Syracuse, New York

The Syracuse Police Department and the Onondaga County Probation Department utilized SPI funds to adapt and apply offender-focused policing to gun violence in the city of Syracuse, and to enhance this form of policing by interweaving elements of other evidence-based innovations, particularly focused deterrence and management accountability. The operation resembled an enforcement action executed as a part of focused deterrence (or “lever-pulling”) in the aftermath of a group-involved homicide, but applied consistently and relentlessly to top offenders in 10 violent crime hotspots on the Southside of the city and 5-6 hotspots throughout the rest of the city, based on gun crime density.

This operation provided for law enforcement directed toward the most violent individuals, with advance notice that their involvement has earned them special attention. The John Finn Institute, acting as the city’s research partner, assessed different risk prediction models to optimize the accuracy of the top offender list and, in addition, will update the list with greater frequency to take timely account of offenders’ status and field intelligence. These procedures allowed the SPD to direct the most appropriate enforcement actions with greater focus.