not available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
8-16
Primacy
CFR/CME/PR
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
OTHER HOMICIDE PRECIPITATING CIRCUMSTANCE
Hate crime:
Brawl (mutual physical fight):
Terrorist attack:
Victim was a bystander:
Victim was a police officer on duty:
Victim was intervener assisting crime victim:
Mercy killing:
Other homicide circumstance (specify):
Hate
Brawl
Terror
Bystd
PolOff
Interv
Mercy
Other
Name
Definition
Hate
The homicide was precipitated by a hate crime
(specify type in incident narrative)
Brawl
A mutual physical fight preceded the homicide
Terror
The homicide resulted from a terrorist attack
Bystd
The victim was a bystander, not the intended target of the homicide
PolOff
The victim was a law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty
Interv
An intervener other than a law enforcement officer was killed while
assisting a crime victim
Mercy
The victim requested that his or her life be brought to an end so
the suspect committed the act to bring about the victim’s death
Other
A circumstance not covered by the existing variables was a
precipitative factor in the homicide
Uses
These data elements characterize the precipitants of violent deaths and help to identify
trends in subtypes of violence over time. They will aid in planning and evaluating
prevention programs targeted at specific subtypes of violence.
Discussion
Hate – A crime of aggravated assault, arson, burglary, criminal homicide, motor vehicle
theft, robbery, sexual assault, or crime involving bodily injury in which the victim was
intentionally selected because of their actual or perceived race, gender, religion, sexual
orientation, ethnicity, or disability. Specify the type of hate crime in the Incident Narrative.
Brawl – Persons were involved in a mutual, physical fight. The brawl may or may not
escalate to involve weapons. Do not code Brawl if the attack was one-sided (e.g., a group
beats a single victim to death). Do not code as Brawl if only two people were fighting.
8-17
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Terror – The victim was injured in a terrorist attack, whether with conventional, chemical, biological, or other weapons. This would include those who died while assisting in
rescue operations from the attack. The NVDRS uses the FBI definition of terrorism:
“Injuries resulting from the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property
to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in
furtherance of political or social objectives.” Terrorism is not limited to terrorism by
foreign nationals but includes domestic terrorism as well (e.g., abortion clinic bombing,
anti-war bombing).
Bystd – The victim was a bystander and not directly involved in the incident
(e.g., pedestrian walking past a gang fight, customer in a convenience store at
the time of a robbery). Also code the precipitative event (e.g., gang-related, robbery).
PolOff – At the time of the incident, the victim was a law enforcement officer killed in
the line of duty. Also code the precipitative event.
Interv – The victim was attempting to assist a crime victim at the time of the incident.
Also code the crime in which the victim was intervening. Examples: A woman was
being beaten by her boyfriend; her child intervened and the boyfriend killed the child.
A firefighter dies from smoke inhalation while trying to put out a fire set by an arsonist.
Mercy – The suspect acts to bring about immediate death allegedly in a painless way and
based on a clear indication that the dying person wished to die because of a terminal or
hopeless disease or condition. Do not assume that a murder/suicide by a sick, elderly
couple is a mercy killing. Code “Mercy” as “Yes” only when there is documentation that
the victim wanted to be killed (e.g., left a note, told a relative or friend) and the police are
not charging the suspect with an intentional homicide.
Other –
Mentally ill suspect – The suspect’s attack on the victim is believed to be the
direct result of the suspect’s mental illness (e.g., the suspect attacks a woman
on the street and claims that an angel told him the woman was one of Satan’s
minions).
Random violence – The victim was killed by a random act of violence. A
random act is one in which the suspect is not concerned with who is being
harmed, just that someone is being harmed, such as a person who shoots
randomly at passing cars from a highway bridge or opens fire in a crowded
shopping mall. This code should not be used for unsolved homicides. It should
also not be used for cases in which the overall target was chosen intentionally
(such as a white supremacist group opening fire in a daycare center that serves
children of color, or a suspect returning to the job from which he was recently
fired and kills several people; while the actual individuals may have been
selected at random, the place was intentionally targeted).
8-18
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Drive-by – A drive-by shooting is one in which the suspect or group of suspects
drives near an intended victim or target and shoots while driving. Code
“Drive-by” even if the actual victim was a bystander and not the intended victim.
Drive-by is the mechanism by which the victim was shot; also choose a precipitative circumstance code to document why the drive-by occurred, if known.
Other – Code “Other” only if a precipitative circumstance does not fall under
existing circumstance codes. This code should be used infrequently and should
not be used for unknown circumstances. Specify the circumstance in the
Incident Narrative.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Hate
Hate crime:
Person
Checkbox
Brawl
Brawl
(mutual physical fight): Person
Terror
Terrorist attack:
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Bystd
Victim was a bystander: Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
PolOff
Victim was a
police officer on duty:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Interv
Victim was intervener
assisting crime victim:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Mercy
Mercy killing:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Other
Other homicide
circumstance (specify): Person
Number
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Hate
thru
Mercy
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Other
1
Mentally ill suspect
2
Random violence
3
Drive-by shooting
8
Other
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS; FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program,
Supplementary Homicide Report
8-19
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Justifiable self defense/law enforcement:
Defens
Name
Definition
Defens
The homicide was committed by a law enforcement officer in the
line of duty or was committed by a civilian in legitimate self-defense
or in defense of others
Uses
This variable identifies the subset of homicides that involve socially-sanctioned use of
lethal force.
Discussion
Justifiable homicides include those that are committed by a law enforcement officer in
the line of duty or by a civilian in self-defense or in defense of others. Self-defense is
defined as the right of a civilian to repel by force, even to the taking of life, or in defense
of his person or property against anyone who attempts by violence or surprise to commit
a forcible felony. Essential elements of self-defense are that the civilian does not provoke
difficulty and that there must be impending peril without a convenient or reasonable
mode of escape. Sufficient evidence is required to support coding a case as a defensive
or justifiable act. It is not enough that the police record notes that the suspect claims his
or her life was in danger. Acceptable evidence is that either the SHR codes the case as a
justifiable homicide or police records indicate that police and prosecutors have classified
the case as a justifiable homicide. If a case is coded as “Yes” for “Defens”, be sure to
code the precipitative event that led to the killing as well. Any killing by a law enforcement officer in the line of duty is considered a justifiable homicide with the exception
of an intentional murder.
Case Examples
Yes
• An armed suspect enters a gas station to commit a robbery; the clerk pulls
a gun out from under the counter and kills the suspect.
• An officer is attempting to apprehend a robbery suspect; the suspect pulls
a gun and fires at the officer, and the officer returns fire, shooting the suspect.
• An officer stops a man erroneously believed to be a suspect in a robbery.
The man reaches for his wallet to prove his identity, but the officer mistakes
this as going for a gun and shoots the man. (Whether the killing was truly
justifiable is not something that the coder should interpret; because the
officer was acting in the line of duty, it should be coded as “Yes”.)
No
• The victim and suspect are arguing and begin shoving one another;
the victim pulls out a knife; the suspect pulls out his gun and shoots
the victim. The suspect is charged with second-degree murder.
• A woman kills her boyfriend against whom she has a restraining order.
She claims self-defense, but she is charged with murder. (Although she
may eventually be acquitted of the charges, code based on the current
police-designated status of the case.)
8-20
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
• An on-duty police officer drives to his wife’s place of work and kills her.
He is arrested for her murder. (Although he is on duty at the time, the
killing was not in the line of duty.)
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Defens
Justifiable self defense/
law enforcement:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Defens
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
8-21
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Homicide Circumstances
Victim used weapon:
UsedWeap
Name
Definition
UsedWeap
The victim used a weapon during the course of the incident
Uses
This variable identifies the subset of homicides that involve armed victims who used
their weapon during the course of the incident.
Discussion
Code “UsedWeap” as “Yes” if the victim was armed with a weapon such as a gun, knife,
or blunt instrument and used the weapon either to attack or to defend against the suspect
or another person during the incident. Please also code this variable as “Yes” when a
person made an attempt to use a weapon. For example, if a person made an attempt to
pull a gun, but did not actually fire a round.
Case Examples
Yes
• Two men are arguing; one goes after the other with a knife. The suspect
shoots the man with the knife.
• A police officer stops a man for a routine traffic violation; the man attempts
to run the officer down with his vehicle and the officer shoots the man.
(The car is considered a weapon in this scenario.)
No
• At the murder scene, investigators find the victim’s pistol in his
shoulder holster.
Name
Label
Table
UsedWeap
Victim used weapon:
Person
Type
Checkbox
Response Options:
UsedWeap
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
8-22
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Section 9
UNINTENTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES
Circumstances known:
Circ
9-3
CONTEXT OF INJURY
9-4
MECHANISM OF INJURY
9-6
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
Circumstances known:
Circ
Name
Definition
Circ
Indicates if any information is available about the circumstances
associated with the incident
Uses
This variable operates as a stem question.
Discussion
Do not code this variable as “No” until you have reviewed all of the data from this source
that you intend to review for this case.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Circ
Circumstances known:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Circ
0
No
1
Yes
9-3
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
CONTEXT OF INJURY
Hunting:
Target shooting:
Self-defensive shooting:
Celebratory firing:
Loading/unloading gun:
Cleaning gun:
Showing gun to others:
Playing with gun:
Other context of injury:
Hunt
Miss
SelfDef
Celeb
LoadGun
Clean
Show
Play
OthAcc
Name
Definition
Hunt
Occurred while hunting or on a hunting trip
Miss
Occurred while target shooting
SelfDef
Self-injury occurred while defending against a suspected aggressor
Celeb
Occurred while firing celebratory shots
LoadGun
Occurred while loading or unloading a gun
Clean
Occurred while cleaning a gun
Show
Occurred while showing a gun to others
Play
Occurred while playing or “fooling around” with a gun
OthAcc
Occurred within a context other than the above categories
Uses
These variables identify the contexts within which an unintentional shooting occurs. It
can be used to identify trends in subtypes of unintentional shootings over time and will
aid in planning and evaluating prevention programs targeted at improving gun design,
reducing child access to guns, teaching gun safety, and other strategies.
Discussion
Hunting – Code “Hunt” as “Yes” if an unintentional firearm injury occurred while the
shooter or victim was hunting or on a hunting trip. Include any incident that occurs after
leaving home and before returning home from hunting. The shooting itself need not have
been during an active hunt to be considered hunting-related. For example, a hunter who
has finished hunting and accidentally shoots himself while loading his rifle in the truck
for the return trip home is considered a hunting accident. If an injury occurs before or
after the hunting trip (e.g., while cleaning a gun in preparation for a hunting trip), the
incident should not be coded as hunting-related.
9-4
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
Target Shooting – Code “Miss” as “Yes” if the shooter is aiming for a target and unintentionally hits a person. Target shooting can occur either in the setting of a formal shooting
range or in an informal “backyard” setting (e.g., teenagers shooting at signposts on a
fence).
Self-Defense – Code “SelfDef” as “Yes” when a victim is attempting to defend him or
herself with a gun and inadvertently shoots themselves. Endorse “SelfDef” only if the
shooting was self-inflicted. Shootings of one person by another that occur during a selfdefensive shooting (e.g., when a store clerk unintentionally shoots a customer while
aiming for a robber) should be coded as “homicide” for Type of Death.
Celebratory – Code “Celeb” as “Yes” when the shooter was firing the gun upward in a
celebratory manner with no intention of threatening or endangering others (e.g., revelers
on New Year’s Eve shooting their guns in the air at midnight). Firing warning shots in the
air (for example to break up a fight) should not be coded as celebratory if the shot
unintentionally strikes a bystander, but should be coded as homicide for Type of Death
(since the gun was used in a threatening manner to control others).
Loading/unloading – Code “LoadGun” as “Yes” if the firearm discharges while the
shooter is loading or unloading ammunition from the gun.
Cleaning – Code “Clean” as “Yes” if the shooter pulls the trigger or the gun discharges
while a person is cleaning the gun.
Showing – Code “Show” as “Yes” if the shooter was showing the gun to another person
when the gun discharged or the trigger was pulled. An example is a teenager who was
showing his father’s new gun to his friend.
Playing – Code “Play” as “Yes” if the shooter and one or more others are playing with a
gun. Other phrases that would trigger coding this context include “horsing around” and
“fooling around.” This variable is not limited to children. A case example would be two
teenaged brothers playing a game of quick draw with their father’s revolvers. They are
unaware that one of the guns has a bullet in the cylinder.
Other – Code “OthAcc” as “Yes” if the shooting occurs during some context other than
those described by the existing codes.
9-5
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Target shooting:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
SelfDef
Self-defensive
shooting:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Celeb
Celebratory firing:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
LoadGun
Loading/
unloading gun:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Clean
Cleaning gun:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Show
Showing gun
to others:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Play
Playing with gun:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
OthAcc
Other context
of injury:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Name
Label
Table
Hunt
Hunting:
Miss
Response Options:
Hunt
thru
OthAcc
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
9-6
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
MECHANISM OF INJURY
Thought safety was engaged:
Thought unloaded, magazine disengaged:
Thought gun was unloaded, other:
Unintentionally pulled trigger:
Bullet ricochet:
Gun defect or malfunction:
Fired while holstering/unholstering:
Dropped gun:
Fired while operating safety/lock:
Gun mistaken for toy:
Other mechanism of injury:
Safety
UnlMg
Unloa
Pull
Richo
Defct
Holst
DropGun
Engag
Toy
FOth
Name
Definition
Safety
Shooter thought the gun was inoperable because the safety was engaged
UnlMg
Shooter thought the gun was unloaded because the magazine was
disengaged
Unloa
Shooter thought the gun was unloaded (other or unspecified reason)
Pull
Shooter unintentionally pulled the trigger
Richo
The bullet ricocheted and unintentionally struck the victim
Defct
The gun had a defect or malfunctioned
Holst
Shooter unintentionally fired the gun while holstering or unholstering
the gun or removing it from or replacing it in his or her clothing
DropGun
The gun discharged when it was dropped
Engag
Shooter unintentionally fired the gun while operating the safety lock
Toy
The gun was mistaken for a toy
FOth
Other mechanism of injury
Uses
The variables identify the specific mechanism by which the gun was fired and hit another
person unintentionally. They can be used to identify trends in subtypes of unintentional
shootings over time and will aid in planning and evaluating prevention programs targeted
at improving gun design, reducing child access to guns, teaching gun safety, and other
strategies.
9-7
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
Discussion
Safety – Code “Safety” as “Yes” if the shooter thought the safety was on and the firearm
would not discharge.
Magazine disengaged – Code “UnlMg” as “Yes” if the shooter believed the gun was
unloaded because the magazine was disengaged. This circumstance would not apply to
revolvers, derringers, or certain long guns that do not use a magazine. Frequently when
the magazine is removed from a semi-automatic pistol, the gun handler believes it is
unloaded when in fact a cartridge may remain in the firing chamber.
Unloaded – Code “Unloa” as “Yes” if the shooter thought the gun was unloaded for a
reason other than the magazine was disengaged or for an unspecified reason. Examples
are a child who had previously played with the gun when it was unloaded and assumed
it still was, or a sports shooter who always left his gun unloaded was unaware that his
son had borrowed it and left it loaded.
Pulled trigger – Code “Pull” as “Yes” if a person unintentionally pulled the trigger, for
example while grabbing for a falling gun or while reaching for the gun or holding it too
tightly with the finger on the pull.
Ricochet – Code “Richo” as “Yes” if a bullet ricocheted off course from its intended
target and struck the victim.
Defect – Code “Defct” as “Yes” if the shooting resulted from a gun defect or malfunction. Because it is difficult for a non-expert to judge whether a shooting resulted from
operator error vs. a true defect or malfunction, this code should be based on a finding
by a trained firearm and toolmark examiner.
Holstering – Code “Holst” as “Yes” if the gun is being placed in or removed from its
holster or clothing (e.g., the gun fires when a victim is pulling it from the waistband
of his pants).
Dropped – Code “DropGun” as “Yes” if the gun accidentally discharges when it is
dropped or when something is dropped on it. This code applies to situations in which the
impact of the crash causes the gun to discharge. It does not apply to situations in which a
gun starts to fall and is fired when the handler grabs for it and unintentionally pulls the
trigger. That situation should be coded as Pull.
Engaging lock – Code “Engag” as “Yes” if the shooting occurred while the gun handler
was attempting to open or close the lock and unintentionally fired the gun (e.g., while
attempting to pull the cable lock free of the trigger, the victim unintentionally pulled the
trigger) This variable will be important in detecting any unintended injuries that result
from using safety equipment.
Mistaken for toy – Code “Toy” as “Yes” if a person (usually a child) thought the gun
was a toy and was firing it without understanding the danger. This code applies to the
shooter’s understanding of the gun that he or she was handling. It does not apply to
situations in which a person kills another person because they thought the victim was
aiming a gun (in reality, a toy) at them. These situations would be coded as homicides.
9-8
Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements/Unintentional Circumstances
Other – Code “FOth” as “Yes” if the shooting occurred as the result of a mechanism not
already described by one of the existing codes.
Type
Field
Length
Name
Label
Table
Priority
Primacy
Safety
Thought safety
was engaged:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
UnlMg
Thought unloaded,
magazine disengaged: Person Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Unloa
Thought gun was
unloaded, other:
Person Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Pull
Unintentionally
pulled trigger:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Richo
Bullet ricochet:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Defct
Gun defect or
malfunction:
Person Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Holst
Fired while holstering/
unholstering:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
DropGun
Dropped gun:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Engag
Fired while operating
safety/lock:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
Toy
Gun mistaken
for toy:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
CFR/CME/PR
FOth
Other mechanism
of injury:
Person
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
CFR/CME/PR
Response Options:
Safety
thru
FOth
0
No, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
9-9
Section 10
POLICE REPORT
MAIN ELEMENTS
CIRCUMSTANCES
Person/PR/Main Elements
Person/PR/Circumstance Elements
Date of injury:
Time of injury:
State of injury FIPS code:
County of injury:
City of injury FIPS code:
Street and number of injury site:
State of death:
Injured at work:
Type of location where injured:
Idate
Itime
InjState
County
InjPlace
InjAddres
DthState
AtWork
LocTyp
See Person/DC/Main Elements section for information regarding variable(s)
appearing above.
ZIP code of injury:
At person’s home:
EMS at scene:
Homeless status:
Current occupation:
Victim in custody when injured:
Alcohol use suspected:
Number of wounds:
Number of bullets that hit victim:
Wound to the head:
Wound to the face:
Wound to the neck:
Wound to the upper extremity:
Wound to the spine:
Wound to the thorax:
Wound to the abdomen:
Wound to the lower extremity:
Person attempted suicide after incident:
Zip
Reside
EMS
Homles
Occup
Custody
Intox
NumWou
NumBul
Head
Face
Neck
UpExt
Spine
Thorax
Abdomn
LowExt
Suic
See Person/CME/Main Elements section for information regarding variable(s)
appearing above.
Suicide Circumstances
Homicide Circumstances
Unintentional Circumstances
For all Person/PR/Circumstance Elements
see Person/CFR-CME-PR/Circumstance Elements.
10-3
Section 11
SUPPLEMENTARY HOMICIDE REPORT
SHR circumstance: SCirc
11-3
SHR situation: Situat
11-5
SHR homicide type: HomTyp
11-6
SHR justifiable homicide circumstance: JustSCirc
11-7
Person/SHR
SHR circumstance:
SCirc
Name
Definition
SCirc
This data element indicates the circumstance leading to homicides for
deaths reported on the Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR) or the
National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS)
Uses
This data element assists in describing the precipitants of homicides and identifies trends
in subtypes of violence over time. It will aid in planning and evaluating prevention
programs targeted at specific subtypes of violence and unintentional injury.
Discussion
This variable provides the information supplied by the SHR about the circumstances
precipitating a homicide. It should be completed for all victims in the SHR reports.
Codes should be entered exactly as they appear in the SHR database, even if the
abstractor believes an individual code was chosen in error. If your state uses codes in
addition to the standard FBI code list for circumstance, find out from your state Uniform
Crime Reports (UCR) coordinator how that code will be mapped to the standard FBI list
and enter that code. If the SHR is not available, code the case as 88.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
SCirc
SHR circumstance:
Person
Number
2
Priority Primacy
O
SHR
Response Options:
SCirc
2
Rape
3
Robbery
5
Burglary
6
Larceny
7
Motor vehicle theft
9
Arson
10
Prostitution and commercialized vice
17
Other sex offense
18
Narcotic drug laws
19
Gambling
26
Other felony type – not specified
32
Abortion
40
Lovers’ triangle
41
Child killed by babysitter
42
Brawl due to influence of alcohol
43
Brawl due to influence of narcotics
44
Argument over money or property
45
Other arguments
46
Gangland killings
47
Juvenile gang killings
11-3
Person/SHR
48
49
50
51
52
53
59
60
70
80
81
88
99
Institutional killings
Sniper attack
Victim shot in hunting accident
Gun-cleaning death, other than self-inflicted
Children playing with gun
Other negligent handling of gun
All other manslaughter by negligence except traffic deaths
Other non-felony type homicide
Suspected felony type
Felon killed by private citizen
Felon killed by police
Not applicable
Circumstances undetermined
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
11-4
Person/SHR
SHR situation:
Situat
Name
Definition
Situat
Indicates type of homicide (murder/nonnegligent manslaughter or
manslaughter by negligence) and whether single or multiple victims
and offenders were involved in the incident
Uses
This data element is used to better describe the incident. It is useful for classifying types
and situations of homicide for developing and evaluating prevention programs.
Discussion
None
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Situat
SHR situation:
Person
Number
1
Priority Primacy
O
SHR
Response Options:
Situat
1
A – Single victim/single offender
2
B – Single victim/unknown offender(s)
3
C – Single victim/multiple offenders
4
D – Multiple victims/single offender
5
E – Multiple victims/multiple offender
6
F – Multiple victim/unknown offenders
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
11-5
Person/SHR
SHR homicide type:
HomTyp
Name
Definition
HomTyp
Indicates type of homicide (murder/nonnegligent manslaughter or
manslaughter by negligence) and whether single or multiple victims
and offenders were involved in the incident
Uses
This data element is used to better describe the incident. It is useful for classifying types
and situations of homicide for developing and evaluating prevention programs.
Discussion
The variables “Situat” and “HomTyp” provide information supplied by the SHR. It
should be completed on all victims appearing in the SHR reports. The coding system
mirrors that used by the national SHR. The homicide type (offense code) indicates
whether the homicide was classified as a murder/nonnegligent manslaughter
(i.e., interpersonal violence-related) or a manslaughter by negligence (e.g., an accidental
shooting death as in a child playing with a gun or a hunting accident).
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
HomTyp
SHR homicide type:
Person
Number
1
Priority Primacy
O
Response Options:
HomTyp
1
Murder/nonnegligent manslaughter
2
Manslaughter by negligence
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
11-6
SHR
Person/SHR
SHR justifiable homicide circumstance:
JustSCirc
Name
Definition
JustSCirc
Captures additional details about the circumstances associated
with justifiable shootings of one person by another as coded in
the Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR)
Uses
This data element describes the use of deadly force for self-defense or in the line of law
enforcement duty.
Discussion
This variable provides the information supplied by the SHR about the circumstances
precipitating a justifiable homicide. Codes should be entered exactly as they appear in
the SHR database (subcircumstance variable), even if the abstractor believes an individual code was chosen in error. If your state uses codes in addition to the standard
FBI code list for circumstance, find out from your state Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)
coordinator how that code will be mapped to the standard FBI list and enter that code.
Name
Label
Table
JustSCirc
SHR justifiable
homicide circumstance: Person
Type
Field
Length
Number
2
Priority Primacy
O
SHR
Response Options:
JustSCirc
1
Felon attacked police officer
2
Felon attacked fellow police officer
3
Felon attacked civilian
4
Felon attempted flight from a crime
5
Felon killed in commission of a crime
6
Felon resisted arrest
7
Not enough information to determine
9
Not a justifiable homicide
88
Not applicable (e.g., accident, suicide)
99
Missing
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Supplementary Homicide Report
11-7
Section 12
HOSPITAL INFORMATION
Victim admitted to inpatient care:
Victim seen in ED:
Hosp
EmDep
First external cause of injury code
from hospital:
Second external cause of injury code
from hospital:
HECd9a
HECd9b
12-3
12-4
Person/Hosp
Victim admitted to inpatient care:
Victim seen in ED:
Hosp
EmDep
Name
Definition
Hosp
Victim admitted to inpatient care at an acute care hospital?
EmDep
Victim seen in emergency department?
Uses
These variables are useful for both medical care planning and surveillance system
planning and for describing the burden of violent injury.
Discussion
Victims who arrived at the emergency department should be coded as “Yes,” regardless
of whether they were dead or alive on arrival and regardless of whether they received
treatment. If a victim was seen in the emergency department, admitted for an “observation only” overnight stay and not admitted as an inpatient, code “EmDep” as “Yes” and
“Hosp” as “No”. If the victim was admitted to the hospital, code both “EmDep” and
“Hosp” as “Yes”. If the victim was noted as having been in the operating room, code
“EmDep” and “Hosp” as “Yes”, even if the patient died in the operating room.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Hosp
Victim admitted
to inpatient care:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
HOSP
EmDep
Victim seen in ED:
Person
Number
1
O
ED
Priority Primacy
Response Options:
Hosp
0
No, Not Collected, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
EmDep
0
No
1
Yes
9
Unknown
12-3
Person/Hosp
First external cause of injury code from hospital:
Second external cause of injury code from hospital:
HECd9a
HECd9b
Name
Definition
HECd9a
First “External cause of injury” code assigned by hospital
HECd9b
Second “External cause of injury” code assigned by hospital
Uses
These variables are used to classify the case as unintentional, intentionally self-inflicted,
or assault-related.
Discussion
These variables should be coded as they appear in the hospital discharge data, or, if
unavailable, in the emergency department records. E-codes are assigned by the medical
records department using the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision,
Clinical Modification, to describe the external cause of an injury. Do not use trailing
zeros after the decimal point (unless a true zero is part of the actual code).
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
HECd9a
First external cause of
injury code from hospital:
Person
Text
5
O
HOSP
HECd9b
Second external cause of
injury code from hospital:
Person
Text
5
O
HOSP
Response Options:
HECd9a
and
HECd9b
Format: ###.#
000.7 Not collected by reporting site
000.8 Not applicable
000.9 Unknown or missing
Data Standards or Guidelines
International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, 6th ed.
12-4
Section 13
CHILD FATALITY REVIEW
MAIN ELEMENTS
HOUSEHOLD AND COMMITTEE INFORMATION
CIRCUMSTANCES
CFR records available on victim: KCFR
13-3
VICTIM ILLNESS OR DISABILITY (CFR)
13-4
PRENATAL HISTORY OF INFANTS
13-6
PRIOR CPS CONTACTS (EVER)
13-8
PRIOR SYSTEM CONTACTS
13-10
SUSPECT INFORMATION
13-12
HOUSEHOLD INFORMATION
13-15
Marital relationship of victim’s biological parents: KMarital
13-17
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE
13-18
SUPERVISION
13-20
PARENT/CAREGIVER 1
PARENT/CAREGIVER 2
13-23
COMMITTEE RECORDS
13-27
COMMITTEE DECISIONS
13-29
CIRCUMSTANCES (CFR)
13-32
Person/CFR/Main Elements
CFR records available on victim:
KCFR
Name
Definition
KCFR
Describes whether Child Fatality Review (CFR) records are
available for this victim
Uses
Will be used as a branch question so that negative answers will trigger “Not applicable”
to be filled in for all data elements that are part of the CFR Module. It will also provide
an estimated frequency with which CFR records are available for child violent deaths in
NVDRS sites that collaborate with CFR programs.
Discussion
Code KCFR as “No” if the records have been requested for a child victim and the CFR
program either does not have a record for the victim or is unable to supply the record.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
KCFR
CFR records available
on victim:
Person
Number
1
Priority Primacy
O
CFR
Response Options:
KCFR
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-3
Person/CFR/Main Elements
VICTIM ILLNESS OR DISABILITY (CFR)
Victim had a physical illness at time of incident:
If yes, specify diagnosis:
Victim had disability at time of incident:
If yes, disability was physical:
If yes, disability was developmental:
If yes, disability was sensory:
KIllness2
KIllTxt
KDisable2
KDisPhy2
KDisDev2
KDisSens2
Name
Definition
KIllness2
Victim had an acute or chronic illness at the time of the incident
KIllTxt
Free text field to indicate diagnosis if victim was ill at the time
of the incident
KDisable2
Victim had a disability at the time of the incident
KDisPhy2
Victim’s disability was physical (e.g. paraplegic, cerebral palsy)
KDisDev2
Victim’s disability was developmental (e.g. mentally retarded, autistic)
KDisSens2
Victim’s disability was sensory (e.g. blind, deaf)
Uses
Information regarding the victim’s state of health at the time of the fatal incident can be
helpful for determining potential risk factors for violent death. The stress of caring for an
acutely or chronically ill child can be a contributing factor to abusive behavior on the part
of a caregiver. Chronic illness can also be associated with depression, low self-esteem,
and substance abuse among older children, resulting in a potentially higher risk for
suicidal and homicidal behavior. This data element will help inform intervention and
prevention efforts.
Discussion
Physical illness may be acute (e.g., viral gastroenteritis, pneumonia) or chronic
(e.g., diabetes, asthma, sickle cell anemia), however, if the chronic illness did not impose
increased care demands at the time of the incident, do not code “Yes.” For example, if a
child had a history of asthma, but had no acute exacerbation at the time of the incident,
code “No.” The severity of the illness should not be considered when coding KIllness2;
any mention in the record of the victim being physically ill at the time of the incident is
sufficient to warrant coding KIllness2 as “Yes”. Physical disability implies a chronic
physical impairment that has a substantial, long-term effect on the child’s day-to-day
function (e.g., cerebral palsy). Developmental disability implies a chronic cognitive or
developmental deficit that has a substantial, long-term effect on the child’s day-to-day
function (e.g., autism, mental retardation). Sensory disability implies a chronic sensory
deficit that has a substantial, long-term impact on the child’s day-to-day functioning
(e.g., blindness, deafness). Prematurity in and of itself should not be considered an
13-4
Person/CFR/Main Elements
illness or a disability unless it resulted in a condition that fits into one of those categories
(e.g., chronic lung disease, visual impairment). Please see Prenatal History variables to
code for prematurity (KPNPrem). If a child was not specifically diagnosed with or
documented to have one of the listed disabilities, answer “No.” The answer “No” may
thereby include Missing and Unknown and “Known not to be present.” The information
used to complete this data element may come from parental history (as per law enforcement or CPS records), medical records, and/or autopsy.
Name
Label
Table
Type
KIllness2
Victim had a
physical illness at
time of incident:
Person
Checkbox
KIllTxt
If yes, specify
diagnosis:
Person
Text
KDisable2
Victim had disability
at time of incident:
Person
KDisPhy2
If yes, disability
was physical:
KDisDev2
If yes, disability
was developmental:
If yes, disability
KDisSens2 was sensory:
Field
Length
Priority Primacy
1
O
CFR
40
O
CFR
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Response Options:
KIllness2
0
No, Unknown, Missing
1
Yes
KIllTxt
None
KDisable2
thru
KDisSens2
0
No, Unknown, Missing
1
Yes
13-5
Person/CFR/Main Elements
PRENATAL HISTORY OF INFANTS
Infants: Prenatal care prior to the 3rd trimester:
Infants: Maternal recreational drug use:
Infants: Maternal alcohol use:
Infants: Maternal tobacco use:
Infants: Victim born prematurely:
KPNCare
KPNSubs
KPNAlcoh
KPNTob
KPNPrem
Name
Definition
KPNCare
Victim’s mother received prenatal care prior to 3rd trimester
KPNSubs
Victim was exposed to recreational drugs in utero
KPNAlcoh
Victim was exposed to alcohol in utero
KPNTob
Victim was exposed to tobacco in utero
KPNPrem
Victim was born prematurely
Uses
These data elements are collected only on victims less than one year old. The prenatal
history variables will help to elucidate the relationship between the presence and
duration of prenatal care and violent child death. Lack of adequate prenatal care may
be a proxy for a variety of risk factors that may relate to violent child death (e.g., neglect,
educational level, investment in the concept of wellness care, etc.). Information gathered
from all of these data elements will provide indirect information about the psychosocial
environment of the child and medical information. Certain conditions resulting from lack
of prenatal care and/or exposure to toxins in utero, place the child at increased risk of
developmental delay and other long-term sequelae which may place them at higher risk
for violent death.
Discussion
Prenatal care is defined as pregnancy-related medical care delivered by a doctor, nurse,
or other healthcare professional with the goal of monitoring the pregnancy, providing
education, and increasing the likelihood of a positive maternal and fetal outcome.
Answer “Yes” only if there are documented prenatal visits before the third trimester.
Maternal recreational drug use includes all drugs (except alcohol and tobacco) that are
either non-prescription, or are being used in a manner inconsistent with safe prescribing
practices. Answer “Yes” only if there is documented evidence or clear reports of substance, alcohol or tobacco use during pregnancy with the victim. Despite history of
maternal substance, alcohol, and/or tobacco use with prior pregnancies, if it is not
documented or evident during her pregnancy with the victim, the data element should
be coded “No.” For KPNPrem, prematurity is defined as an estimated gestational age
less than 37 weeks.
13-6
Person/CFR/Main Elements
Type
Field
Length
Infants: Prenatal care
prior to the 3rd trimester: Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Infants: Maternal
recreational drug use:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Infants: Maternal
KPNAlcoh alcohol use:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KPNTob
Infants: Maternal
tobacco use:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KPNPrem
Infants: Victim born
prematurely:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Name
Label
KPNCare
KPNSubs
Table
Priority Primacy
Response Options:
KPNCare
thru
KPNPrem
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-7
Person/CFR/Main Elements
PRIOR CPS CONTACTS (EVER)
Prior CPS report on the victim‘s household:
If yes, CPS report filed on whom:
If yes, report substantiated:
Physical abuse substantiated:
Sexual abuse substantiated:
Neglect substantiated:
CPS case opened on other children due to this death:
KCPSRept
KCPSWho
KCPSTrue
KCPSPhys
KCPSSex
KCPSNeg
KCPSOpen
Name
Definition
KCPSRept
Prior CPS report was filed on the victim’s household
KCPSWho
Person on behalf of whom or against whom a CPS report was filed
KCPSTrue
At least one prior CPS report filed on the victim’s household
was substantiated
KCPSPhys
At least one substantiated CPS report filed on the victim’s household
was for physical abuse
KCPSSex
At least one substantiated CPS report filed on the victim’s household
was for sexual abuse
KCPSNeg
At least one substantiated CPS report filed on the victim’s household
was for neglect
KCPSOpen
A CPS case was opened on other children as a result of this death
Uses
Information regarding prior reports on the victim and/or another child in the victim’s
household as victims of maltreatment will help characterize the environment in which
the decedent was living. A history of maltreatment is also a risk factor for homicidal and
suicidal behaviors in youth. Information from these data elements may give feedback on
systems issues and may elucidate opportunities for secondary prevention at a systems
level.
Discussion
All of the questions except for KCPSOpen refer to CPS contacts prior to the current
incident, and not contacts that resulted from the current case. “Household” is defined
as the residence where the victim lived the majority of the time when the fatal incident
occurred. “Household” was chosen as the unit for this question in an attempt to characterize the victim’s environment. However, in the case of a victim living with a foster
family or in an institution at the time of the fatal incident, answer regarding the family of
origin. If known maltreatment existed in the foster family, describe in incident narrative.
Please note that a report or referral can be in reference to a child or an adult living in the
13-8
Person/CFR/Main Elements
household. When the only information available is that a report was filed on the household, indicate “Unknown” for KCPSWho. If a report was not made on behalf of a child in
the household, but a report was filed against an adult who currently lives in the household
(e.g., no reports against the victim’s mother, but the mother’s boyfriend was previously
investigated for abuse), code KCPSWho as “adult in household.” Any substantiation
ever should be coded as “Yes” even if some of the reports/referrals were substantiated
and others were not.
Field
Length
Name
Label
Table
Type
Priority Primacy
KCPSRept
Prior CPS report on
the victim‘s household:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KCPSWho
If yes, CPS report filed
on whom:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KCPSTrue
If yes, report
substantiated:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KCPSPhys
Physical abuse
substantiated:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KCPSSex
Sexual abuse
substantiated:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KCPSNeg
Neglect substantiated:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KCPSOpen
CPS case opened on
other children due to
this death:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Response Options:
KCPSRept
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KCPSWho
1
Victim
2
Other child in household
3
Both
4
Adult in household
6
Other, or unspecified
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KCPSTrue thru KCPSOpen
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-9
Person/CFR/Main Elements
PRIOR SYSTEM CONTACTS
Victim contact with police:
Household‘s contact with police:
Victim contact with juvenile justice system:
Victim contact with the health care system:
Victim contact with mental health services:
Victim/primary caregiver contact with social services:
Primary caregiver on welfare/financial assistance:
Victim/primary caregiver contact with WIC:
Victim/primary caregiver contact with Medicaid:
Name
Definition
KLawVict2
Victim had contact with police in the past 12 months
KLawHous2
Household had contact with police in the past 12 months
KJuv2
Victim had contact with juvenile justice system in the
past 12 months
KHealth2
Victim had contact with health care system in the
past 12 months
KMHServ2
Victim had contact with mental health services in the
past 12 months
KSocial2
Victm/primary caregiver had contact with social services
in the past 12 months
KWelfare2
Primary caregiver was on welfare/financial assistance
in the past 12 months
KWIC2
Victim/primary caregiver had contact with WIC in the
past 12 months
KMedicaid2
Victim/primary caregiver had contact with Medicaid
in the past 12 months
KLawVict2
KLawHous2
KJuv2
KHealth2
KMHServ2
KSocial2
KWelfare2
KWIC2
KMedicaid2
Uses
Contacts with the system may occur at many different points. Each contact instance is a
potential opportunity for preventing violent death. The information collected in this data
element will demonstrate where children who suffer from different types of violent death
tend to come into contact with the system. That pattern recognition may serve as a guide
for allocating resources for prevention.
13-10
Person/CFR/Main Elements
Discussion
KLawVict2, KJuv2, KHealth2, and KMHServ2 all refer to whether the child/victim had
contact with these points in the system prior to the fatal incident. KSocial2, KWIC2 and
KMedicaid2 ask if either the child or the primary caregiver had contact with these points
in the system in the year prior to the incident. The social services system can include
health educator home visits or voluntary services, such as parenting support or respite
services. And KWelfare2 refers to whether the primary caregiver of the victim was on
welfare or receiving governmental financial assistance. KLawHous2 refers to the
household’s history of contact with law enforcement (e.g., police being called by
neighbors secondary to domestic disturbance).
Type
Field
Length
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Name
Label
Table
KlawVict2
Victim contact
with police:
Household‘s contact
KLawHous2 with police:
Priority Primacy
KJuv2
Victim contact with
juvenile justice system:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KHealth2
Victim contact with the
health care system:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Victim contact with
KMHServ2 mental health services:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KSocial2
Victim/primary caregiver contact with
social services:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KWelfare2
Primary caregiver on
welfare/financial
assistance:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KWIC2
Victim/primary caregiver contact with WIC:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Victim/primary caregiver contact with
KMedicaid2 Medicaid:
Response Options:
KLawVict2
thru
KMedicaid2
0
No
1
Yes
13-11
Person/CFR/Main Elements
SUSPECT INFORMATION
Specific person suspected:
Suspect arrested as perp in this death:
Suspect charged as perp in this death:
Suspect prosecuted:
Suspect convicted:
Suspect convicted of original charge:
CPS report or referral ever filed on the suspect:
Suspect ever charged with a prior homicide:
SusIdent
SArrest
SusChg
SusPros
SConvict
SOriginal
CPSRepFil
SusPrHomi
Name
Definition
SusIdent
Law enforcement identified the suspect by name
SArrest
Suspect was arrested as a perpetrator in this death
SusChg
Suspect was charged as a perpetrator in this death
SusPros
Suspect was prosecuted as a perpetrator in this death
SConvict
Suspect was convicted as a perpetrator in this death
SOriginal
Suspect was convicted of original charge
CPSRepFil
Child Protective Service report had previously been filed
on this suspect
SusPrHomi
Suspect had ever been charged with a prior homicide
Uses
Information regarding the legal ramifications for the suspects (i.e. arrests, charges,
prosecution and convictions) will be helpful for evaluating law enforcement and criminal
justice system response to violent deaths. Information about the suspects’ past violent
behavior will help highlight system issues and opportunities for improvement.
Discussion
Code “Yes” to SusIdent if a specific person was identified by law enforcement as a
suspect. If law enforcement does not know the identity (i.e., name) of the suspect, or if
they only have a physical description, code “No”. When answering suspect arrested,
suspect charged, suspect prosecuted, suspect convicted, and suspect convicted or original
charge, consider whether the suspect was arrested, charged, prosecuted and/or convicted
as a perpetrator in this death (i.e., not only charged with lesser offenses such as the
possession of a firearm without a permit, or reckless endangerment). “CPS report or
referral ever filed” refers to a prior Child Protective Services report filed on the suspect
as a perpe-trator of child abuse or neglect. “Suspect ever charged with a prior homicide”
refers to charges of homicide perpetration prior to this victim, regardless of outcome.
13-12
Person/CFR/Main Elements
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
SusIdent
Specific person
suspected:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
SArrest
Suspect arrested as
perp in this death:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
SusChg
Suspect charged as
perp in this death:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
SusPros
Suspect prosecuted:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
SConvict
Suspect convicted:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
SOriginal
Suspect convicted
of original charge:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
CPS report or referral
CPSRepFil ever filed on the suspect: Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Suspect ever charged
SusPrHomi with a prior homicide:
Number
1
O
CFR
Person
Priority Primacy
Response Options:
SusIdent
and
SArrest
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
SusChg
and
SusPros
0
No
1
Yes
3
Pending/In progress
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
SConvict
0
Acquitted
1
Convicted
3
Pending, in progress
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-13
Person/CFR/Main Elements
SOriginal
0
1
7
8
9
CPSRepFil
and
SusPrHomi
0
1
7
8
9
13-14
No, convicted of lesser charge
Yes, convicted of original charge
Not collected by local CFR team
Not applicable
Unknown
No
Yes
Not collected by local CFR team
Not applicable
Unknown
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
HOUSEHOLD INFORMATION
Type of residence where victim lived:
Length of time in residence:
Unrelated adult living in victim’s household:
Other children <18 yrs in household:
KResType
KResTime
KAdultUn
KKids
Name
Definition
KResType
Victim’s type of primary residence
KResTime
Length of time in residence
KAdultUn
Unrelated adult living in victim’s household?
KKids
Presence of other children under 18 living in the victim’s household
Uses
The role of these data elements is to provide information about the type and stability of
residence at the time of fatal incident. In addition, these variables will provide information about risk factors for child maltreatment in the home (such as having an unrelated
adult living in the victim’s home) and whether there were other children in the home.
Discussion
These questions are to be asked of all child victims. Primary residence is the place where
the victim lived the majority of the time when the incident occurred (not at the time of
death if the residences were different). For example, if a child is injured in their own
family home and dies four months later in the hospital, answer questions regarding their
own family home.
“Victim’s family home” is defined as victim’s self-identified family where applicable;
this may be biologic parents, other relatives, adoptive or stepparents. “On own” indicates
that the decedent was living separately from his/her family (e.g., living with boyfriend or
peers). If the victim was known to be moving from place to place without a permanent
residence (i.e., “on the run”), or if the victim was a newborn who was still in the hospital,
code as “Not applicable” and describe in the incident narrative. For KResTime, code the
approximate length of time that the victim had been living at the residence indicated in
KResType. All time frames listed are with respect to the timing of the fatal incident. For
example, if victim was known to have come back to live with family of origin after foster
care stay and commits suicide within two weeks of returning, code “Within the past
month.” KAdultUn and KKids apply to children who lived with their own family, on their
own, or with a foster family at the time of the fatal incident. An unrelated adult is defined
as a person 18 years or older who was living in the household at the time of the incident,
including primary caregivers (e.g., mother’s boyfriend, stepmother, friend of family,
tenant, nanny, etc.). Adoptive parents should not be considered unrelated. If the victim
lived in an institution (e.g., shelter, school, juvenile detention facility) at the time of the
fatal incident, mark “Not applicable.” If there were circumstances in the decedent’s
13-15
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
household at the time of death that contributed to the child’s death, explain that separately in the incident narrative. For example, if a child is in a vegetative state secondary
to shaken baby syndrome and dies of pneumonia three years later, answer KAdultUn and
KKids regarding the household at the time of the shaking. However, if something about
the quality of the child’s foster care at the time of death was also contributory to its
death, note that in the incident narrative.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
KResType
Type of residence
where victim lived:
Person
Number
2
O
CFR
KResTime
Length of time in
residence:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KAdultUn
Unrelated adult living
in victim’s household:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KKids
Other children <18 yrs
in household:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Response Options:
KResType
1
Victim’s family’s home
2
Foster family home
3
On own, e.g., living w boyfriend
4
Residential group home
5
Shelter
6
Juvenile detention facility, jail, prison
7
School/college
66
Other
77
Not collected by local CFR team
88
Not applicable (homeless or adult)
99
Unknown
KResTime
0
One week or less
1
Within the past month
2
Within the past 6 months
3
Between 6 months and 1 year
4
Between 1 to 5 years
5
More than 5 years
6
Other
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KAdultUn and KKids
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-16
Priority Primacy
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Marital relationship of victim’s biological parents:
KMarital
Name
Definition
KMarital
Marital relationship of victim’s biological parents at the time
of incident
Uses
Establish the marital relationship of victim’s biological parents to one another at the time
of the fatal incident.
Discussion
Code the response option that best fits the marital relationship of the victim’s biological
parents to one another at the time of the fatal incident. For example, if the victim’s
biological mother and father were never married, but the biological father was married
to another woman at the time of the fatal incident, KMarital should be coded as “Never
married”.
Name
Label
KMarital
Marital relationship
of victim’s biological
parents:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Person
Number
1
Priority Primacy
O
CFR
Response Options:
KMarital
1
Married
2
Never married
3
Widowed
4
Divorced
5
Married, but separated
6
Single, not otherwise specified
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-17
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND
SUBSTANCE ABUSE
Intimate partner violence in victim‘s household:
Substance abuse in victim‘s household:
Intimate partner violence in victim‘s foster home:
Substance abuse in victim‘s foster home:
KDV
KSubs
KDVFos
KSubsFos
Name
Definition
KDV
Evidence of intimate partner violence in victim’s household
KSubs
Evidence of substance abuse in victim’s household
KDVFos
Evidence of intimate partner violence in victim’s foster
family (if applicable)
KSubsFos
Evidence of substance abuse in victim’s foster family
(if applicable)
Uses
These variables elucidate the child’s exposure to violence and substance abuse (including
alcohol, prescription and recreational drugs) in the home.
Discussion
Domestic violence refers to intimate partner violence. Substance abuse refers to all drugs
(including alcohol) that are either non-prescription or being used in a manner inconsistent with safe prescribing practices. KDV and KSubs are to be asked about all children
regarding their household at the time of the fatal incident. For children who lived with
their families or who were institutionalized (either temporarily or permanently) answer
the questions regarding the family of origin. For permanently institutionalized children
with no family to return to, the answer will be “Not applicable”. For children in foster
care at the time of the fatal incident, answer the questions regarding both the foster
home (KDVFos and KSubsFos) and the family of origin (KDV and KSubs). In any
kind of household, if the victim was a substance abuser, but no one else in the household
was, code “No” to KSubs and/or KSubsFos. However, if anyone else in the household
was abusing substances, including other children <18, code “Yes” for KSubs and/or
KSubsFos. If there were circumstances in the decedent’s household at the time of death
that contributed to the child’s death, explain that separately in the incident narrative. For
example, if a child is in a vegetative state secondary to shaken baby syndrome and dies
of pneumonia three years later, answer the following household questions regarding the
time of the shaking. However, if something about the quality of the child’s foster care
at the time of death was also contributory to death, note that in the incident narrative.
13-18
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Table
Type
Field
Length
KDV
Intimate partner
violence in victim‘s
household:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KSubs
Substance abuse in
victim‘s household:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KDVFos
Intimate partner
violence in victim‘s
foster home:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KSubsFos
Substance abuse in
victim‘s foster home:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Name
Label
Priority Primacy
Response Options:
KDV
thru
KSubsFos
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-19
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
SUPERVISION
Perpetrator was supervisor:
Quality of supervision a factor:
Supervisor’s relationship to victim:
Supervisor’s age:
Supervisor’s sex:
No supervision:
Supervisor drug/alcohol-impaired:
Supervisor distracted or asleep:
Other supervisory factor:
KSupPerp
KSuperv
KSupRel
KSupAge
KSupSex
KSupNo
KSupDrug
KSupBusy
KSupOther
Name
Definition
KSupPerp
Perpetrator responsible for supervision at time of incident?
KSuperv
Did the quality of supervision contribute to the death of the victim?
KSupRel
Relationship of supervisor to the victim
KSupAge
Age of supervisor
KSupSex
Sex of supervisor
KSupNo
No supervision of the victim
KSupDrug
The supervisor was drug- or alcohol-impaired
KSupBusy
The supervisor was distracted or asleep
KSupOther
Other supervisory factor contributed to victim’s death
Uses
Inadequate supervision can increase the likelihood of unintentional firearm injuries,
suicide, and homicide. This association is especially true for younger children. Information gathered from this group of variables will help describe the inadequacy only when
it played a role in the victim’s violent injury, thereby informing prevention efforts.
Discussion
If the perpetrator/suspect was responsible for the victim’s direct supervision at the time
of the incident (i.e., in the case of a homicide), then code KSupPerp “Yes” and code the
rest of the supervision variables as “Not applicable”. Likewise, if the quality of the
supervision did not contribute to the child’s death (as determined by the CFRT, see
Page 13-21) or it is unknown, code “No” or “Unknown” and the remainder of the
supervisor variables as “Not applicable”.
13-20
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
The supervisor is the person with the primary responsibility for the care and control of
the child at the time of the fatal injury. If there were two supervisors at the time of the
fatal incident, but one clearly had primary responsibility, code the person with the
primary responsibility. If the responsibility of supervision was equally divided between
two people, code the person who’s supervision quality seemed most contributory to the
child’s death.
Determining supervision adequacy is purposefully left to the Child Fatality Review
Team (CFRT) by this group of data elements. “Quality of supervision” refers specifically
to the quality of supervision at the time the fatal injury occurred, not to parenting style in
general. “No supervision present” should be indicated if no arrangements for supervision
were apparently made (e.g., leaving a 3 year old unattended for half an hour). If an
inappropriately young or old supervisor was appointed, specify the circumstances
under “Other”. Any additional exceptional circumstances may be coded by endorsing
KSupOther and including a description in the CFR incident narrative. All of the variables
are based on the CFRT’s findings, even though the information to support the CFRT’s
findings may well originate from multiple sources.
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
KSupPerp
Perpetrator was
supervisor:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KSuperv
Quality of supervision
a factor:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KSupRel
Supervisor’s relationship
to victim:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KSupAge
Supervisor’s age:
Person
Number
3
O
CFR
KSupSex
Supervisor’s sex:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KSupNo
No supervision:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KSupDrug
Supervisor drug/
alcohol-impaired:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KSupBusy
Supervisor distracted
or asleep:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Other supervisory
KSupOther factor:
Priority Primacy
13-21
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Response Options:
KSupPerp
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KSuperv
0
No, supervision was appropriate
1
Yes, supervisor was not the perpetrator
2
Yes, supervisor was the perpetrator
3
Supervision not needed/expected
4
CFRT could not determine
7
No collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KSupRel
1
Primary caregiver
2
Other adult relative
3
Babysitter/child care provider
4
Primary caregiver’s boy/girlfriend
5
Sibling/step-sibling
6
Other, specify in incident narrative
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KSupAge
777
Not collected by local CFR team
888
Not applicable
999
Unknown
KSupSex
1
Male
2
Female
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KSupNo
thru
KSupOther
0
No, Not collected by local CFR team, Unknown
1
Yes
13-22
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
PARENT/CAREGIVER 1
PARENT/CAREGIVER 2
Primary caregiver is a victim or suspect
in the incident:
If yes, caregiver‘s ID in the incident:
Relationship to victim:
Person lived with victim:
Age at time of incident:
Sex:
Had legal custody of victim at time
of death
Had documented history of maltreating:
Had a previous child die in his/her care:
GPerson1/GPerson2
GPersID1/GPersID2
GRel1/GRel2
GCohabit1/GCohabit2
GAge1/GAge2
GSex1/GSex2
GCustody1/GCustody2
GCAN1/GCAN2
GDeath1/GDeath2
Name
Definition
GPerson1
GPerson2
Is the victim’s primary caregiver a victim or suspect
in the incident?
GPersID1
GPersID2
Caregiver’s Person ID in the incident
GRel1
GRel2
Caregiver’s relationship to the victim
GCohabit1
GCohabit2
Caregiver lived with victim at the time of the incident?
GAge1
GAge2
Age of Caregiver at the time of the incident
GSex1
GSex2
Sex of Caregiver
GCustody1
GCustody2
Caregiver had legal custody of the victim at time of death
GCAN1
GCAN2
Caregiver had documented history of maltreating a child
GDeath1
GDeath2
Caregiver had a previous child die in his/her care
13-23
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Uses
Information (including relationship, age, gender, and legal custody status) regarding the
victim’s parents or other primary caregiver(s) may provide insight into potential risk
factors for violent death among children.
Discussion
The victim’s primary caregiver is defined as the person or persons (up to two) who had
responsibility for the care, custody, and control of the child the majority of the time. The
primary caregiver(s) may be the child’s parent or parents (biological, step, adoptive
parents) or another relative. If the child was living with his/her biological or adoptive
parents, assume that they were the primary caregivers and had legal custody of the
decedent unless otherwise specified in the records. The primary caregiver(s) may also
be the state child protective services agency/foster parent(s) or another institution in
some cases. In the instances when the child is residing in foster care or an institution,
complete this information for the primary caregiver(s) in the family of origin if known
(not for the foster family or institutional caregivers). In the case of neonaticide, assume
that the biological mother was the primary caregiver unless there is evidence that another
person (e.g., father, grandmother) had assumed control of the child as a caregiver at the
time of the incident. If the primary caregiver(s) at the time of death was different from
the primary caregiver(s) at the time of the incident, answer regarding the primary caregiver(s) at the time of the incident. For example, if a baby is shaken by its biological
mother as an infant and survives in a vegetative state in foster care until three years of
age, code the biological mother. “Documented history of child maltreatment” indicates
a substantiated CPS report/referral or rights termination.
13-24
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
GPerson1
GPerson2
Primary caregiver is
a victim or suspect in
the incident:
Person
Number
1
GPersID1
GPersID2
If yes, caregiver‘s ID
in the incident:
Person
Number
5
O
CFR
GRel1
GRel2
Relationship to victim:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
GCohabit1
GCohabit2
Person lived
with victim:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
GAge1
GAge2
Age at time of incident:
Person
Number
3
O
CFR
GSex1
GSex2
Sex:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
GCustody1 Had legal custody of
GCustody2 victim at time of death:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
GCAN1
GCAN2
Had documented
history of maltreating:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
GDeath1
GDeath2
Had a previous child
die in his/her care:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Priority Primacy
O
CFR
Response Options:
GPerson1 and
GPerson2
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
GPersID1 and
GPersID2
None
GRel1 and
GRel2
1
Biologic parent
2
Stepparent
3
Adoptive parent
4
Other relative
5
Parent’s intimate partner
6
Other non-relative
13-25
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
GCohabit1 and
GCohabit2
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
GAge1 and
CAge2
None
GSex1 and
GSex2
1
Male
2
Female
9
Unknown
GCustody1 and
GCustody2
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
GCAN1 and
GCAN2
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
GDeath1 and
GDeath2
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected by local CFR team
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
13-26
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
COMMITTEE RECORDS
C/ME records:
SS/CPS records:
Police/Law Enforcement records:
School records:
EMS records:
Health Provider/Hospital records:
Public Health Department records:
Mental Health Records:
Juvenile Justice records:
Death Certificate:
Other records:
Specify (what other records ):
KRecME
KRecCPS
KRecLaw
KRecEdu
KRecEMS
KRecMD
KRecDOH
KRecPsy
KRecJuv
KRecDC
KRecOth
KRecTxt
Name
Definition
KRecME
Coroner/Medical Examiner records were consulted in the
CFRT review of victim’s death
KRecCPS
Social service/CPS records were consulted in the CFRT
review of victim’s death
KRecLaw
Police records were consulted in the CFRT review of victim’s death
KRecEdu
School records were consulted in the CFRT review of victim’s death
KRecEMS
EMS records were consulted in the CFRT review of victim’s death
KRecMD
Health records were consulted in the CFRT review of victim’s death
KRecDOH
Public health department records were consulted in the
CFRT review of victim’s death
KRecPsy
Mental health records were consulted in the CFRT review
of victim’s death
KRecJuv
Juvenile Justice records were consulted in the CFRT review
of victim’s death
KRecDC
Death certificate records were consulted in the CFRT review
of victim’s death
KRecOth
Other records were consulted in the CFRT review of
victim’s death
KRecTxt
Free text field to note other records consulted in the CFRT
review of victim’s death
13-27
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Uses
Information about the primary data sources consulted during the review of the victim’s
death indicates its comprehensiveness. It will also verify the primary data sources
consulted to arrive at decisions regarding adequacy of supervision and preventability.
Discussion
The primary data sources used to review a child death vary from CFR program to program and often from death to death. Code the data source as “Yes” if the records were
consulted about the death, even if the given agency ended up having no information
about the victim. Do not code a source as “Yes” if the only information gathered was
secondary (e.g., the DSS records indicate that law enforcement performed an investigation, but the actual law enforcement records were not consulted).
Name
Label
Table
Type
Field
Length
KRecME
C/ME records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecCPS
SS/CPS records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecLaw
Police/Law
Enforcement records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecEdu
School records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecEMS
EMS records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecMD
Health Provider/
Hospital records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Public Health
KRecDOH Department records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecPsy
Mental Health records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecJuv
Juvenile Justice records: Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecDC
Death Certificate:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecOth
Other records:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
KRecTxt
Specify (what
other records ):
Person
Text
50
O
CFR
Response Options:
KRecME
thru
KRecOth
0
No, Not collected by local CFR team, Unknown
1
Yes
KRecTxt
None
13-28
Priority Primacy
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
COMMITTEE DECISIONS
CFR conclusion matches Death Certificate:
If no, manner the CFR designation:
Text to specify other manner:
Action taken to change the official manner:
Result of action:
CFR determination of preventability:
KConclud
KManner
KMannTxt
KAction
KResult
KPrevent
Name
Definition
KConclud
Did the CFR designation of the child’s manner of death
match the death certificate manner?
KManner
Manner of death designated by the CFR
KMannTxt
Text field for CFR manner of death if “other”
KAction
If not, was action taken by the CFR to change the manner of death?
KResult
Result of action taken by the CFR to change the manner of death
KPrevent
CFR conclusions regarding the preventability of the death
Uses
CFRT review results can be inconsistent with the death certificate. The information
gathered from these variables will help estimate the frequency and nature of, and
response to such inconsistency. Many CFRTs assess the preventability of a given child
death as a way of conceptualizing interventions that are likely to prevent a similar death
in the future. While CFRTs may use differing definitions of preventability, it will be
helpful to get a thumbnail sketch of the relative frequency of potentially preventable
child violent deaths.
Discussion
The CFRT’s conclusions are being compared with the officially-designated manner of
death as originally specified on the death certificate (or, if the death certificate was
unavailable to the committee at the time of their review, the coroner/medical examiner
report). Code KConclud as “Yes” if the CFRT’s manner of death matched the manner of
death originally designated on the death certificate. Code KConclud as “No” if the CFRT
determined that the manner of death was something other than that assigned in the death
certificate data. Supply the manner chosen by the CFRT in KManner. “Could not be
determined” under KManner refers to the affirmative designation of undetermined as the
CFRT’s manner of death. “Unknown” is to be used if the information is not available at
the time of data entry. Please use the text box to explain coding “Other” for KManner.
KAction and KResult will be enabled only if KConclud is coded as “No.”
13-29
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
Some CFRTs designate the degree to which a child’s death was preventable
(e.g., “definitely preventable”, “probably preventable”, “probably not preventable”, etc.).
Respondents should collapse the levels they use to answer the question as “Probably not
preventable,” “Possibly preventable” or “Unable to determine”. If the teams indicate any
possibility of prevention then code “Possibly preventable.” “Unable to determine preventability” is an affirmative designation (i.e. it is specifically noted on the CFRT form)
otherwise, code “Unknown”.
Label
KConclud
CFR conclusion matches
Death Certificate:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KManner
If no, manner the
CFR designated:
Person
Number
2
O
CFR
Person
Text
30
O
CFR
Text to specify other
KMannTxt manner:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Name
Priority Primacy
KAction
Action taken to change
the official manner:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KResult
Result of action:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
KPrevent
CFR determination
of preventability:
Person
Number
1
O
CFR
Response Options:
KConclud
0
No
1
Yes
7
Not collected/CFR team does not make this comparison
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
KManner
1
Natural
2
Accident
3
Suicide
4
Homicide
5
Pending investigation
6
Could not be determined
66
Other
77
Not collected/CFR team does not designate manner
88
Not applicable
99
Unknown
KMannTxt
None
13-30
Person/CFR/Household and Committee Information
KAction
0
1
7
8
9
KResult
0
1
3
6
7
8
9
KPrevent
0
1
2
7
8
9
No
Yes
Not collected/CFR team does not make this comparison
Not applicable
Unknown
No change
Manner changed to agree with CFRT
Pending
Other
Not collected by local CFR team
Not applicable
Unknown
Probably not preventable
Possibly preventable
Unable to determine preventability
Not collected/CFR team does not determine preventability
Not applicable
Unknown
13-31
Person/CFR/Circumstances
CIRCUMSTANCES (CFR)
History of inpatient psychiatric treatment:
Taking psychiatric medication at time of death:
Barriers to accessing mental health care:
HstPsyTr
PsyMed
BarAcsTr
Name
Definition
HstPsyTr
Victim has ever been treated as an inpatient for psychiatric problems
PsyMed
Victim had a current prescription for a psychiatric medication at
the time of the incident
BarAcsTr
Victim experienced barriers to accessing mental health care
(applicable only to victims coded as having a mental health
problem and not being in treatment)
Uses
These variables will provide more in depth information about mental health treatment for
children who commit suicide than is currently collected by the main reporting system for
adult victims. HstPsyTr can be used as an indicator of the severity of the mental health
disorder, and PsyMed, when used in conjunction with toxicology results, may be useful
for identifying patients in current treatment who were not in compliance. BarAcsTr will
be helpful for identifying potential problems in accessing mental health care.
Discussion
These variables supplement the basic Suicide Circumstances related to mental health.
Indicate that the child received inpatient psychiatric care if there is a documented history
of inpatient psychiatric treatment ever, not just at the time of death. This includes an
overnight or longer stay at a psychiatric hospital or institution, psychiatric halfway house,
or psych unit within an acute care hospital. PsyMed refers to whether the patient had an
active prescription for psychiatric medication at the time of death. They need not have
actually been taking the medication. When available, toxicology results will help assess
whether the decedent was taking the medication prescribed.
If a child victim was noted as having a mental health problem and as not being in mental
health treatment, the BarPsyTr variable will document whether any evidence in the
record indicates that the victim encountered barriers in accessing mental health treatment. Code “Yes” if there were specific obstacles or if it was known that treatment was
either recommended by a health professional and/or identified by the family yet care was
not received. Examples of specific obstacles include lack of insurance coverage, transportation problems, or long waiting lists. Another example would be parental awareness
of their child’s suicidal ideation, but inability to establish care because of immigration
status. Please describe the nature of the barrier in the Incident Narrative.
13-32
Person/CFR/Main Elements
Table
Type
Field
Length
History of inpatient
psychiatric treatment:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
PsyMed
Taking psychiatric
medication at time
of death:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
BarAcsTr
Barriers to accessing
mental health care:
Person
Checkbox
1
O
CFR
Name
Label
HstPsyTr
Priority Primacy
Response Options:
HstPsyTr
thru
BarAcsTr
0
No
1
Yes
13-33
Section 14
VICTIM SUSPECT RELATIONSHIP
Coroner/Medical Examiner and Police Report
Victim to suspect relation 1:
Victim to suspect relation 2:
Caretaker of victim:
History of abuse:
Rela1
Rela2
CareTk
Abuse
14-3
14-5
Supplementary Homicide Report
Victim to suspect relationship: SRelat
14-6
V-S Relation/CME and PR
Victim to Suspect relation 1:
Victim to Suspect relation 2:
Rela1
Rela2
Name
Definition
Rela1
Description of relationship of the victim to the suspect
Rela2
Description of second relationship of the victim to the suspect
Uses
Data describing the relationship between the victim and the suspect are useful for developing and evaluating prevention programs and for characterizing various forms of family
and intimate violence.
Discussion
This variable will be assigned by the abstractor for each victim-suspect (V-S) pair in
an incident based on review of the CME report. The NVDRS software automatically
“populates” the V-S Relation Table with victim-suspect pairs. Each person with a
PType of 1 or 3 (“Victim” or “both”) is paired with each person with a PType of 2 or 3
(“Suspect” or “both”). In complex incidents (which will be relatively rare), there will
be times when a suspect in an incident is not a suspect for a particular victim. For
example, if a young man stabs a bartender and is then shot himself by a police officer,
there are two victims in the incident (the bartender and the young man) and two suspects
(the young man and the police officer). Code the relationship between the bartender
and the police officer as 88 (Not applicable) since the police officer wasn’t a suspect in
the first killing. Up to two codes can be selected for each victim-suspect pair. Use the
second variable for cases such as when a victim is both a schoolmate and a rival gang
member.
Use the following sentence as a guide for selecting the appropriate description of the
relationship: the victim is the ____________ of the suspect. For example, when a parent
kills a child, the relationship is “Child” not “Parent.” (“The victim is the child of the
suspect.”) Homosexual relationships should be coded in the same way as heterosexual
relationships (e.g., “Girlfriend” or “Boyfriend”). The homosexual or heterosexual nature
of the relationship will be inferred by the sex of the victim and suspect.
For this data element, an acquaintance is someone with or about whom the victim has
had some prior interaction or knowledge. A stranger is someone with whom the victim
has had no prior interaction before the event that culminated in the violent injury. For
example, code the following scenario as “Stranger”: two individuals who do not know
each other play pool together, argue, then one stabs the other.
When more than one offender is working in concert in an incident (as in a drive-by
shooter and his or her driver), code the victim’s relationship to each offender. Do not
use 88s in this situation to identify the offender who did not actually fire the weapon
because all offenders working in concert are considered offenders on the Supplementary
Homicide Report and in police reports. If the nature of the relationship is unknown, code
“Rela1” as 99. If all relevant information regarding the relationship is captured in
“Rela1”, then code “Rela2” as 88 for: “All relevant information about relationship is
already provided in Relation 1 “Not applicable.”
14-3
V-S Relation/CME and PR
Name
Label
Rela1
Victim to Suspect
Relation 1:
Rela2
Victim to Suspect
Relation 2:
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
SV_Relation Number
2
LR/LR
PR/CME
SV_Relation Number
2
LR/LR
PR/CME
Table
Type
Response Options:
Rela1
and
Rela2
1
Spouse
2
Ex-spouse
3
Girlfriend or boyfriend
7
Ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend
8
Girlfriend or boyfriend, unspecified whether current or ex
10
Parent
11
Child
12
Sibling
13
Grandchild
14
Grandparent
15
In-law
16
Stepparent
17
Stepchild
18
Child of suspect’s boyfriend/girlfriend
(e.g., child killed by mom’s boyfriend)
19
Intimate partner of suspect’s parent
(e.g., teenager kills his mother’s boyfriend)
20
Foster child
21
Foster parent
29
Other family member (e.g., cousin, uncle, etc.)
30
Babysitter (e.g., child killed by babysitter)
31
Acquaintance
32
Friend
33
Roommate (not intimate partner)
34
Schoolmate
35
Current or former work relationship
(e.g., co-worker, employee, employer)
36
Rival gang member
44
Other person, known to victim
45
Stranger
50
Victim was injured by law enforcement officer
51
Victim was law enforcement officer injured in the line of duty
88
Suspect is not a suspect for this victim
99
Relationship unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
14-4
V-S Relation/CME and PR
Caretaker of victim:
History of abuse:
CareTk
Abuse
Name
Definition
CareTk
Was this suspect a caretaker of this victim
Abuse
History of abuse
Uses
These variables will help identify deaths resulting from intimate partner abuse, child
abuse, elder abuse, and other forms of caretaker violence.
Discussion
CareTk: After indicating the relationship for each victim-suspect pair (Rela1 from
previous page), determine whether the offender was a caretaker for the victim. Examples
of caretakers include a parent who kills their child, a babysitter who kills his or her
charge, a nursing home attendant who kills a patient, and an adult who kills a dependent
elderly parent. This variable is included because some definitions of child abuse and
elder abuse are based solely on whether the offender was the victim’s caretaker.
Abuse: For each victim-suspect pair in which (1) the offender was a caretaker of the
victim or (2) the offender was a current or ex-intimate partner, indicate whether the data
sources document a history (or suspected history) of abuse of this victim by the suspect.
The evidence of ongoing abuse may be suspected but not confirmed. For example, if the
CME report states: “Husband shot wife after learning that she was having an affair. No
history of previous police visits to the residence or restraining orders; neighbors indicate
no previous problems,” code Abuse as “No” to indicate that there is no evidence in the
record of ongoing abuse. If the CME report states: “Stepparent killed child during an
altercation. Family investigated by Child Protective Services last year,” code Abuse as
“Yes”. Autopsy evidence reported as an indication of previous abuse is enough to endorse
the Abuse variable.
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Caretaker of victim: SV_Relation
Checkbox
1
LR/LR
CME/PR
History of abuse:
Checkbox
1
O/O
CME/PR
Name
Label
CareTk
Abuse
Table
SV_Relation
Response Options:
CareTk
and
Abuse
0
No, Not Collected, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
14-5
V-S Relation/SHR
Victim to suspect relationship:
SRelat
Name
Definition
SRelat
Social relationship of victim to suspect reported in SHR
Uses
Data describing the relationship between the victim and the person who caused the injury
are useful for developing and evaluating prevention programs and for characterizing
various forms of family and intimate partner violence.
Discussion
“SRelat” should capture the victim-suspect relationship exactly as it appears in the
Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR). Codes should be entered exactly as they
appear in the source database, even if the abstractor believes an individual code was
chosen in error. If your state uses any codes for relationship that do not appear in the
standard FBI code list below, find out from your state UCR office how it will be
mapped to the standard national codes, and enter that code. If the SHR is not available,
code the case as 88 (Not applicable). The SHR also captures the link between each
victim and suspect in an incident. That information can be recorded here. It may be
useful if the SHR is the only source of such information for an incident. For homicides
with more than one victim or suspect recorded on the SHR, the victim-suspect relationship is frequently inaccurate. Law enforcement may list the relationship between the
first victim and the first suspect as the relationship with all subsequent victims or
suspects. States should check to see whether each relationship is accurately coded in
their state. They may prefer to use this information when there is only one victim and
one suspect.
Name
Label
SRelat
Victim to suspect
relationship:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
SV_Relation
Number
2
O
SHR
Response Options:
SRelat
1
Husband
2
Wife
3
Common-law husband
4
Common-law wife
5
Mother
6
Father
7
Son
8
Daughter
9
Brother
10
Sister
11
In-law
12
Stepfather
13
Stepmother
14-6
V-S Relation/SHR
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
88
99
Stepson
Stepdaughter
Other Family
Neighbor
Acquaintance
Boyfriend
Girlfriend
Ex-husband
Ex-wife
Employee
Employer
Friend
Homosexual Relationship
Other – Known to Victim
Stranger
Not applicable
Relationship Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Supplementary Homicide Report
14-7
Section 15
ABSTRACTOR (WEAPON TYPE)
Weapon type:
Other weapon information:
Wtype
OthWeap
15-3
Weapon/Abstractor
Weapon type:
Other weapon information:
WType
OthWeap
Name
Definition
WType
Type of weapon or means used to inflict the injury
OthWeap
Text field to indicate the weapon type if WType is coded as “Other”
Uses
Abstractors should use this field to decide the appropriate weapon type. The field exists
because records about the incident may not agree about the weapon type used yet a
weapon type must be selected to activate the appropriate weapon fields in the application.
Discussion
Weapon type reports the broad category of weapon(s) used to inflict the injury. “Sharp
instrument” refers not only to knives, but also to razors, machetes, or pointed instruments
(e.g., chisel, broken glass). “Blunt instrument” refers to clubs, bats, etc. “Personal
weapons” include fists, feet, hands. “Fall” covers both being pushed (as in a homicide)
or jumping (as in a suicide). When faced with choosing multiple possible force weapon
types, e.g., a person who drives their car off a bridge, falls to the river below, and dies by
drowning, pick the weapon that exerted the most force to the body or deprived it of
essentials such as oxygen. In this example, the only weapon would be drowning because
the motor vehicle and the fall did not exert the most force to the body. In contrast, when
a person deliberately drives their car into an abutment, the only weapon is motor vehicle.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Weapon type:
Weapon
Number
2
ER
SYS
Other weapon
information:
Weapon
Text
100
O
SYS
Name
Label
WType
OthWeap
Response Options:
WType
1
Firearm
5
Non-powder gun
6
Sharp instrument
7
Blunt instrument
8
Poisoning
9
Hanging, strangulation, suffocation
10
Personal weapons
11
Fall
12
Explosive
13
Drowning
14
Fire or burns
15
Shaking, (e.g., shaken baby syndrome)
15-3
Weapon/Abstractor
16
17
18
19
66
99
OthWeap
Motor Vehicle, including buses, motorcycles
Other transport vehicle, (e.g., trains, planes, boats)
Intentional neglect, (e.g., starving a baby)
Biological weapons
Other
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
15-4
Section 16
WEAPON
Firearm information known: FKnown
16-3
EVIDENCE RECOVERED
16-4
Firearm type:
FType
Other firearm type text: TyTxt
16-5
Make or NCIC code:
Other firearm make text:
Make
MkTxt
16-7
Firearm model:
Model
Firearm model text: MoTxt
16-8
CALIBER
16-9
Firearm serial number: Serial
16-12
Firearm stolen: Stoln
16-13
YOUTH ACCESS
16-14
TYPE OF POISON
16-16
SOURCE OF POISON
16-31
WEAPON (Police Report)
16-33
Firearm trace attempted: Trace
16-34
WEAPON (Crime Laboratory)
16-35
Weapon/CME
Firearm information known:
FKnown
Name
Definition
FKnown
Indicates available information about the physical characteristics
of the gun
Uses
This variable is used as a stem question to flag incidents in which no gun information
is available. If no information is available, the remaining firearm variables will be
Unknown or Not applicable as appropriate.
Discussion
If a death investigator within the agency has viewed or examined the gun itself or a
bullet, or spent casing from the gun and has additional information about the weapon,
answer “Yes”. If the only additional information available about the gun is based on a
statement from a witness (e.g., a bystander who witnessed a homicide told police they
thought the gun looked like a revolver), do not answer “Yes”. The additional information
must be based on a death investigator viewing physical evidence.
Name
Label
Firearm information
FKnown known:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Weapon
Checkbox
1
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Response Options:
FKnown
0
No, Not Collected, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
16-3
Weapon/CME
EVIDENCE RECOVERED
Gun recovered:
Bullet recovered:
Casing recovered:
GunRec
Bullet
CaseRem
Name
Definition
GunRec
Firearm has been viewed, examined, or logged into evidence
by investigator
Bullet
Bullet has been viewed, examined, or logged into evidence
by investigator
CaseRem
Cartridge has been viewed, examined, or logged into evidence
by investigator
Uses
Data on the type of firearm physical evidence (bullets vs. cartridges) can be useful in
assessing the degree of confidence one can put in the information gathered about firearm
characteristics.
Discussion
“Recovered” evidence is that which an investigator within the agency has either viewed,
examined, or logged as evidence. The examiner need not have physical custody of the
evidence (e.g., code “GunRec” as “Yes” if, for example, a coroner’s deputy viewed a
suicide gun at the death scene but left the gun with the family). Bullets count as evidence
if they were retrieved from the victim or the crime scene and were clearly used during the
incident (e.g., a bullet lodged in the wall behind a victim with a through-and-through
wound). Pellets retrieved from a shotgun wound count as a recovered bullet. Consider
only spent casings that are believed to be from the injury gun as recovered casings. A
bullet recovered from a body upon autopsy and described as an “artifact” bullet is one
that was retained in the body from a previous shooting. If this is the only bullet recovered, this variable should be coded “No”.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Gun recovered:
Weapon
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
Bullet
Bullet recovered:
Weapon
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
CaseRem
Casing recovered:
Weapon
Checkbox
1
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
Name
Label
GunRec
Response Options:
GunRec
thru
CaseRem
0
No, Not Collected, Not Available, Unknown
1
Yes
16-4
Weapon/CME
Firearm type:
Other firearm type text:
FType
TyTxt
Name
Definition
FType
Specific type of firearm used to inflict injury
TyTxt
Free text field to indicate type of firearm if FType is coded as “Other”
Uses
Data on firearm type are used to describe the injury-producing event and to document the
extent to which handguns, long guns, and automatic weapons are involved in gun deaths.
Discussion
The Firearm Type code list is the standard used by the National Crime Information
Center. It is very detailed, and many abstractors will not have the technical expertise to
know, for example, whether a shotgun is a pump action or bolt action based on reading
the gun’s make and model. In such cases, use the “Unknown” option.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Firearm type:
Weapon
Number
2
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Other firearm
type text:
Weapon
Text
30
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
Name
Label
FType
TyTxt
Response Options:
FType
1
Submachine Gun
2
Handgun, Unknown Type
3
Handgun, Pistol- Bolt Action
4
Handgun, Pistol- Derringer
5
Handgun, Pistol- Single Shot
6
Handgun, Pistol- Semi-automatic
7
Handgun, Revolver
8
Rifle, Unknown Type
9
Rifle, Automatic
10
Rifle, Bolt Action
11
Rifle, Lever Action
12
Rifle, Pump Action
13
Rifle, Semi-automatic
14
Rifle, Single Shot
15
Rifle-Shotgun Combination
16
Shotgun, Unknown Type
17
Shotgun, Automatic
18
Shotgun, Bolt Action
19
Shotgun, Double Barrel (Over/Under, Side by Side)
16-5
Weapon/CME
20
21
22
23
66
99
Shotgun, Pump Action
Shotgun, Semi-automatic
Shotgun, Single Shot
Long gun, Unknown type
Other (e.g., handmade gun)
Unknown
TyTxt
Data Standards or Guidelines
National Crime Information Center coding system
16-6
Weapon/CME
Make or NCIC code:
Other firearm make text:
Make
MkTxt
Name
Definition
Make
Manufacturer of the firearm used to inflict the injury
MkTxt
Text field to indicate manufacturer of the firearm if
“Make”is coded as “Other”
Uses
Data on the make of the firearm are used to identify the manufacturers of firearms used
in fatalities.
Discussion
This data element uses 3-character manufacturer codes developed by the National Crime
Information Center (NCIC) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. A code list covering
make and model is supplied in a separate document in the software’s Help utility, and is
also available at www.vendata.com. The NVDRS software includes a list for the NCIC
make codes. If a manufacturer does not appear in the code list, enter the manufacturer in
“MkTxt”. Use “Unknown” when make is unknown.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Make or NCIC code:
Weapon
Text
3
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Other firearm
make text:
Weapon
Text
40
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
Name
Label
Make
MkTxt
Response Options:
Make
666
Other make of firearm
888
Not applicable
999
Unknown
MkTxt
666
Other make of firearm
888
Not applicable
999
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
National Crime Information Center Code Manual. 7th Edition,
December 1998. Vendata Inc., [email protected].
16-7
Weapon/CME
Firearm model:
Firearm model text:
Model
MoTxt
Name
Definition
Model
Model of the firearm that was used to inflict the injury
MoTxt
Free text field to indicate model of the firearm if Model was
coded as “Other”
Uses
Data on the model of the firearm are used to identify the models used in gun deaths.
Because pieces of legislation in various jurisdictions have outlawed the production, sale,
and importation of particular classes of guns (e.g., so-called “assault” weapons or “junk
guns”) by features of the gun or by listing particular models, this variable can help to
identify models affected by legislation.
Discussion
These data elements are coded using a list of models (sorted by manufacturer) included
in the software’s Help utility. A combination of make and model must be used to
uniquely identify the model. Some models are made by more than one manufacturer.
If a specific model is not known, choose Unknown. Capitalize all text, avoid using
dashes and decimals, and omit spaces. Completely spell out the models name; do not
use abbreviations. Use “Unknown” when model is unknown.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Firearm model:
Weapon
Text
40
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Firearm model text:
Weapon
Text
40
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
Name
Label
Model
MoTxt
Response Options:
Model
66666 Other model of firearm
88888 Not applicable
99999 Unknown
MoTxt
66666 Other model of firearm
88888 Not applicable
99999 Unknown
16-8
Weapon/CME
CALIBER
Cartridge specification:
Firearm caliber:
Firearm gauge:
Cartr
Calib
Gauge
Name
Definition
Cartr
Cartridge type of recovered cartridge
Calib
Caliber of the firearm used to inflict the injury
Gauge
Gauge of firearm used to inflict the injury
Uses
These data can be used to identify trends in smaller- and larger-caliber weapons use.
They may be useful (when coupled with data on nonfatal injuries) for assessing case
fatality rates by certain weapon and ammunition classes.
Discussion
These variables are designed to capture the caliber or estimated caliber of the firearm
used in the fatal event. The codes correspond to calibers, measured in fractions of an inch
or in millimeters, or gauges in the case of shotguns. In addition, a free text field captures
the cartridge specification (when available). Recovered cartridge casings, the firearm
itself, and the bullet are sources for indicating or estimating the firearm caliber.
Some firearms will fire more than one type of cartridge. For example, firearms designed
to fire the .357 Magnum will also fire .38 (Smith & Wesson) Special cartridges. Unless
a cartridge casing is recovered, it may be impossible to tell which cartridge type was
involved in the incident. Consequently, this field should be coded from cartridge casings
when they are available, from the markings stamped onto the firearm when cartridge
casings are not recovered, and from recovered bullets when neither a casing nor a firearm
is recovered. A special code (38357) has been created for cases when a bullet has been
recovered and the absence of a cartridge or firearm makes it impossible to determine the
difference between a .38 or a .357.
Calib (caliber): The caliber of a rifle or handgun is the diameter of the bore before the
rifling grooves were cut. Caliber may also be given in terms of bullet, land, or groove
diameter. In some cases, the caliber specification associated with particular cartridge
types is neither accurate nor consistent. For example, the caliber of the .38 Special
cartridge is actually .357, not .38 as the cartridge type suggests.
Gauge: The term “gauge” is used to describe the size of the bore of a shotgun. The term
refers to the number of lead balls of the given bore diameter that make up a pound. In a
12-gauge, for example, it takes 12 bore-diameter lead balls to make up a pound. The
most common exception to this nomenclature is the .410, which has a bore diameter of
0.410 inches.
16-9
Weapon/CME
Cartridge: Cartridge types are commonly expressed in calibers (fractions of an inch), or
in millimeters. In some cases, the same cartridge has both an English and Metric type
designation. For example, the .308 Winchester is also known as the 7.62 X 51mm NATO
(Vendata 1999). The former designation is typically stamped onto weapons originally
designed for civilian use, whereas the latter designation is common on weapons designed
for military use. Record whichever caliber is stamped on the firearm or the base of the
cartridge casing. Conventionally, weapon manufacturers name cartridge types they
develop after the company. Care should be taken not to confuse the manufacturer associated with a cartridge type with the make of the firearm. For example, the .38 Smith &
Wesson (S&W) special cartridge was developed by Smith & Wesson, but many companies manufacture weapons chambered for this cartridge type (Vendata 1999).
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Text
40
O/O/O
LAB/CME/PR
Weapon
Number
4
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Weapon
Number
3
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Name
Label
Cartr
Cartridge specification: Weapon
Calib
Firearm caliber:
Gauge
Firearm gauge:
Response Options:
Cartr
None
Calib
556
5.56 millimeters
6
6 millimeters
635
6.35 millimeters
65
6.5 millimeters
7
7 millimeters
735
7.35 millimeters
75
7.5 millimeters
762
7.62 millimeters
763
7.63 millimeters
765
7.65 millimeters
8
8 millimeters
9
9 millimeters
10
10 millimeters
11
11 millimeters
17
.17 inches
22
.22 inches
221
.221 inches
222
.222 inches
223
.223 inches
243
.243 inches
25
.25 inches
250
.250 inches
256
.256 inches
257
.257 inches
264
.264 inches
16-10
Table
Weapon/CME
270
280
284
30
300
303
308
32
338
35
351
357
36
375
38
380
40
401
405
41
44
444
45
455
458
460
50
54
58
60
1000
1001
1002
1003
6666
8888
9999
.270 inches
.280 inches
.284 inches
.30 inches
.300 inches
.303 inches
.308 inches
.32 inches
.338 inches
.35 inches
.351 inches
.357 inches
.36 inches
.375 inches
.38 inches
.380 inches
.40 inches
.401 inches
.405 inches
.41 inches
.44 inches
.444 inches
.45 inches
.455 inches
.458 inches
.460 inches
.50 inches
.54 inches
.58 inches
.60 inches
Undetermined whether .38 or .357
Small, unspecified (<=32)
Medium, unspecified (>32, <10mm/.40)
Large, unspecified (>=10mm/.40)
Other
Not applicable (shotgun or unknown gun type)
Unknown
Gauge
10
12
16
20
28
410
666
888
999
10 gauge
12 gauge
16 gauge
20 gauge
28 gauge
.410
Other
Not applicable
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
16-11
Weapon/CME
Firearm serial number:
Serial
Name
Definition
Serial
Serial number of the firearm that was used to inflict the injury
Uses
The serial number of the firearm can be used to trace its use in an incident from the
first purchaser to the gun dealer from which it was purchased. The serial number is
considered a local data element and is not forwarded to the national database.
Discussion
The serial number for firearms is not unique across gun manufacturers and is not
designed to identify the type or characteristics of the firearm. Serial numbers are used
to trace firearms. This data element is coded exactly as the serial number recorded on
the firearm. Serial numbers can include both letters and numbers.
Name
Label
Serial
Firearm serial number: Weapon
Response Options:
Serial
666666666666
999999999999
16-12
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Text
12
O/LR/LR
LAB/CME/PR
Serial number totally or partially obliterated
Unknown
Weapon/CME
Firearm stolen:
Stoln
Name Definition
Stoln
Firearm listed or reported as stolen
Uses
This information is useful for determining the source of guns used in fatalities.
Discussion
Code “Stoln” as “Yes” if the gun was formally reported as stolen in ATF trace results,
police records, or if the police or CME learned that the gun had been stolen during the
course of the death investigation. If a household member takes a gun from another
household member and uses it without his or her permission (e.g., son takes father’s
weapon from his drawer and shoots himself), do not code that gun as stolen unless the
owner had reported the gun as stolen to the police.
Name
Label
Stoln
Firearm stolen:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Weapon
Number
1
O/O/O
PR/ATF/CME
Response Options:
Stoln
0 No
1 Yes
8 Not applicable
9 Unknown
16-13
Weapon/CME
YOUTH ACCESS
Gun owner:
Gun stored loaded:
Gun stored locked:
Youth gun access narrative:
Owner
Loaded
Locked
YthNarr
Name
Definition
Owner
Owner of the firearm
Loaded
Was the firearm stored loaded?
Locked
Was the firearm stored locked?
YthNarr
Narrative providing details about youth access to the firearm
used to inflict the injury
Uses
This set of variables can be used to better understand how youths gain access to the guns
they use to injure themselves or others.
Discussion
The Youth Access variables are to be completed on guns used by youths 17 years of age
and younger who shoot themselves or another person in the incident. In the narrative,
include a brief summary of where and from whom the firearm was obtained and whether
the youth had authorized access to the firearm. The Youth Access variables can be
completed for people ages 18 or more if desired.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Gun owner:
Weapon
Number
2
LR/LR
CME/PR
Loaded
Gun stored loaded:
Weapon
Number
1
LR/LR
CME/PR
Locked
Gun stored locked:
Weapon
Number
1
LR/LR
CME/PR
YthNarr
Youth gun
access narrative:
Weapon
Text
100
O/O
CME/PR
Name
Label
Owner
Response Options:
Owner
1
Shooter
2
Parent of shooter
3
Other family member of shooter
6
Friend/acquaintance of shooter
7
Stranger to shooter
16-14
Weapon/CME
66
99
Other (specify in youth access narrative)
Unknown
0
1
6
8
9
Unloaded
Loaded
Other (specify in youth access narrative)
Not applicable
Unknown
Loaded
Locked
0
1
6
8
9
YthNarr
Not locked
Locked (stored with trigger lock on or in locked enclosure like closet)
Other (specify in youth access narrative)
Not applicable
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
16-15
Weapon/CME/Poison
TYPE OF POISON
Type of poison:
Code for poison:
Name of poison:
Poison
PCode
PoisonTxt
Name
Definition
Poison
Broad type of poison used to inflict injury
PCode
Code for poison used to inflict injury
PoisonTxt
Name of poison used to inflict injury if PCode is “Other”
Uses
These variables describe the types of poisons used in violent deaths, especially in
suicides and deaths of undetermined intent.
Discussion
Only poisons known or suspected to be involved should be included in the incident. For
a person who ingests multiple drugs, each drug constitutes a separate “Weapon” record.
Using poison codes avoids problems with variant spellings of the same drug and variant
names for the same chemical. Poison codes (“PCodes”) have been assigned only to the
more common poisons, primarily drugs. A list of the poison codes can be found in the
coding training binder. They have not yet been incorporated into the software. The
poison code list includes a column that will indicate whether the drug is used for
psychiatric problems and a column that will indicate the type of poison, e.g., overthe-counter versus prescription. For Type of poison, use “Pharmaceutical-Prescription”
if the drug is usually obtained through prescription even if the victim was not the person
for whom the drug was prescribed. The “Prescription” category should include drugs of
abuse such as oxycontin and methadone because these are usually prescribed. It should
not include other drugs such as cocaine and methamphetamines because these are usually
manufactured illicitly rather than prescribed. These should be categorized as “Street/
recreational drugs.”
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Type of poison:
Weapon
Number
2
LR/LR
CME/PR
PCode
Code for poison:
Weapon
Number
5
LR
CME
PoisonTxt
Name of poison:
Weapon
Text
50
LR
CME
Name
Label
Poison
16-16
Weapon/CME/Poison
Response Options:
Poison
1
Street/recreational drugs
2
Alcohol
3
Pharmaceuticals – prescription
4
Pharmaceuticals – over-the-counter
5
Pharmaceuticals – unknown
6
Carbon monoxide or other gas, vapor
66
Other poison (e.g., rat poison, insecticide, lye)
88
Not applicable (not a poisoning)
99
Unknown
PCode (See Below for Complete List of PCode)
22222
Alcohol/alcoholic beverages
66666
Other
99999
Unknown
PoisonTxt
Poison Drug List Coding listed on the following pages:
Values:
Psychiatric Drug
0
No
1
Yes
9
Could be either
Poison Type
1
Street/recreational drug
2
Alcohol
3
Pharmaceuticals—Prescription
4
Pharmaceuticals—Over-the-counter
5
Pharmaceuticals—Unknown
6
Carbon monoxide or other gas, vapor
66
Other poison (e.g., rat poison, pesticide)
88
Not applicable (not a poisoning)
99
Unknown
16-17
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
1
1
2
2
3
4
4
5
5
6
6
7
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
Acetaminophen
Tylenol
Acetaminophen
with Codeine
Tylenol with
Codeine
Acetone
Alprazolam
Xanax
Amitriptyline
Endep
Amitriptyline/
Chlordiazepoxide
Limbitrol
Acetaminophen
Acetaminophen
Acetaminophen
with Codeine
Acetaminophen
with Codeine
Acetone
Alprazolam
Alprazolam
Amitriptyline
Amitriptyline
Amitriptyline/
Chlordiazepoxide
Amitriptyline/
Chlordiazepoxide
Amitripyline/
Perphenazine
Amitriptyline/
Perphenazine
Amitriptyline/
Perphenazine
Amlodipine
Besylate
Amlodipine
Besylate
Amobarbital
Amobarbital
Amobarbital/
Secobarbital
Amobarbital/
Secobarbital
Amoxapine
Amoxapine
Amphetamine
- Unspecified
Amphetamine
Complex
Amphetamine
Mixtures
Amphetamine
Sulfate
Amphetamine
Sulfate
Amtriptyline
7
Amitripyline/
Perphenazine
Etrafon
7
Triavil
8
Amlodipine
Besylate
Norvasc
8
9
9
10
10
Amobarbital
Amytal
Amobarbital/
Secobarbital
Tuinal
11
11
12
Amoxapine
Ascendin
Amphetamine
13
Amphetamine
Complex
Amphetamine
Mixtures
Adderall
14
15
15
16
16-18
Amphetamine
Sulfate
Elavil
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
Other
Opiate
0
0
0
4
4
3
Opiate
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
0
1
1
1
1
1
66
3
3
3
3
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Other
0
1
0
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Amphetamine
1
1
0
3
3
3
Amphetamine
0
3
Amphetamine
0
3
Amphetamine
0
3
Amphetamine
0
3
Antidepressant
1
3
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
17
18
18
19
19
19
20
20
21
21
22
22
22
23
23
24
24
25
26
26
27
27
28
29
29
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
Category
Antidepressant Antidepressant Antidepressant
- Unspecified
Atorvastatin
Atorvastatin
Other
Calcium
Calcium
Lipitor
Atorvastatin
Other
Calcium
BEME
BenzoyCocaine
lecgonine
Methylester
BenzoyBenzoyCocaine
lecgonine
lecgonine
BenzoyBenzoyCocaine
lecgonine
lecgonine
Methylester
Methylester
Bupropion
Bupropion
Antidepressant
Wellbutrin
Bupropion
Antidepressant
Buspar
Buspirone
Other
Buspirone
Buspirone
Other
Butalbital
Butalbital
Other
Compound
Compound
Fioricet
Butalbital
Other
Compound
Fiorinal
Butalbital
Other
Compound
CarbamazeCarbamazeOther
pine
pine
Tegretol
CarbamazeOther
pine
Carbon
Carbon
Other
Monoxide
Monoxide
(CO)
CO
Carbon
Other
Monoxide
CarboxyCarboxyOther
hemoglobin
hemoglobin
(COHb)
Carisoprodol
Carisoprodol
Other
Soma
Carisoprodol
Other
Celebrex
Celecoxib
Other
Celecoxib
Celecoxib
Other
Chloral
Chloral
Other
Hydrate
Hydrate
ChlordiazepChlordiazepOther
oxide
oxide
Librium
ChlordiazepOther
oxide
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
1
3
9
3
0
3
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
3
0
3
0
3
9
3
9
3
0
6
0
6
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
3
3
1
3
1
3
16-19
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
30
31
31
32
32
33
33
34
34
35
35
36
36
37
38
39
39
40
41
42
43
43
44
45
45
46
46
47
47
48
16-20
Informal or
Trade Name
Chlorpheniramine
Chlorpromazine
Thorazine
Chemical
Name
Chlorpheniramine
Chlorpromazine
Chlorpromazine
Celexa
Citalopram
Citalopram
Citalopram
Anafranil
Clomipramine
Clomipramine Clomipramine
Clonazepam
Clonazepam
Klonopin
Clonazepam
Clorazepate
Clorazepate
Tranxene
Clorazepate
Clozapine
Clozapine
Clozaril
Clozapine
Cocaethylene Cocaethylene
Cocaine
Cocaine
Codeine
Codeine
Robitussin
Codeine
A-C
Codeine
Codeine
Phosphate
Phosphate
Codeine
Codeine
Sulfate
Sulfate
Colchicine
Colchicine
Conjugated
Conjugated
Estrogens
Estrogens
Premarin
Conjugated
Estrogens
Cotinine
Cotinine
Cyclobenzapine Cyclobenzapine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Flexeril
Cyclobenzaprine
Hydrochloride
Cannabinoids
Delta-9tetrahydrocannabinol
Delta-9Delta-9tetrahydrotetrahydrocannabinol
cannabinol
Desipramine
Desipramine
Norpramin
Desipramine
Focalin
Dexmethylphenidate
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
0
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Cocaine
Cocaine
Opiate
Opiate
1
1
1
1
9
9
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
1
1
3
4
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Other
Other
0
0
3
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
0
0
66
3
Other
0
3
Marijuana
0
1
Marijuana
0
1
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
1
1
0
3
3
3
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
49
50
50
51
52
53
53
54
54
54
54
54
54
54
55
Informal or
Trade Name
Dextroamphetamine
Dexedrine
Dextroamphetamine
Sulfate
Dextromethorphan
Dextromethorphan
Hydrobromide
Diacetylmorphine
Heroin
55
Centrax
Diazepam
Dizac
Prazepam
Valium
Valrelease
Zetran
Diethylpropion
Tenuate
56
Cardizem
56
Dilacor
56
Diltiazem
Hydrochloride
Benadryl
57
57
Diphenhydramine
Hydrochloride
Sominex
58
Depakote
57
Chemical
Name
Category
DextroamAmphetamine
phetamine
DextroamAmphetamine
phetamine
Sulfate
DextroamAmphetamine
phetamine
Sulfate
DextromOther
ethorphan
DextromOther
ethorphan
Hydrobromide
DiacetylOpiate
morphine
DiacetylOpiate
morphine
Diazepam
Other
Diazepam
Other
Diazepam
Other
Diazepam
Other
Diazepam
Other
Diazepam
Other
Diazepam
Other
DiethylOther
propion
DiethylOther
propion
Diltiazem
Other
Hydrochloride
Diltiazem
Other
Hydrochloride
Diltiazem
Other
Hydrochloride
DiphenhyOther
dramine
Hydrochloride
DiphenhyOther
dramine
Hydrochloride
Other
Diphenhydramine
Hydrochloride
Other
Divalproex
Sodium
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
4
0
4
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
4
0
4
0
4
9
3
16-21
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
58
59
59
60
61
62
63
63
64
64
65
65
65
66
66
66
66
67
67
68
68
69
69
70
70
70
71
71
72
72
73
73
74
74
74
16-22
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
Divalproex
Sodium
Doxepin
Sinequan
Doxylamine
Succinate
Triamterene
Ecgonine
Ecgonine
Methyl Ester
EME
Divalproex
Sodium
Doxepin
Doxepin
Doxylamine
Succinate
Dyazide
Ecgonine
Ecgonine
Methyl Ester
Ecogonine
Methyl Ester
Estazolam
Estazolam
Etomidate
Etomidate
Etomidate
Fentanyl
Fentanyl
Estazolam
Prosom
Amidate
Anesthesia
Etomidate
Actiq
Duragesic
Patch
Fentanyl
Sublimaze
Allegra
Fentanyl
Fentanyl
Fexofenadine
Hydrochloride
Fexofenadine Fexofenadine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Finasteride
Finasteride
Proscar
Finasteride
Flunitrazepam Flunitrazepam
Rohypnol
Flunitrazepam
Fluoxetine
Fluoxetine
Prozac
Fluoxetine
Sarafem
Fluoxetine
Fluphenazine Fluphenazine
Prolixin
Fluphenazine
Dalmane
Flurazepam
Flurazepam
Flurazepam
Fluvoxamine Fluvoxamine
Luvox
Fluvoxamine
GammaGammaHydroxyHydroxybutyrate
butyrate
GHB
GammaHydroxybutyrate
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
9
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
1
1
0
3
3
4
Other
Cocaine
Cocaine
0
0
0
3
1
1
Cocaine
0
1
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Opiate
Opiate
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Opiate
Opiate
Other
0
0
0
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
Other
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
3
3
1
1
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
1
Other
0
1
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
75
75
76
76
77
77
77
78
78
79
80
81
81
81
82
83
83
84
84
84
85
85
86
86
87
87
88
89
89
90
90
91
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Halazepam
Paxipam
Haldol
Haloperidol
6-acetylmorphine
MAM
Monoacteylmorphine
Humulin
Insulin
Hydrochlorothiazide
Dyazide
Halazepam
Halazepam
Haloperidol
Haloperidol
Heroin
Other
Other
Other
Other
Opiate
1
1
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
1
Heroin
Heroin
Opiate
Opiate
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
3
3
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Humulin
Other
Humulin
Other
HydrochloroOther
thiazide
HydrochloroOther
thiazide/
Triamterene
Hydrocodone Hydrocodone
Opiate
Bitartrate
Bitartrate
Hydrocodone
Lortab
Opiate
Bitartrate
Hydrocodone
Vicodin
Opiate
Bitartrate
HydroHydroOther
cortisone
cortisone
HydromorDilaudid
Opiate
phone
Hydrochloride
HydromorHydromorOpiate
phone
phone
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Hydroxyzine
Atarax
Other
Hydroxyzine
Hydroxyzine
Other
Hydroxyzine
Vistaril
Other
Imipramine Antidepressant
Imipramine
Imipramine Antidepressant
Tofranil
Isotretinoin
Accutane
Other
Isotretinoin
Isotretinoin
Other
Ketamine
Ketalar SV
Other
Ketamine
Ketamine
Other
Ketorolac
Toradol
Other
Lanoxin
Digoxin
Other
Lanoxin
Lanoxin
Other
Leflunomide
Arava
Other
Leflunomide
Leflunomide
Other
Lithium
Eskalith
Other
16-23
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
Informal or
Trade Name
91
91
91
91
91
92
92
93
93
94
Lithane
Lithium
Lithobid
Lithonate
Lithotabs
Claritin
Loratadine
Ativan
Lorazepam
Cozaar
94
95
95
96
97
97
98
99
99
100
100
100
100
100
101
101
102
102
103
103
104
105
106
16-24
Chemical
Name
Lithium
Lithium
Lithium
Lithium
Lithium
Loratadine
Loratadine
Lorazepam
Lorazepam
Losartan
Potassium
Losartan
Losartan
Potassium
Potassium
Loxapine
Loxapine
Succinate
Loxitane
Loxapine
Succinate
Lysergic Acid Lysergic Acid
Diethylamide Diethylamide
Ludiomil
Maprotiline
Maprotiline
Maprotiline
Marijuana
Marijuana
Demerol
Meperidine
Hydrochloride
Meperidine
Meperidine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Equinal
Meprobamate
Meprobamate Meprobamate
Meprospan
Meprobamate
Miltown
Meprobamate
Neuramate
Meprobamate
Mesoridazine Mesoridazine
Serentil
Mesoridazine
Glucophage
Metformin
Hydrochloride
Metformin
Metformin
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Dolophine
Methadone
Methadone
Methadone
MethamMethamphetamine
phetamine
MethamMethamphetamine
phetamine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Methaqualone Methaqualone
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
0
1
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Marijuana
Opiate
1
1
0
0
3
3
1
3
Opiate
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
9
9
9
9
9
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Opiate
Opiate
Amphetamine
0
0
0
3
3
1
Amphetamine
0
1
Other
0
1
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
106
106
107
Quaalude
Sopor
MDA
108
Ecstasy
108
MDMA
108
109
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine
Concerta
109
Metadate
109
Methylin
109
110
Methylphenidate
Methylphenidate
Hydrochloride
Ritalin
110
Ritalin LA
110
Ritalin SR
111
111
Midazolam
Hydrochloride
Versed
112
112
113
Mirtazapine
Remeron
Moban
113
Molindone
Hydrochloride
Duramorph
Methaqualone
Methaqualone
Methylenedioxyamphetamine
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine
Methylphenidate
Methylphenidate
Methylphenidate
Methylphenidate
Methylphenidate
Hydrochloride
Methylphenidate
Hydrochloride
Methylphenidate
Hydrochloride
Methylphenidate
Hydrochloride
Midazolam
Hydrochloride
Midazolam
Hydrochloride
Mirtazapine
Mirtazapine
Molindone
Hydrochloride
Molindone
Hydrochloride
Morphine
Sulfate
110
114
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
Other
Amphetamine
0
0
0
1
1
1
Amphetamine
0
1
Amphetamine
0
1
Amphetamine
0
1
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
1
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
1
1
1
3
3
3
Other
1
3
Opiate
0
3
16-25
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
114
Morphine
114
MS Contin
114
MSIR
114
Oramorph SR
114
Roxanol
115
115
116
116
117
118
Nabumetone
Relafen
Naprosyn
Naproxen
Serzone
Nefazodone
Hydrochloride
Nifedipine
Procardia
Aventyl
Nortriptyline
Pamelor
Olanzapine
Zydis
Zyprexa
Zyprexa Zydis
Daypro
Oxaprozin
Oxazepam
Serax
Lorcet
Morphine
Sulfate
Morphine
Sulfate
Morphine
Sulfate
Morphine
Sulfate
Morphine
Sulfate
Nabumetone
Nabumetone
Naproxen
Naproxen
Nefazodone
Nefazodone
Hydrochloride
Nifedipine
Nifedipine
Nortriptyline
Nortriptyline
Nortriptyline
Olanzapine
Olanzapine
Olanzapine
Olanzapine
Oxaprozin
Oxaprozin
Oxazepam
Oxazepam
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxymorphone
119
119
120
120
120
121
121
121
121
122
122
123
123
124
124
Oxycodone
Hydrochloride
Oxycontin
124
Percocet
124
Percodan
124
Roxicet
124
Tylox
125
Numorphan
124
16-26
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
0
0
0
0
1
1
3
3
4
4
3
3
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Opiate
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
126
126
127
127
128
128
129
129
130
130
131
131
132
132
133
133
134
134
135
135
136
136
136
137
137
138
138
139
139
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
Papaverine
Papaverine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Pavabid
Papaverine
Hydrochloride
Paroxetine
Paroxetine
Paxil
Paroxetine
Cylert
Pemoline
Pemoline
Pemoline
Pentazocine
Pentazocine
Talwin
Pentazocine
Nembutal
Pentobarbital
Sodium
Pentobarbital Pentobarbital
Sodium
Perphenazine Perphenazine
Trilafon
Perphenazine
Angel Dust
Phencyclidine
Phencyclidine Phencyclidine
PCP
Phencyclidine
Hydrochloride
Phencyclidine Phencyclidine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Nardil
Phenelzine
Sulfate
Phenelzine
Phenelzine
Sulfate
Sulfate
Phenobarbital Phenobarbital
Sodium
Phenobarbital Phenobarbital
Sodium
Sodium
Adipex-P
Phentermine
Hydrochloride
Fastin
Phentermine
Hydrochloride
Phentermine
Phentermine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Dilantin
Phenytoin
Sodium
Phenytoin
Phenytoin
Sodium
Sodium
Orap
Pimozide
Pimozide
Pimozide
Pravachol
Pravastatin
Sodium
Pravastatin
Pravastatin
Sodium
Sodium
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
Other
Opiate
Opiate
Other
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
1
1
0
0
0
3
3
1
1
1
Other
0
1
Antidepressant
1
3
Antidepressant
1
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Other
1
1
0
3
3
3
Other
0
3
16-27
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
Informal or
Trade Name
Chemical
Name
140
140
141
Phenergan
Promethazine
Darvocet
142
Darvon
142
Propoxyphene
Hydrochloride
Protriptyline
Vivactil
Pseudoephedrine
Quetiapine
Seroquel
Accupril
Promethazine
Promethazine
Propoxyphene
and
Acetaminophen
Propoxyphene
Hydrochloride
Propoxyphene
Hydrochloride
Protriptyline
Protriptyline
Pseudoephedrine
Quetiapine
Quetiapine
Quinapril
Hydrochloride
Quinapril
Hydrochloride
Risperidone
Risperidone
Secobarbital
Secobarbital
Sertraline
Sertraline
Sibutramine
Hydrochloride
Monohydrate
Sibutramine
Hydrochloride
Monohydrate
Sildenafil
Citrate
Sildenafil
Citrate
Tamsulosin
Hydrochloride
Tamsulosin
Hydrochloride
Temazepam
Temazepam
Terazosin
Terazosin
Tetrahydrocannabinol
143
143
144
145
145
146
146
147
147
148
148
149
149
150
Quinapril
Hydrochloride
Risperdal
Risperidone
Secobarbital
Seconal
Sertraline
Zoloft
Meridia
151
Sibutramine
Hydrochloride
Monohydrate
Sildenafil
Citrate
Viagra
152
Flomax
152
Tamsulosin
Hydrochloride
Restoril
Temazepam
Hytrin
Terazosin
THC
150
151
153
153
154
154
155
16-28
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
Other
Opiate
0
0
0
3
3
3
Opiate
0
3
Opiate
0
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
1
1
0
3
3
4
Other
Other
Other
1
1
0
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Marijuana
0
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
3
1
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
156
157
157
157
157
158
159
160
161
161
162
162
163
163
164
164
164
165
166
166
167
167
167
168
168
169
Informal or
Trade Name
THC-9Carboxylic
Acid
Chemical
Name
Tetrahydrocannabinol
9-Carboxylic
Acid
Aminophylline Theophylline
Slo-bid
Theophylline
Slo-phyllin
Theophylline
Theophylline Theophylline
Thiopental
Thiopental
Mellaril
Thioridazine
Thioridazine
Thioridazine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Navane
Thiothixene
Thiothixene
Thiothixene
Tramadol
Tramadol
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Ultram
Tramadol
Hydrochloride
Parnate
Tranylcypromine
Sulfate
TranylcyTranylcypromine
promine
Sulfate
Sulfate
Desyrel
Trazodone
Trazodone
Trazodone
Halcion
Triazolam
Triazolam
Triazolam
Stelazine
Trifluoperazine
TrifluoTrifluoperazine
perazine
Bactrim
Trimethoprim
Sulfamethoxazole
Septra
Trimethoprim
Sulfamethoxazole
Trimethoprim Trimethoprim
SulfaSulfamethoxazole
methoxazole
Surmontil
Trimipramine
Trimipramine Trimipramine
Valacyclovir
Valacyclovir
Hydrchloride Hydrchloride
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Marijuana
0
1
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Other
Other
Other
1
1
0
3
3
3
Other
0
3
Antidepressant
1
3
Antidepressant
1
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
Other
Other
1
1
0
0
1
3
3
3
3
3
Other
1
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Other
0
3
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
1
1
0
3
3
3
16-29
Weapon/CME/Poison
Code
Informal or
Trade Name
169
Valtrex
170
170
171
171
172
172
173
173
174
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
180
181
181
182
182
22222
66666
99999
16-30
Chemical
Name
Valacyclovir
Hydrochloride
Depakene
Valproic Acid
Valproic Acid Valproic Acid
Effexor
Venlafaxine
Hydrochloride
Venlafaxine
Venlafaxine
Hydrochloride Hydrochloride
Sonata
Zaleplon
Zaleplon
Zaleplon
Geodon
Ziprasidone
Ziprasidone
Ziprasidone
Ambien
Zolpidem
Zolpidem
Zolpidem
BenzoBenzodiazepine
diazepine
Unspecified
Unspecified
Lidocaine
Lidocaine
Hydrochloride
Nicotine
Nicotine
Opiate Opiate Unspecified
Unspecified
Salicylate
Salicylate
Cialis
Tadalafil
Tadalafil
Tadalafil
Levitra
Vardenafil
Vardenafil
Vardenafil
Lexapro
Escitalopram
Escitalopram
Escitalopram
Alcohol/
Alcohol
alcoholic
beverage
Other
Other
Unknown
Unknown
Category
Psychiatric
Drug
Poison
Type
Other
0
3
Other
Other
Antidepressant
9
9
1
3
3
3
Antidepressant
1
3
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
0
0
1
1
0
0
9
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Other
1
3
Other
Opiate
0
0
66
1
Other
Other
Other
Other
Other
Antidepressant
Antidepressant
Other
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
66
99
Weapon/CME/Poison
SOURCE OF POISON
Patient drug obtained for:
Carbon monoxide source, if CO:
Patnt
COSrc
Name
Definition
Patnt
Who was the patient that the drug was obtained for?
COSrc
Source of the carbon monoxide
Uses
This set of variables can be used to better understand how the victim or suspect
obtained the poison. The information may be used to modify prescription
practices to prevent suicides.
Discussion
Please record the person for whom the drug(s) taken was/were prescribed, if this
information is available.
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Patient drug
obtained for:
Weapon
Number
2
LR
CME
Carbon monoxide
source, if CO:
Weapon
Number
1
LR
CME
Name
Label
Patnt
COSrc
Response Options:
Patnt
1
Self
2
Spouse
3
Ex-spouse
4
Girlfriend or boyfriend
7
Ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend
8
Girlfriend or boyfriend, unspecified whether curre
10
Parent of victim
11
Child of victim
12
Sibling
13
Grandchild of victim
14
Grandparent of victim
15
In-law
16
Stepparent of victim
17
Stepchild of victim
18
Child of victim’s boyfriend/girlfriend
19
Intimate partner of victim’s parent
16-31
Weapon/CME/Poison
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
44
45
88
99
Other family member (e.g., cousin, uncle)
Babysitter of victim
Acquaintance
Friend
Roommate (not intimate partner)
Schoolmate
Current or former work relationship (e.g., coworker)
Other person, known to victim
Stranger
Not applicable
Relationship unknown
1
2
8
9
Car, truck, bus
Other
Not applicable
Unknown
COSrc
16-32
Weapon/PR
WEAPON (POLICE REPORT)
Firearm information known:
Gun recovered:
Bullet recovered:
Casing recovered:
Firearm type:
Other firearm type text:
Make or NCIC code:
Other firearm make text:
Firearm model:
Firearm model text:
Cartridge specification:
Firearm caliber:
Firearm gauge:
Firearm serial number:
Firearm stolen:
Gun owner:
Gun stored loaded:
Gun stored locked:
Youth gun access narrative:
Type of poison:
Fknown
GunRec
Bullet
CaseRem
FType
TyTxt
Make
MkTxt
Model
MoTxt
Cartr
Calib
Gauge
Serial
Stoln
Owner
Loaded
Locked
YthNarr
Poison
See Weapon/CME Elements for information regarding variable(s)
appearing above.
16-33
Weapon/PR
Firearm trace attempted:
Trace
Name
Definition
Trace
Identifies whether an ATF trace was attempted on the firearm(s)
involved in the case
Uses
This data element will be used by sites working with a local police agency and the ATF
to receive trace results on guns used in fatalities. It will identify whether a gun was
submitted for a trace and, if submitted, whether the trace succeeded or failed.
Discussion
None
Name
Label
Trace
Firearm trace attempted:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Weapon
Number
1
O
PR
Response Options:
Trace
0
No trace done: gun manufactured before 1969
1
No trace done: other reason
2
Traced successfully
3
Traced not successful
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
16-34
Weapon/Crime Lab
WEAPON (CRIME LABORATORY)
Firearm information known:
Gun recovered:
Bullet recovered:
Casing recovered:
Firearm type:
Other firearm type text:
Make or NCIC code:
Other firearm make text:
Firearm model:
Firearm model text:
Cartridge specification:
Firearm caliber:
Firearm gauge:
Firearm serial number:
Fknown
GunRec
Bullet
CaseRem
FType
TyTxt
Make
MkTxt
Model
MoTxt
Cartr
Calib
Gauge
Serial
See Weapon/CME Element for information regarding variable(s)
appearing above.
16-35
Section 17
ATF TRACE INFORMATION
Date of firearm first purchase:
FPDate
17-3
State of firearm first purchase:
City of firearm first purchase:
FPSt
FpurPl
17-4
IMPORTER
17-6
Weapon/ATF Trace Information
Date of firearm first purchase:
FPDate
Name
Definition
FPDate
Date the firearm was first purchased, according to trace results
Uses
This data element will be used by sites that work with a local police agency and the
ATF to receive trace information about guns used in fatalities. The date the gun was
first purchased can be used, for example, to help identify the “time to incident” (the
length of time between the first purchase of a gun and its use in a homicide or other
fatality).
Discussion
The data entry program will accept partially unknown dates (e.g., 99/99/1989).
Note: A variable (First Purchaser) that documents whether the victim or suspect was
the first purchaser of the gun is described in the Weapon-Person Relation section.
Name
Label
FPDate
Date of firearm
first purchase:
Response Options:
FPDate
88/88/8888
99/99/9999
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Weapon
Text
10
O
ATF
Not applicable (no trace done)
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
17-3
Weapon/ATF Trace Information
State of firearm first purchase:
City of firearm first purchase:
FPSt
FPurPl
Name
Definition
FPSt
State where the firearm was first purchased, according to trace results
FPurPl
City where the firearm was first purchased, according to trace results
Uses
These data elements will be used by sites that work with a local police agency and the
ATF to receive trace results on guns used in fatalities. The city and state where the gun
was first purchased can be used, for example, to track the number of guns whose sale
originated locally vs. out of state.
Discussion
City is coded using FIPS 5-digit place codes. See the discussion of FIPS place codes that
accompany the variable “Place” (person’s city of residence).
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
State of firearm
first purchase:
Weapon
Number
2
O
ATF
City of firearm
first purchase:
Weapon
Number
5
O
ATF
Name
Label
FPSt
FPurPl
Response Options:
FPSt
1
Alabama
2
Alaska
4
Arizona
5
Arkansas
6
California
8
Colorado
9
Connecticut
10
Delaware
11
District of Columbia
12
Florida
13
Georgia
15
Hawaii
16
Idaho
17
Illinois
18
Indiana
19
Iowa
20
Kansas
21
Kentucky
17-4
Weapon/ATF Trace Information
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
53
54
55
56
88
99
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Not applicable
Unknown
FPurPl
99999 Unknown
17-5
Weapon/ATF Trace Information
IMPORTER
Firearm importer’s name:
Firearm importer’s state:
Firearm importer’s city:
Name
Definition
ImpNm
Name of importer
ImpSt
State of import
ImpCt
City of import
ImpNm
ImpSt
ImpCt
Uses
The importer’s name, city and state is needed to conduct a trace by the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) for firearms that are imported into the United
States from other countries. Imported guns typically have this information stamped
on them.
Discussion
This information is supplied by the law enforcement or criminal justice agency requesting the ATF trace. “ImpCt” is coded using FIPS 5-digit place codes. See the discussion
of FIPS place codes that accompany the variable “Place” (person’s city of residence).
Name
Label
Table
Type
ImpNm
Firearm importer’s
name:
Weapon
Text
ImpSt
Firearm importer’s
state:
Weapon
ImpCt
Firearm importer’s
city:
Weapon
Response Options:
ImpNm
88
Not applicable
99
Unknown
ImpSt
1
Alabama
2
Alaska
4
Arizona
5
Arkansas
6
California
8
Colorado
17-6
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
30
O
ATF
Number
2
O
ATF
Number
5
O
ATF
Weapon/ATF Trace Information
9
10
11
12
13
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
53
54
55
56
88
99
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Not applicable
Unknown
ImpCt
17-7
Weapon/ATF Trace Information
Firearm stolen:
Stoln
See Weapon/CME for information regarding variable
appearing above.
17-8
Section 18
PERSON TO WEAPON RELATIONSHIP
Person used this weapon to kill:
Weapon killed this person:
First purchaser: Fpurc
WUser
WusedOn
18-3
18-4
P-W Relations/PR-CME-SHR
Person used this weapon to kill: WUser
Weapon killed this person:
WUsedOn
Name
Definition
WUser
Did this person use this weapon (either against another person or
against him or herself)?
WUsedOn
Was the weapon used to kill this person?
Uses
“WUser” links the person with the weapon or weapon type they chose. “WUsedOn” links
the victim to the weapon used to kill the victim. The variables also indirectly link victims
to suspects.
Discussion
The intention of “WUsedOn” is to capture the use of weapons by both suspects and
suicide victims. In the case of a single suicide, indicate the victim. If the incident
involves multiple suspects, it may be difficult to determine which suspect actually used
the weapon or weapon type to cause the injury. In this case, code unknown for “WUser”.
Record the person-weapon variables for all manners of death, including suicide.
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
Person used this
weapon to kill: PW_Relation
Number
1
LR/LR/O
PR/CME/SHR
Weapon killed
this person:
Number
1
LR/LR/O
PR/CME/SHR
Name
Label
WUser
WUsedOn
Table
PW_Relation
Response Options:
WUser
and
WUsedOn
0
No
1
Yes
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
18-3
P-W Relations/ATF-PR
First purchaser:
Fpurc
Name
Definition
Fpurc
Identifies whether the person (victim or suspect) was the
first purchaser of the gun
Uses
This data element will be used by sites working with a law enforcement agency and the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to conduct traces on guns used in
fatalities. Traces establish the first purchaser and the place of purchase. The data element
summarizes trace results by identifying whether the victim or suspect in a case was the
first purchaser of the gun. The data can be used, for example, to help identify shooters
who obtained their guns from the secondary market. It can identify victims who used
their own guns to kill a suspected criminal in self-defense or whose own guns were
used against them in a homicide.
Discussion
This variable is triggered only in cases in which a trace has been successfully completed.
It is completed for each person in the case to indicate whether they or a person sharing
their surname or address was the first purchaser.
Name
Label
Fpurc
First purchaser:
Table
Type
Field
Length
Priority
Primacy
PW_Relation
Number
1
O/O
ATF/PR
Response Options:
Fpurc
0
Person was not the 1st purchaser
1
Person was 1st purchaser (match on full name)
2
Person shares surname and address of 1st purchaser
3
Person shares only address of 1st purchaser
4
Person shares only surname of 1st purchaser
8
Not applicable
9
Unknown
Data Standards or Guidelines
NVISS
18-4
Section 19
VALIDATION RULES
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0001
Age,
AgeTyp,
PType
If (AgeTyp>1 or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <5)),
then (PType <> 2 or 3)
People under 5 years
old are unlikely to be
suspects.
0
0002
Age
Warning if ((AgeTyp=1
and (Age >115) and
(Age <> 999))
Ages must be less than
115 years or
Unknown (999).
0
0003
Age,
AgeTyp,
IncTyp
If (AgeTyp >1 or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <5)),
then (IncTyp <> 3)
Persons under age 5
cannot commit suicide.
0
0004
Age,
AgeTyp,
Educ
If (AgeTyp >1 or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <5)),
then (Educ = 0 orblank)
Persons under age 5
have completed no
education (Veduc).
0
0005
Age,
AgeTyp,
CareTk
If (AgeTyp >1 or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <5)),
then (CareTk <> 1)
Persons under age 5
are unlikely to be
caretakers.
0
0006
Age,
AgeTyp,
Rela1
If (AgeTyp >1 or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <14)),
then (Rela1 <> 1,2,3,7,8,10,
14,16,19, or 51)
Persons under age 14
are too young to be
in the indicated
relationship.
0
0007
Age,
AgeTyp,
Job
If (AgeTyp >1 or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <14)),
then (Job <> 1)
Persons under age 14
are usually too young
to be employed.
0
0008
LocTyp,
Reside
If (Reside=1), then
(LocTyp =1,19,23–26, 66,
or blank)
The incident location
you entered elsewhere
is not compatible with
this being the person’s
residence.
0
0009
AlchRs,
Intox
Warning if (AlchRs=1)
and (Intox <> 1 or blank)
The toxicology test
indicated the presence
of alcohol. Are you
sure the person was
not intoxicated?
0
0010
DthDt,
IDate
Warning if (IDate > DthDt)
The injury date must
precede or be the same
as the death date unless
a date is unknown.
0
0011
IDate,
ITime
If (IDate day, month,
or year=99), then
(ITime=99:99)
If day, month, or year
is Unknown (99),
time must be
Unknown (9999) too.
0
19-3
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
19-4
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0012
DthDt
Warning if
(DthDt < 01/01/2002)
Only dates in 2002 or
later preceding the
current date are allowed.
0
0013
DthDt
Error if
(DthDt >current date)
The date of death cannot
occur in the future.
1
0014
DthDt
Error if
(DthDt >=01/01/9999)
The year of death cannot
be Unknown (9999).
1
0015
Sunit,
Surviv
If (Sunit=1), then
(Surviv <120, 777, or 999)
If survival time unit is
minutes, survival time
must be less than 120,
Not collected (777), or
Unknown (999).
0
0016
Sunit,
Surviv
If (Sunit=2), then
(Surviv>=2 and
<=47, 777, or 999)
If survival time unit is
hours, survival time
must be 2 to 47,
Not collected (777), or
Unknown (999).
0
0017
Sunit,
Surviv
If (Sunit=3), then
(Surviv >=2 and
<=365, 777, or 999)
If survival time unit is
days, survival time must
be 2–365 days,
Not collected (777), or
Unknown (999).
0
0018
JustSCirc,
SCirc
If (JustSCirc=1–6) then
(SCirc=80, or 81)
If SHR justifiable
homicide circumstance
indicates a justifiable
homicide (1–6), SHR
circumstance should also
indicate justifiable
homicide (80,81).
0
0019
Countr,
Place
If (Countr <> USA), then
(Place=88888)
If the country of
residence is not the
USA, FIPS codes do
not apply and 88888
must be entered for the
city/town code.
0
0020
Countr,
ResState
If (Countr <> USA), then
(ResState=88)
If the country of
residence is not the
USA, FIPS codes do
not apply and 88 must
be entered for the
state code.
0
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0021
Countr,
ResCounty
If (Countr <> USA), then
(ResCounty=888)
If the country of
residence is not the
USA, FIPS codes do
not apply and 888
must be entered for
the county code.
0
0022
Countr,
ResZip
If (Countr <> USA), then
(ResZip=88888)
If the country of
residence is not the
USA, zip codes do
not apply and 88888
must be entered for
the zip code.
0
0023
Countr,
CensSt
If (Countr <> USA), then
(CensSt=8888.88)
If the country of
residence is not the
USA, census tract
codes do not apply
and 8888.88 must be
entered for the county
code.
0
0024
Countr,
CensBl
If (Countr <> USA), then
(CensBl=8)
If the country of
residence is not the
USA, census block
codes do not apply,
and 8 must be entered
for the block code.
0
0025
BthPlc,
BthTxt
If (BthPlc <> 59), then
(BthTxt=‘’)
Enter birthplace text
only if birthplace code
is Other (59).
0
0026
Preg,
Sex
If (Sex <> 2), then
(Preg=8)
A nonfemale
individual cannot be
pregnant. Either
change the sex or
change “Person was
pregnant” to 8.
0
0029
Dthplace,
PDthTx
If (Dthplace <> 66), then
(PDthTx=‘’)
Enter Place of death
text only if Place
of death code is
Other (66).
0
0030
Head,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(Head=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
19-5
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
19-6
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0031
Face,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(Face=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
0032
Neck,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(Neck=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
0033
Thorax,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(Thorax=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
0034
Abdomn,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(Abdomn=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
0035
Spine,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(Spine=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
0036
LowExt,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(LowExt=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is not
firearm or sharp
instrument.
0
0037
UpExt,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(UpExt=8)
This wound variable
should not be
completed when
weapon type is
not firearm or
sharp instrument.
0
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
0038
NumWou,
WType
If (WType <> 1 or 6), then
(NumWou=88)
If weapon type is not
firearm or sharp
instrument, the
number of wounds is
Not applicable (88).
0
0039
NumWou,
WType
If Type=1 or 6, then
NumWou <> 88
If weapon type is
firearm or sharp
instrument, the number
of wounds should be
something other than
Not applicable (88).
0
0040
NumBul,
WType
If (WType <> 1), then
(NumBul=88)
If weapon type is
not firearm, the
number of bullets is
Not applicable (88).
0
0041
NumBul,
WType
If (WType=1), then
(NumBul <> 88)
If weapon type is
firearm, the number
of bullets should be
a value other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0042
AlchRs,
BAC
If (AlchRs=0), then
(BAC=0.00)
If the alcohol test is
reported as negative,
the blood alcohol
level must be
recorded as 0.00.
0
0043
AlchRs,
BAC
If (AlchRs=1), then
(BAC >0.00 and
BAC <=0.50)
If the alcohol test is
reported as positive,
the blood alcohol level
must be recorded as a
number greater than
zero and less than 0.5.
0
0044
AlchRs,
BAC
If (AlchRs=9), then
BAC=0.99
If the alcohol test result
is Unknown, the blood
alcohol level must also
be Unknown.
0
0045
OthDrg,
OtDrRs
If (OtDrRs <>1), then
(OthDrg=‘’)
Enter name of other
drug only if other drug
test results are present.
0
0046
AlchRs,
SpcDt
If (AlchRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
Rule_Text
IsError
19-7
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
19-8
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0047
CokeRs,
SpcDt
If (CokeRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
is assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
0048
MarjRs,
SpcDt
If (MarjRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
is assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
0049
OpiaRs,
SpcDt
If (OpiaRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
is assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
0050
AntiRs,
SpcDt
If (AntiRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
is assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
0051
AmphRs,
SpcDt
If (AmphRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
is assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
0052
OtDrRs,
SpcDt
IF (OtDrRs=1), then
(SpcDt <> 88/88/8888 and
SpcDt <> 99/99/9999 and
SpcTme <> 99:99)
If you know the result
of a test is positive, it
is assumed that the date
and time the specimen
was collected would be
known.
0
0053
SpcDt,
SpcTme
If (SpcDt=99/99/9999),
then (SpcTme=99:99)
If the date a specimen
was drawn is unknown,
then the time is likely
unknown, too.
0
0054
EmDep,
HECd9a,
HECd9b,
Hosp
If (EmDep <> 1 and
Hosp <> 1), then
HECd9a=000.8
If the patient was
admitted to neither an
ED nor a hospital, the
discharge diagnosis
code must be 000.8.
0
Validation Rules
Rule_Logic
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Text
IsError
0055
HECd9a,
HECd9b
If (HECd9a=000.8), then
(HECd9b=000.8)
If the first diagnosis
code is 000.8, the
second must be 000.8.
0
0056
HECd9a,
HECd9b
If (HECd9a <> 000.8),
then HECd9a <> HECd9b
Unless both diagnosis
codes are 000.8, the
codes must be different.
0
0057
Circ,
IncTyp
If (IncTyp=66 or 99), then
(Circ=0)
If the death type is
Other or Unknown, the
“Circumstances known”
question must be “No”.
0
0058
Mental,
TxMent
If (Mental=1), then
(TxMent=1)
If the person had mental
illness, it is unlikely
that they did not have
current treatment for
mental illness.
0
0059
TxMent,
MDiag1
If (Mental <> 1), then
(MDiag1=88 and is
disabled)
If the person had no
mental health problem,
they shouldn’t have a
mental health diagnosis,
so this field should be
completed,
“Not applicable”.
0
0060
MDiag1,
MDiag2
If (MDiag1 <> 1,2,3,4,5,
6,7,8 and 66), then
(MDiag2=88 or 99)
If the first diagnosis
was Not collected or
is Not applicable, the
second diagnosis should
be “Not applicable” or
“Unknown”.
0
0061
MDiag1,
MDiag2
If (MDiag1=1,2,3,4,5,
6,7,8), then
MDiag2 <> MDiag1
The two diagnoses
should be different
unless they are both
Other (66) or both
Not applicable (88) or
both Unknown (99).
0
0062
MenTxt,
MDiag1,
MDiag2
If ((MDiag1 <> 66) and
(MDiag2 <> 1,2,3,4,5, and
66)), then (MenTxt=‘’)
This field can be
completed only if the
diagnoses were “Other,”
or if there were more
than 2 diagnoses.
0
19-9
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0063
Mental,
TxMent
If (TxMent=1), then
(Mental=1)
If the person is being
treated for mental
illness, they should be
coded as having
mental illness.
0
0064
Crisis,
Health,
IPProb,
Relat,
Job,
School, ...
If (Crisis=1), then
((Health=1) or
(IPProb=1) or (Relat=1)
or (Job=1) or
(School=1) or
(FinProb=1) or
(RecSui=1) or
(FamDeath=1) or
(RecCrm=1) or
(Legal=1) or (PIPV=1)
or (PIPVVict=1) or
(SuiOth=1))
If the person is
reported to have had
an acute life crisis,
one of the specific
types of crises must
be checked.
0
0065
NtCrm1,
NtCrm2
If (NtCrm1 <> 66), then
(NtCrm1 <> NtCrm2)
If the type of crime is
not “Other,” the types
of crimes must differ.
0
0066
Crime,
NtCrm1
If (Crime=0 or 9), then
(NtCrm1=88)
If there is no crime
relation, types of
crime should be
Not applicable (88).
0
0067
NtCrm2
If (NtCrm1=88 or
NtCrm1=99), then
(NtCrm2=88)
If the first crime is
“Not applicable” or
“Unknown”, the
second crime should
be “Not applicable”.
0
0068
NtCrm2
If (Crime=0 or 9), then
(NtCrm2=88)
If there is no crime
relation, types of
crime should be
Not applicable (88).
0
0069
TyTxt
If (FType <> 66), then
(TyTxt=‘’)
Enter other firearm
type text only if
firearm type code is
Other (66).
0
0070
MkTxt
If (Make <> 666), then
(MkTxt=‘’)
Enter other firearm
make text only if
make or NCIC code
is Other (666).
0
0071
MoTxt
If (Model <> 66666),
then (MoTxt=‘’)
Enter other firearm
model text only if
firearm model code is
Other (66666).
0
19-10
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0072
Gauge,
FType
If (Ftype=1–14 or 23,
66,77,99), then
(Gauge=888)
If firearm is not a
shotgun, gauge is
Not applicable (888).
0
0073
Calib,
FType
If (FType=15–23 or 66,
77,99), then (Calib=8888)
If firearm is a
shotgun, caliber is
Not applicable (8888).
0
0074
ImpNm,
Trace
If (Trace=8), then
(ImpNm=88)
If firearm was not
recovered, this variable
is Not applicable (88).
0
0075
ImpCt,
Trace
If (Trace=8), then
(ImpCt=88)
If firearm was not
recovered, this variable
is Not applicable (88).
0
0076
ImpSt,
Trace
If (Trace=8), then
(ImpSt=88)
If firearm was not
recovered, this variable
is Not applicable (88).
0
0077
Fpurc
If (Fpurc=1), then
(only 1 person/weapon
can be first purchaser)
Only one person can
be coded as the First
purchaser of the firearm.
0
0078
Owner,
Locked
If (Owner=1), then
(Locked=8)
If the gun user was the
gun owner, the “Gun
stored locked” question
is Not applicable (8).
0
0079
Owner,
Loaded
If (Owner=1), then
(Loaded=8)
If the gun user was the
gun owner, the “Gun
stored loaded” question
is Not applicable (8).
0
0080
Trace,
FPSt
If (Trace=0,1,3,8, or 9),
then (FPSt=88)
If the firearm was not
traced, this variable is
Not applicable (88).
0
0081
Trace,
FPSt
If (Trace=2), then
(FPSt <> 8)
If the firearm was
successfully traced,
the state of the
importer cannot be
“Not applicable”.
0
0082
Rela1,
Rela2
If (Rela1=88 or
Rela1=99), then
(Rela2=88)
If the first relationship is
“Not Applicable” or
“Unknown”, the
second must be
“Not applicable”.
0
0083
Rela1
If (Rela1 <> 88 and
Rela1<> 99), then
(Rela1 <> Rela2)
Unless relationships are
Not applicable, the first
relation must be different
from the second.
0
19-11
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0084
Age,
AgeTyp,
Rela1,
Rela2
If victim’s age 10
or 14
If the victim is younger
than the suspect, the
victim cannot be the
parent or grandparent
of the suspect.
0
0085
Age,
AgeTyp,
Rela1,
Rela2
If victim’s age >suspect’s
age, then
(Rela1 and Rela2) <> 11, 13
If the victim is older
than the suspect, the
victim cannot be the
child or grandchild
of the suspect.
0
0086
Age,
AgeTyp,
Rela1,
Rela2
If victim’s age 16 or 19) and
(Rela2 <> 16 or 19))
If the victim is younger
than the suspect, the
specified relationship
is unlikely.
0
0087
Age,
AgeTyp,
Rela1,
Rela2
If victim’s age >suspect’s
age then
((Rela1 <> 17 or 18) and
(Rela2 <> 17 or 18))
If the victim is older
than the suspect, the
specified relationship
is unlikely.
0
0088
Age,
AgeTyp,
Rela2
If (AgeTyp >1) or
(AgeTyp=1 and Age <14)),
then (Rela2 <> 1,2,3,7,8,10,
14,16,19, and 51)
This relationship is
unlikely for a child
under age 14.
0
0089
KCFR,
If (KCFR=0), then
KResType (KResType=88)
If CFR is not available,
then victim’s primary
residency should be
Not applicable (88).
0
0090
KCFR,
If (KCFR=0), then
KResNew (KResNew=8)
If CFR is not available,
then victim’s new
living situation
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0091
KResType, If (KResType=1), then
KResNew (KResNew=8)
If the primary
residency is the
victim’s home, then
the new living
situation should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0092
KAdult1,
KAdult2,
KAdult3,
KAdult4,
KResType
If the primary
residence of the
victim is not a home,
then the Household
adults should be
Not applicable (88).
0
19-12
If (KResType=4,5,6, or 7),
then ((KAdult1=88) and
(KAdult2=88) and
(KAdult3=88) and
(KAdult4=88))
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0093
KAdult1,
KAdult2,
KAdult3,
KAdult4,
KCFR
If (KCFR=0), then
((KAdult1=88) and
(KAdult2=88) and
(KAdult3=88) and
(KAdult4=88))
If CFR is not available,
then Adults in the
victim’s household
should be
Not applicable (88).
0
0094
KKids,
KResType
If (KResType=3,4,5,6,
or 7), then
(KKids=8)
If the primary residence
of the victim is not a
home, then the other
children in the
household should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0095
KCFR,
KKids
If (KCFR=0), then
(KKids=8)
If CFR is not available,
then other children in
the victim’s household
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0096
KCFR,
KDV
If (KCFR=0), then
(KDV=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Intimate partner
violence in the victim’s
household should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0097
KCFR,
KSubs
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSubs=8)
If CFR is not available,
then evidence of
substance abuse in
the victim’s household
should be
Not Applicable (8).
0
0098
KCFR,
KDVFos
If (KCFR=0), then
(KDVFos=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Intimate partner
violence in the victim’s
foster home should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0099
KDVFos,
KResType
If (KResType <> 2), then
(KDVFos=8)
If the primary residency
of the victim is not foster
family home, then
Intimate partner violence
in the victim’s foster
home should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0100
KCFR,
KSubsFos
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSubsFos=8)
If CFR is not available,
then evidence of
substance abuse in the
victim’s foster home
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-13
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
0101
KResType,
KSubsFos
If (KResType <> 2), then If the primary residency
(KSubsFos=8)
of the victim is not foster
family home, then
evidence of substance
abuse in the victim’s
foster home should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0102
KCFR,
KSuperv
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSuperv=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the quality of
supervision that
contributed to the
victim’s death should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0103
KCFR,
KSupRel
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupRel=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the Supervisor’s
relationship to the
victim should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0104
KSuperv,
KSupRel
If (KSuperv=1 or 2), then
(KSupRel <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then Supervisor’s
relationship to the
victim should be
something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0105
KSuperv,
KSupRel
If (KSuperv <> 1 and 2),
then
(KSupRel=8)
If the quality of
supervision did not
contribute to the victim’s
death, then Supervisor’s
relationship to the
victim should be
“Not applicable”.
0
0106
KCFR,
KSupAge
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupAge=888)
If CFR is not available,
then the Supervisor’s
age at the time of
incident should be
Not applicable (888).
0
0107
KSuperv,
KSupAge
If (KSuperv=1 or 2), then
(KSupAge <> 888)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then Supervisor’s age
should be something
other than
“Not applicable”.
0
19-14
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0108
KSuperv,
KSupAge
If (KSuperv <> 1 and 2),
then (KSupAge=888)
If the quality of
supervision did not
contribute to the victim’s
death, then Supervisor’s
age should be
“Not applicable”.
0
0109
KCFR,
KSupSex
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupSex=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the Supervisor’s
sex should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0110
KSupSex,
KSuperv
If (KSuperv <> 1 and 2),
then (KSupSex=8)
If the quality of
supervision did not
contribute to the victim’s
death, then Supervisor’s
sex should be
“Not applicable”.
0
0111
KSupSex,
KSuperv
If (KSuperv=1 or 2), then
(KSupSex <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then Supervisor’s sex
should be something
other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0112
KCFR,
KSupNo
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupNo=8)
If CFR is not available,
then no supervision
present should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0113
KSuperv,
KSupNo
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupNo <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then No supervision
present should be
something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0114
KCFR,
KSupHaz
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupHaz=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the supervisor’s
failure to protect from
known hazard should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-15
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0115
KSuperv,
KSupHaz
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupHaz <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then the supervisor’s
failure to protect from
known hazard should be
something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0116
KCFR,
KSupDrug
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupDrug=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor was
drug-impaired should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0117
KSuperv,
KSupDrug
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupDrug <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor was
drug-impaired should be
something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0118
KCFR,
KSupEtoh
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupEtoh=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor was
alcohol-impaired should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0119
KSuperv,
KSupEtoh
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupEtoh <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor was
alcohol-impaired should
be something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0120
KCFR,
KSupPsych
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupPsych=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor had
mental illness should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0121
KSuperv,
KSupPsych
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupPsych <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor had
mental illness should be
something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0122
KCFR,
KSupMr
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupMr=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor had
mental retardation should
be Not applicable (8).
19-16
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
0123
KSuperv,
KSupMr
0124
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupMr <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor had
mental retardation should
be something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
KCFR,
KSupDis
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupDis=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor had
physical disability should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0125
KSuperv,
KSupDis
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupDis <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor had
physical disability should
be something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0126
KCFR,
KSupBusy
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupBusy=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor was
distracted/preoccupied
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0127
KSuperv,
KSupBusy
If (KSuperv=1), then
(KSupBusy <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor was
distracted/preoccupied
should be something
other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0128
KCFR,
KSupDoze
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSupDoze=8)
If CFR is not available,
then supervisor was
asleep should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0129
KSupDoze, If (KSuperv=1), then
KSuperv
(KSupDoze <> 8)
If the quality of
supervision contributed
to the victim’s death,
then supervisor was
asleep should be
something other than
“Not applicable”.
0
0130
KCFR,
KIllness
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s physical
illness should be
Not applicable (8).
0
If (KCFR=0), then
(KIllness=8)
19-17
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0131
KCFR,
KIllTxt
If (KCFR=0), then
(KIllTxt=8).
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s
diagnosis for physical
illness should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0132
KCFR,
KDisable
If (KCFR=0), then
(KDisable=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s
disability at the time of
the incident should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0133
KCFR,
KDisPhy
If (KCFR=0), then
(KDisPhy=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s physical
disability should be
Not Applicable (8).
0
0134
KDisable,
KDisPhy
If (KDisable <> 1), then
(KDisPhy=8)
If the victim was not
disabled at the time of the
incident, then the victim’s
physical disability should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0135
KCFR,
KDisDev
If (KCFR=0), then
(KDisDev=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s
developmental disability
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0136
KDisable,
KDisDev
If (KDisable <> 1), then
(KDisDev=8)
If the victim was not
disabled at the time of the
incident, then the victim’s
developmental disability
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0137
KCFR,
KDisSens
If (KCFR=0), then
(KDisSens=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s sensory
disability should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0138
KDisable,
KDisDev
If (KDisable <> 1), then
(KDisSens=8)
If the victim was not
disabled at the time of the
incident, then the victim’s
sensory disability should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0139
KCFR,
KPNSubs
If (KCFR=0), then
(KPNSubs=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s maternal
recreational drug use
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-18
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0140
Age,
KPNSubs
If (AgeTyp=1 and Age >1), If the victim is older than
then
1 year, then the victim’s
(KPNSubs=8)
maternal recreational
drug use should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0141
KCFR,
KPNAlcoh
If (KCFR=0), then
(KPNAlcoh=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s maternal
alcohol use should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0142
Age,
KPNAlcoh
If (AgeTyp=1 and Age >1), If the victim is older than
then
1 year, then the victim’s
(KPNAlcoh=8)
maternal alcohol use
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0143
KCFR,
KPNTob
If (KCFR=0), then
(KPNTob=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s maternal
tobacco use should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0144
Age,
KPNTob
If (AgeTyp=1 andAge>1),
then
(KPNTob=8)
If the victim is older than
1 year, then the victim’s
maternal tobacco use
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0145
KCFR,
KPNCare
If (KCFR=0), then
(KPNCare=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s mother’s
prenatal care prior to the
3rd trimester should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0146
Age,
KPNCare
If (AgeTyp=1 and Age >1), If the victim is older than
then
1 year, then the victim’s
(KPNCare=8)
mother’s prenatal care
prior to the 3rd trimester
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0147
KCFR,
KCPSRept
If (KCFR=0), then
(KCPSRept=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the CPS report or
referral filed on the
victim’s household prior
to the incident should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0148
KCFR,
If (KCFR=0) or
KCPSRept, (KCPSRept <> 1), then
KCPSWho KCPSWho=8
If CFR is not available,
then the household
member that the CPS
report was filed on should
be Not applicable (8).
0
19-19
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
0149
KCFR,
KCPSTrue
If (KCFR=0), then
(KCPSTrue=8)
0150
Rule_Text
IsError
If CFR is not available,
then the report
substantiation by
CPS on the victim’s
household should be
Not applicable (8).
0
KCPSRept, If (KCPSRept <> 1), then
KCPSTrue (KCPSTrue=8)
If the CPS report or
referral filed on the
victim’s household
prior to the incident is
something other than
“Yes” then the
substantiation by CPS
of the report should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0151
KCFR,
If (KCFR=0), then
KCPSPhys (KCPSPhys=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the CPS report
substantiation of
maltreatment as
physical abuse should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0152
KCPSRept, If (KCPSRept <> 1), then
KCPSPhys (KCPSPhys=8)
If the CPS report or
referral filed on the
victim’s household
prior to the incident is
something other than
“Yes” then the CPS
report substantiation of
maltreatment as physical
abuse should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0153
KCPSPhys, If (KCPSTrue=1), then
KCPSTrue (KCPSPhys <> 8)
If CPS substantiates the
report or referral; then
the substantiation of
maltreatment as physical
abuse should be
something other than
Not applicable (8).
0
0154
KCPSPhys, If (KCPSTrue <> 1), then
KCPSTrue (KCPSPhys=8)
If CPS does not
substantiate the report
or referral; then the
substantiation of
maltreatment as physical
abuse should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-20
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
0155
KCFR,
KCPSSex
If (KCFR=0), then
(KCPSSex=8)
0156
Rule_Text
IsError
If CFR is not available,
then the CPS report
substantiation of
maltreatment as sexual
abuse should be
Not applicable (8).
0
KCPSSex, If (KCPSRept <> 1), then
KCPSRept (KCPSSex=8)
If the CPS report or
referral filed on the
victim’s household
prior to the incident is
something other than
“Yes” then the CPS
report substantiation of
maltreatment as sexual
abuse, should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0157
KCPSSex,
KCPSTrue
If (KCPSTrue=1), then
(KCPSSex <> 8)
If CPS substantiates the
report or referral; then the
substantiation of
maltreatment as sexual
abuse should be
something other than
Not applicable (8).
0
0158
KCPSSex,
KCPSTrue
If (KCPSTrue <> 1), then
(KCPSSex=8)
If CPS did not
substantiate the report
or referral; then the
substantiation of
maltreatment as sexual
abuse should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0159
KCFR,
KCPSNeg
If (KCFR=0), then
(KCPSNeg=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the CPS report
substantiation of
maltreatment as
neglect should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0160
KCPSNeg, If (KCPSRept <> 1), then
KCPSRept (KCPSNeg=8)
If the CPS report or
referral filed on the
victim’s household
prior to the incident
is something other
than “Yes” then the
CPS report substantiation
of maltreatment as
neglect should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-21
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
0161
KCPSNeg,
KCPSTrue
If (KCPSTrue=1), then
(KCPSNeg <> 8)
If CPS substantiates the
report or referral; then
the substantiation of
maltreatment as neglect
should be something
other than
Not applicable (8).
0
0162
KCPSNeg,
KCPSTrue
If (KCPSTrue <> 1),
then
(KCPSNeg=8)
If CPS did not
substantiate the report
or referral; then the
substantiation of
maltreatment as
neglect should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0163
KCFR,
If (KCFR=0), then
KCPSOpen (KCPSOpen=8)
If CFR is not available,
then CPS case opened
on other children due
to this should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0164
KCFR,
KLawVict
If (KCFR=0), then
(KLawVict=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s contact
with law enforcement
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0165
KCFR,
KLawHous
If (KCFR=0), then
(KLawHous=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the household’s
contact with law
enforcement should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0166
KCFR,
KJuv
If (KCFR=0), then
(KJuv=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s contact
with juvenile justice
system should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0167
KCFR,
KHealth
If (KCFR=0), then
(KHealth=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s contact
with healthcare system
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0168
KCFR,
KMedicaid
If (KCFR=0), then
(KMedicaid=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s contact
with Medicaid should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-22
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
0169
KCFR,
KMHServ
0170
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
If (KCFR=0), then
(KMHServ=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s contact
with mental health
services should be
Not applicable (8).
0
KCFR,
KSocial
If (KCFR=0), then
(KSocial=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim or
primary caregiver’s
contact with social
services should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0171
KCFR,
KWelfare
If (KCFR=0), then
(KWelfare=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the primary
caregiver’s contact with
welfare/financial
assistance should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0172
KCFR,
KWIC
If (KCFR=0), then
(KWIC=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the victim’s contact
with WIC should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0173
KCFR,
KRecME
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecME=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Coroner/Medical
Examiner Records were
used to review victim’s
death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0174
KCFR,
KRecCPS
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecCPS=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Social Services/
Child Protective Services
Records were used to
review victim’s death
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0175
KCFR,
KRecLaw
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecLaw=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Police/Law
Enforcement Records
were used to review
victim’s death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0176
KCFR,
KRecEdu
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecEdu=8)
If CFR is not available,
then School Records
were used to review
victim’s death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-23
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
0177
KCFR,
KRecEMS
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecEMS=8)
If CFR is not available,
then EMS Records were
used to review victim’s
death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0178
KCFR,
KRecMD
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecMD=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Health Provider/
Hospital Records were
used to review victim’s
death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0179
KCFR,
KRecDOH
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecDOH=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Public Health
Department Records
were used to review
victim’s death should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0180
KCFR,
KRecPsy
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecPsy=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Mental Health
Records were used to
review victim’s death
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0181
KCFR,
KRecJuv
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecJuv=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Juvenile Justice
Records/probation were
used to review victim’s
death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0182
KCFR,
KRecDC
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecDC=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Death Certificate
Records were used to
review victim’s death
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0183
KCFR,
KRecOth
If (KCFR=0), then
(KRecOth=8)
If CFR is not available,
then other records were
used to review victim’s
death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0184
KRecOth,
KRecTxt
If (KRecOth=1), then
(KRecTxt <> ‘’)
If other records were used
to review victim’s death,
then the text field for
other records used should
not be left blank.
0
19-24
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
0185
KCFR,
KConclud
If (KCFR=0), then
(KConclud=8)
If CFR is not available,
the CFRT conclusions
consistent with official
manner of death should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0186
KCFR,
KManner
If (KCFR=0), then
(KManner=88)
If CFR is not available,
then manner of death
CFRT designated should
be Not applicable (88).
0
0187
KConclud, If (KConclud=0), then
KManner (KManner <> 88)
If CFRT conclusions
were not consistent with
official manner of death,
then CFRT designated
manner of death should
be something other than
Not applicable (88).
0
0188
KConclud, If (KConclud <> 0), then
KManner (KManner=88)
If CFRT conclusions were
consistent with official
manner of death or CFRT
does not make this
comparison, then CFRT
designated manner of
death should be
Not applicable (88).
0
0189
KManner, If (KManner=6), then
KMannTxt (KMannTxt <> ‘’)
If CFRT designated
manner of death is
Other (6) then the text
field for other manner
should not be left blank.
0
0190
KAction,
KCFR
If (KCFR=0), then
(KAction=8)
If CFR is not available,
then any action initiated
to change the officially
designated manner should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0191
KAction,
KConclud
If (KConclud=0), then
(KAction <> 8)
If CFRT conclusions
were not consistent with
official manner of death,
then any action initiated
to change the officially
designated manner should
be something other than
Not applicable (8).
0
Rule_Text
IsError
19-25
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0192
KAction,
KConclud
If (KConclud <> 0), then
(KAction=8)
If CFRT conclusions were
consistent with official
manner of death or CFRT
does not make this
comparison, then any
action initiated to change
the officially designated
manner should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0193
KCFR,
KResult
If (KCFR=0), then
(KResult=8)
If CFR is not available,
then result of any action
initiated to change the
officially designated
manner should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0194
KAction,
KConclud,
KResult
If (KConclud=0) and
(KAction=1), then
(KResult <> 8)
If CFRT conclusions were
not consistent with
official manner of death,
and action was initiated to
change the officially
designated manner, then
result of action should be
something other than
Not applicable (8).
0
0195
KAction,
KConclud,
KResult
If (KConclud=0) and
(KAction <> 1), then
(KResult =8)
If CFRT conclusions were
not consistent with
official manner of death,
and action was not
initiated to change the
officially designated
manner, then result of
action should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0196
KCFR,
KPrevent
If (KCFR=0), then
(KPrevent=8)
If CFR is not available,
then CFRT conclude that
the death was preventable
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0197
KCFR,
GPerson1,
GPerson2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GPerson1=8) and
(GPerson2=8)
If CFR is not available,
then Primary caregiver
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0198
KCFR,
GPersID1,
GPersID2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GPersID1=0) and
(GPersID2=0)
If CFR is not available,
then Primary caregiver
ID should be
Not applicable (00000).
0
19-26
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0199
GPersID1,
GPerson1,
GPersID2,
GPerson2
If (GPerson1=0), then
(GPersID1=0);
If (GPerson2=0), then
(GPersID2=0)
If Primary caregiver is
neither a suspect nor a
victim in the incident,
then the Primary caregiver
number should be
Not applicable (00000).
0
0200
KCFR,
GRel1,
GRel2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GRel1=8) and
(GRel2=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the relationship of
the Primary caregiver to
the victim should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0201
KCFR,
GAge1,
GAge2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GAge1=888) and
(GAge2=888)
If CFR is not available,
then the Primary
caregiver’s age should
be Not applicable (888).
0
0202
KCFR,
GSex1,
GSex2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GSex1=8) and
(GSex2=8)
If CFR is not available,
then the Primary
caregiver’s sex should
be Not applicable (8).
0
0203
KCFR,
GCustody1,
GCustody2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GCustody1=8) and
(GCustody2=8)
If CFR is not available,
then whether the Primary
caregiver had legal
custody of the victim
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0204
KCFR,
GCAN1,
GCAN2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GCAN1=8) and
(GCAN2=8)
If CFR is not available,
then whether the Primary
caregiver had documented
maltreatment of the
victim should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0205
KCFR,
GDeath1,
GDeath2
If (KCFR=0), then
(GDeath1=8) and
(GDeath2=8)
If CFR is not available,
then whether the Primary
caregiver had a previous
child die in their care
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0206
ChldWit,
Witness
If (Witness=1),
then (ChldWit <> 8)
If there is a witness to the
fatal incident, then the
answer for “Any child
witnesses” should not be
“Not applicable” .
0
19-27
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0207
ChldWit,
Witness
If (Witness=0), then
(ChldWit=0)
If there is no witness to
the fatal incident, then the
selection for “Any child
witnesses” should be
No (0).
0
0208
ChldWit,
Witness
If (Witness=9), then
(ChldWit=9)
If the witness to the fatal
incident is unknown, then
the selection for “Any
child witnesses” should
also be Unknown (9).
0
0209
BarAcsTr,
Mental
If (Mental <> 1), then
(BarAcsTr=8)
If the victim’s mental
history is “No, Not
applicable, Not
collected or Unknown”
then Barriers to accessing
care should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0210
BarAcsTr,
TxMent
If (TxMent=1), then
(BarAcsTr=8)
If the victim has current
treatment for a mental
problem, then Barriers to
accessing care should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0211
SArrest,
SusIdent
If (SusIdent <> 1), then
(SArrest=8)
If the suspect has not been
identified by name, then
the suspect arrested as
perpetrator in this death
should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0212
SArrest,
SusIdent
If (SusIdent =1), then
(SArrest <> 8)
If the suspect has been
identified by name, then
the suspect arrested as
perpetrator in this death
should not be
Not applicable (8).
0
0213
SArrest,
SusChg
If (SArrest <> 1), then
(SusChg=8)
If the suspect has not been
arrested, then suspect
charged as perpetrator in
this death should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0214
SArrest,
SusChg
If (SArrest=1), then
(SusChg <> 8)
If the suspect has been
arrested, then suspect
charged as perpetrator in
this death should not be
Not applicable (8).
0
19-28
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0215
SusChg,
SusPros
If (SusChg<>1), then
(SusPros=8)
If the suspect has not
been charged as
perpetrator in this death,
then case prosecuted
should be “Not
Applicable” (8)
0
0216
SusChg,
SusPros
If (SusChg =1), then
(SusPros<>8)
If the suspect has been
charged as perpetrator in
this death, then case
prosecuted should not be
“Not Applicable” (8)
0
0217
SConvict,
SusPros
If (SusPros<>1), then
(SConvict=8)
If the case has not been
prosecuted, then
conviction should be
“Not Applicable” (8)
0
0218
SConvict,
SusPros
If (SusPros=1), then
(SConvict<>8)
If the case has been
prosecuted, then
conviction should not be
“Not Applicable” (8)
0
0219
CPSRpFil,
SusIdent
If (SusIdent<>1), then
(CPSRpFil=8)
If the suspect has not
been identified by name,
then “CPS report or
referral ever filed” should
be “Not Applicable” (8)
0
0220
SusIdent,
CPSRpFil
If (SusIdent=1), then
(CPSRpFil<>8)
If the suspect has been
identified by name, then
“CPS report or referral
ever filed” should not be
“Not Applicable” (8)
0
0221
SusPrHomi, If (SusIdent<>1), then
(SusPrHomi =8)
SusIdent
If the suspect has not
been identified by name,
then the suspect ever
charged with a prior
homicide should be “Not
Applicable” (8)
0
0222
If (SusIdent=1), then
SusIdent,
SusPrHomi (SusPrHomi <>8)
If the suspect has been
identified by name, then
the suspect ever charged
with a prior homicide
should not be “Not
Applicable” (8)
0
19-29
Validation Rules
Rule_Number FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0223
Age,
AgeTyp,
KFCR,
PType
Warning If (PType=1 or 3)
and (AgeTyp=1 and
Age <18) and
(KCFR=blank)
One or more of the
victims in this incident is
less than 18 years old. If
you are a state testing or
using the CFRT module,
you should have
completed the CFRT
module.
0
0224
AmphTs,
AmphRs
If (AmphTs=2) or
(AmphTs=9), then
(AmphRs=8)
If an amphetamine test
was not performed, then
test results should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0225
AntiTs,
AntiRs
If (AntiTs=2) or
(AntiTs=9), then
(AntiRs=8)
If an antidepressant test
was not performed, then
test results should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0226
CokeTs,
CokeRs
If (CokeTs=2) or
(CokeTs=9), then
(CokeRs=8)
If a cocaine test was not
performed, then test
results should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0227
MarjTs,
MarjRs
If (MarjTs=2) or
(MarjTs=9), then
(MarjRs=8)
If a marijuana test was not
performed, then test
results should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0228
OpiaTs,
OpiaRs
If (OpiaTs=2) or
(OpiaTs=9), then
(OpiaRs=8)
If an opiate test was not
performed, then test
results should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0229
OtDrTs,
OtDrRs
If (OtDrTs=2) or
(OtDrTs=9), then
(OtDrRs=8)
If testing for any drugs
was not performed, then
test results should be
Not applicable (8).
0
0230
Calib,
FType
If (Calib=9), then
(FType=6)
If the caliber of the firearm is 9 mm the firearm
type (FType) is most likely
semi-automatic pistol.
0
0231
Calib,
FType
If (Calib=25), then
(FType=6)
If the caliber of the firearm is 25 mm the firearm
type (FType) is most likely
semi-automatic pistol.
0
19-30
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0232
Calib,
FType
If (Calib=380), then
(FType=6)
If the caliber of the firearm is 380 the firearm
type (FType) is most
likely semi-automatic
pistol.
0233
Calib,
FType
If (Calib=40), then
(FType=6)
If the caliber of the firearm is 40 the firearm type
(FType) is most likely
semi-automatic pistol.
0234
Calib,
FType
If (Calib=45), then
(FType=6)
If the caliber of the firearm is 45 the firearm type
(FType) is most likely
semi-automatic pistol.
0235
Calib,
FType
If (Calib=762), then
(FType=13)
If the caliber of the firearm is 762 the firearm
type (FType) is most
likely semi-automatic
rifle.
0
If the caliber is 32 Auto
the firearm type (FType)
is likely a semi-automatic
pistol, if the caliber is 32
S&W then the firearm
type (FType) is likely
revolver.
0
If the caliber of the firearm is 357 or 38 the firearm type (FType) is most
likely revolver.
0
If the caliber of the firearm is 44 the firearm type
(FType) is most likely
revolver. (Exception:
IMI Desert Eagle is a
semi-automatic pistol.
0
0
0
0
0
0236
0237
0238
0239
0240
Calib,
FType
Calib,
FType
Calib,
FType
Gauge,
FType
Make,
FType
If (Calib=32), then
(FType=6 or 7)
If (Calib=357, 38, or
1000), then
(FType=7)
If (Calib=44), then
(FType=7)
If (Gauge=10, 12, 16,
20, 28, 410, 666, or
999), then
(FType=16–22)
If the firearm has a gauge,
the firearm type (FType)
is shotgun.
If (Make=AMJ), then
(FType=4)
American Derringer
manufactures primarily
derringers.
0
19-31
Validation Rules
Rule_Number
19-32
FieldList
Rule_Logic
Rule_Text
IsError
0241
Make,
FType
If (Make=CLT), then
(FType=2–7)
Colt manufactures
primarily handguns.
0
0242
Make,
FType
If (Make=MAR), then
(FType=8–23)
Marlin manufactures
primarily rifles and
shotguns.
0
0243
Make,
FType
If (Make=MOS), then
(FType=8–23)
Mossberg manufactures
primarily rifles and shotguns.
0
0244
Make,
FType
If (Make=SAV), then
(FType=8–23)
Savage manufactures
primarily rifles and
shotguns.
0
0245
Make,
FType
If (Make=REM), then
(FType=8–23)
Remington manufactures
primarily rifles and
shotguns.
0
0246
Make,
FType
If (Make=WIN), then
(Ftype=8–23)
Winchester manufactures
primarily rifles and
shotguns.
0
0247
Make,
Ftype
If (Make=BRY), then
(Ftype=6)
Bryco Arms manufactures
primarily semi-automatic
pistols.
0
0248
Make,
Ftype
If (Make=RAV). then
(Ftype=6)
Raven Arms manufactures
primarily semi-automaic
pistols.
0
0249
Make,
Ftype
If (Make=PHE), then
(FType=6)
Phoenix Arms
manufactures primarily
semi-automatic pistols.
0
0250
Make,
FType
If (Make=LCN). then
(FType=6)
Lorcin Engineering
manufacturers primarily
semi-automatic pistols.
0
0251
Make,
FType
If (Make=SIG), then
(FType=6)
Sig Sauer manufactures
primarily semi-automatic
pistols.
0
0252
Make,
FType
If (Make=SW), then
(FType=2–7)
Smith & Wesson
manufactures primarily
semi-automatic pistols.
0
| File Type | application/pdf |
| File Title | Final-NVDRS Man - INTRO-Section 5-Oct7 |
| Subject | Final-NVDRS Man - INTRO-Section 5-Oct7 |
| Author | sse1 |
| File Modified | 2006-11-09 |
| File Created | 2006-11-09 |