Violent Crime Reduction Self-Assessment Tool

Welcome to the Violent Crime Reduction Self-Assessment. The purpose of this self-assessment tool is to help the responding agency identify areas in which it might want to increase its violent crime reduction capacities and capabilities. The tool can also serve as a mechanism for communication with training and technical assistance (TTA) providers that can aid the agency in reaching its desired goals. This tool leverages the knowledge and information captured in the Major Cities Chiefs Association’s Violent Crime Reduction Operations Guide, AEquitas’s companion Prosecutors' Guide for Reducing Violence and Building Safer Communities, and the lessons learned through the National Public Safety Partnership (PSP) and other Bureau of Justice Assistance training and technical assistance (TTA) programs.

It is not intended to be an audit, a value judgment, or a mechanism to grade or evaluate the responding agency, nor is it intended to be prescriptive of what capacities or capabilities an agency should develop. Rather, the tool is meant to help an agency identify a continuum of capacity and serve as a means for that agency to identify for itself areas in which it may want to improve and build capacity. This is because the needs and organization of each agency are unique to the community it serves. As such, the level and capacity that one agency needs can be very different from an agency in a different community. For example, some agencies may need only a basic/fundamental capacity in one of the areas presented, and others may require advanced capabilities.

With this tool, the responsibility for identifying areas in which the agency would like to improve and needs for additional training or technical assistance lies with the responding agency, and the tool serves as a mechanism to communicate these potential needs with the agency and TTA providers. The result of the survey should be a picture of the agency’s most targeted needs, with the answers to the questions providing specificity to help understand the current status of the organization.

This tool is divided into the eight PSP focus areas:

It also includes five additional areas of interest, highlighted in the VCROG as violent crime reduction critical elements or areas of interest for law enforcement/PSP agencies.

If you have already received an account, please feel free to select the login button to begin the assessment. If you are interested in completing the assessment but have not received an account, please select the Request Account button and complete the required fields.