In 2018, faced with a rise in homicides and a decline in clearance rates, the Chicago Police Department enlisted a team of subject matter experts to provide technical assistance, drawing on their expertise in the best practices for effective homicide investigations. With the support of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) launched a comprehensive assessment of the Department’s homicide investigation process.

The following year, PERF’s evaluation produced 89 recommendations tailored to the Department to strengthen homicide investigations. Since receiving these recommendations, CPD has made significant improvements to create an infrastructure that strengthens homicide investigations and relationships with the families of victims.

Learn more about the improvements that have been implemented in this video message from Chief of Detectives Antoinette Ursitti and Deputy Chief of Detectives Kevin Bruno. 

Read the full “Strengthening Homicide Investigations in the Chicago Police Department: A Review of CPD’s Response to Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) Observations and Recommendations” below.