Reducing Traffic Related Officer Fatalities and Injuries through Technology Enhancement and Policy

Previous research and initiatives by the NIJ and IACP have recognized that distracted driving and vehicle speed are recognized as a serious safety concern for police officers and have contributed to these crashes. Kansas State University has partnered with Enforcement Engineering, Inc. to evaluate technology interventions and response-to-call for services policy to reduce police officers involved in fatal and serious injury crashes. The research team has partnered with six law enforcement agencies across the country allowing for differing geographic, jurisdiction demographics and agency size and technology/policy variation. These law enforcement agency partnerships will allow the research team to work closely with 3,000+ officers.

The research team will conduct the research project in two phases. Phase one involves an extensive literature, technology, and policy search in the first twelve months of the project. Additionally, the research team will conduct partner law enforcement agency site visits to begin working with local officials, conduct a technology and policy inventory, and begin developing a technology deployment plan with IT staff. The research team will used a mix-methods approach to evaluate technology interventions and response to calls for service for each partner law enforcement agency. Commercially available technology interventions will be evaluated over a one year period. Qualitative data will be collected through anonymous officer focus groups to determine effectiveness and potential disadvantages.

Evaluation of existing policy and technology intervention will be performed using a quantitative evaluation of officer crash data using a before-after analysis or cross-sectional analysis if possible. The research team will reduce and synthesize both qualitative and quantitative data through statistical modeling, charts, tables, and summarizing of focus group meetings. The research team plans to clearly explain both the advantages and disadvantages for technology intervention and policy through the data analysis.

Recommendations and future research topics will be based on the results of the data analysis and focus group meetings. As part of the research project, the research team plans to disseminate project results and recommendations through a technology transfer plan. The research team will submit to the NIJ at the conclusion of the project a final report, PowerPoint presentation, and all data collected from the project.

"Note: This project contains a research and/or development component, as defined in applicable law," and complies with Part 200 Uniform Requirements - 2 CFR 200.210(a)(14).

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