Nashville, Tennessee – January 31, 2019
Gun violence in Nashville has reached unacceptable levels, according to U.S. Attorney Don Cochran, who announced ‘Project Safe Nashville,’ the city’s largest-ever interagency effort to fight gun crime.
The effort brings together the U.S. Attorney’s office; the Mayor’s Office; the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD); the Nashville-Davidson County District Attorney’s office; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI); and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The ‘Crime Gun Unit’ of MNPD consists of six detectives and one sergeant, all current members of MNPD who have significant experience fighting gun crime and using the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN).
The unit will use NIBIN to track shell casings from weapons fired in local crimes and connect those weapons to other crimes in the area, more quickly finding patterns to investigate.
Mayor David Briley said, ‘Addressing violent crime is a major priority for my administration. Project Safe Nashville is an unparalleled interagency effort to save lives and make our city safer.’
U.S. Attorney Don Cochran said, ‘The level of gun violence is not acceptable to me or to those who stand here with me today. ‘Project Safe Nashville’ marshals unprecedented resources from the Department of Justice and the law enforcement agencies represented here today.’
According to a 2018 study by Rutgers University, when two shooting events are linked by ballistics evidence through NIBIN, 50% of the time a third shooting event will happen within 90 days.
Project Safe Nashville is budget-neutral, with overtime for the detectives being supported by a $319,000 Safe Neighborhoods grant.
The ‘Crime Gun Unit’ will work closely with the U.S. Attorney’s office and the District Attorney’s office to support investigations and court proceedings that ensue from arrests made in gun crime cases.
Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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