News

Recently, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced the official launch of the LESDC which took place on January 1, 2022. The LESDC provides a mechanism for law enforcement agencies to report suicides and attempted suicides of law enforcement personnel, as defined within the LESDC Act, for the purpose of compiling national statistics on these tragedies. As of January 1, 2022, law enforcement agencies can submit data to the LESDC about their current or former officers who died by suicide…

Hosted by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and presented by Utah State Parks rangers, this podcast discusses a critical incident involving Ranger Brody Young. Ranger Young was shot nine times, was left to die in a remote location and is back on the job today. Ranger Young speaks candidly about the incident, his recovery, lessons the incident taught him about resilience, and how the experience has changed his life. To listen to the podcast, visit https://tinyurl.com/yp6kwnuv

Published by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), this overview reviews the Law Enforcement-Mental Health Learning Site program developed by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center which offers national resources to law enforcement and behavioral health agencies seeking to tailor response models and implementation strategies to their individual communities’ needs. Comprising sheriffs’ offices, metropolitan police departments, rural justice and mental health coalitions, and university police departments, the 14 learning sites deliver customized training and technical assistance to local…

Published by the Council of Criminal Justice (CCJ), this report discusses updates on criminal activity throughout 2021. In this year-end update, 27 American cities are examined for criminal activity involving violent crimes, property and drug offenses. Key findings include the following: The 2020–2021 rate of homicide increased by five percent;2021 aggravated and gun assault rates increased by four percent and eight percent, respectively (based on a subset of just 12 cities);Domestic violence incidents in 11 cities increased by almost four…

Published by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), this report discusses public mass shootings in the United States over the last half century. The shooters were commonly troubled by personal trauma before their shooting incidents, nearly always in a state of crisis at the time and, in most cases, engaged in leaking their plans before opening fire. Most were insiders of targeted institutions, such as employees or students. Except for young school shooters who stole the guns from family members,…

Published by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), this report discusses several studies and data collected on body-worn cameras in this country. Body-worn cameras are widely used by state and local law enforcement agencies in the United States. They are worn principally by officers in the performance of duties which require open and direct contact with the public. Despite their widespread and growing adoption, the current evidence regarding the effectiveness of body-worn cameras is mixed. Some studies suggest that body-worn…

Published by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), this report discusses two NIJ funded projects which introduce new methods and tools for collecting and processing digital evidence in cases involving child sexual abuse materials and large-scale computer networks. The NIJ provided funding to Purdue University and the University of Rhode Island. Purdue University created the File Toolkit for Selective Analysis Reconstruction (FileTSAR) for large-scale computer networks which enables on-the-scene acquisition of probative data. FileTSAR then allows detailed forensic investigation to…

Published by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), this toolkit provides 11 short videos addressing labor trafficking for law enforcement, businesses and the community. This video series was designed to supplement the Partnerships to Address Labor Trafficking Toolkit which was released in 2021. The toolkit was created to improve the awareness, responsiveness and accountability among law enforcement, businesses, communities, and other stakeholders addressing labor trafficking. The toolkit with its 11 short videos can be viewed on Youtube at…

Developed by the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Training and Technical Assistance and funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Gun Violence Resource Hub (GBRH) has officially launched and is now available. The GVRH is a compilation of approaches from across the nation to combating gun violence. It includes approaches which are implemented by law enforcement agencies, as well as a broad range of other organizations such as hospitals, community organizations and prosecutors’ offices. Included are approaches which have been…

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recently announced a new initiative, Operation Overdrive, aimed at combatting the rising rates of drug-related violent crime and overdose deaths plaguing American communities. Last fall, the DEA initiated a data-driven approach using national crime statistics and CDC data to identify hot spots of drug-related violence and overdose deaths across the country. This will enable the agency to direct its law enforcement resources to areas where they will have the most impact: the communities where criminal…