Practitioner and Researchers Partner to Analyze and Track Gun-Related Violence

Grant Drawve, an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology and associate director of the Crime and Security Data Analytics Lab, has been awarded a $700,000 grant from the federal Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Local Law Enforcement Crime Gun Intelligence Center Integration Initiative.

The award is in collaboration with the Chattanooga, Tennessee, Police Department and Rick Dierenfeldt, an assistant professor in the Department of Social, Cultural, and Justice Studies at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga.

Chattanooga has averaged about 1,200 “shots fired” calls per year since 2016. With that, about 24% of the city’s area accounts for around 80% of gun violence. To address this issue and live by their mission statement “to keep you, your family and our community safe,” the Chattanooga Police Department will be utilizing innovative investigatory techniques around firearms and firearm evidence supported by strategic partnerships with law enforcement and key community stakeholders.

The objectives of the three-year study are to:

• Develop analytical support to improve police responses to gunshots fired utilizing report management systems, eTrace, and other technology.
• Collaborate with ATF to investigate likely shooting incidents by ensuring that every gun crime is actually submitted to the ATF National Tracing Center.
• Support and promote collaborative partnerships with multiple agencies to ensure the effective prosecution of CGIC cases.
• Ensure CGIC sustainability through memoranda of understanding with partners and by continuing education and outreach with future partners.

“It is great to see CPD reach out and want to work with researchers,” Drawve said. “With a movement towards more evidence- and data-driven approaches, CPD is taking early steps to understand if what they are implementing is working as desired.”

The Crime and Security Data Analytics Lab (CASDAL) was recently established in the summer of 2020 as part of the University of Arkansas Terrorism Research Center. The lab provides students with crime analysis internship opportunities as well as research collaborations with public agencies and private corporations.

About the Department: The Department of Sociology and Criminology offers three degree programs and four student organizations; affiliation with three research units: the Center for Social Research, the Community and Family Institute, and the Terrorism Research Center; and research emphases in community, crime, health and well-being, and social data analytics.

This story also appeared in the University of Arkansas News publication.