Violent crime

Developed by the Major Cities Chiefs Association with support from BJA, this resource outlines actions and activities that are relatable agency to agency and that have contributed to successful crime-fighting strategies throughout the country.

Buy-in from law enforcement agencies – prompted by a determined US Attorney and a new mayor – begets local-federal partnerships, which beget information-sharing and trust. Boosted by state-of-the-art intelligence and targeted federal prosecution, better policing results, and the worst offenders come off the streets. More barriers come down as nontraditional partners – the housing authority, probation and parole, youth services – work together to preempt...

After reports of violent crime hit an 11-year high in 2017, Memphis has seen an 8.1% decrease in violent crime through the first six months of 2018.

The Raines Station precinct in Memphis, Tennessee, is home to the city's biggest tourist attraction – Graceland, famed residence of Elvis Presley. In the center of Raines Station, Graceland attracts tourists from around the world who want to...

When Cuyahoga County, Ohio, embarked on the testing of nearly 7,000 backlogged sexual assault kits (SAKs) in early 2013, metaphors from Greek and Roman mythology abounded in the Cleveland media coverage – 'Herculean task' and 'Pandora's box' chief among them.

Five years on, now that the backlog has been largely cleared, the sense of dread associated with those words has been replaced by one of...

The Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), an innovative program of the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) which is helping law enforcement agencies nationwide test rape kits and close cold case sexual assaults and homicides, is one of the critical investigative tools that led authorities to believe Samuel Little may be the worst serial killer in American history, by enabling police across...

In just 4 years, SAKI has already identified more than 200,000 unsubmitted kits across 54 jurisdictions in 35 states

One untested sexual assault kit can have ramifications far beyond the case for which it was originally collected.

Sexual assault offenders are often serial offenders, either committing multiple sexual assaults or other violent crimes. Testing a sexual assault kit where the perpetrator is known could provide...