Service Details
Evidence-Based Strategy & Evaluation
Strategy Development
Actionable Outcomes
Sentinel Strategies Group partners with law enforcement agencies and local governments to design and implement evidence-based crime reduction strategies and then assists them in rigorously evaluating their impact. This continuous improvement cycle ensures that strategies are adaptable to local conditions and resource constraints while remaining grounded in research and science.
- Reduced crime through scientifically validated interventions.
- Data-driven results tied to measurable outcomes.
- Enhanced organizational transparency and public trust.
Service Details
Case Study - The Dallas Crime Plan
01
Partnership Model
In early 2021, when incoming Dallas police chief Eddie Garcia wanted an evidence-based strategic plan to reduce rising violent crime in the nation's 9th largest city, he partnered with members of our team to design, implement, and evaluate a series of integrated, multi-disciplinary, science-backed strategies to reduce violent street crime. Our team partnered with DPD in the longest running effort of its kind in any U.S. city.
02
Evidence-Backed Strategies
The Dallas Violent Crime Reduction Plan was not based on novel, untested strategies. Rather, the strategies that comprise the plan had all been tested and evaluated many times in other cities, which is why we were confident they would work. The innovation of the Dallas Crime Plan is that we put the three best strategies together in a single strategic plan, sequenced them in a deliberate manner, and then relentlessly evaluated their effects and worked together with our agency partners to make continual improvements along the way. The result was science in action.
03
A Replicable Strategic Plan
Based on the early successes of the Dallas Crime Plan, additional cities implemented the model, which includes a hot spots policing strategy, a multi-disciplinary problem-oriented, place-based policing strategy (or PNI), and a focused deterrence strategy for high-risk repeat offenders. Tacoma, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, and most recently, Fort Worth, have all realized the benefits of following an evidence-based approach to violent crime reduction while working with members of our team.
04
Results
Violent crime reductions in Dallas and other partner cities have ranged from 15-25% in the first two to three years following implementation of the recommended evidence-based strategies, and even more in crime-prone hot spots. Thankfully, since 2024, the nation has seen a broad-based reduction in violent crime, which is a complex social problem driven by multiple contributing factors. The crime reduction strategies carefully implemented and evaluated in Dallas and elsewhere were a significant contributing factor in reversing the trend of rising violent crime in Dallas, Tacoma, San Antonio, and other cities that adopted them. Please see the Resources page below for links to our public reports, peer-reviewed journal articles, and additional information on the crime reduction benefits of the evidence-based policing strategies utilized by Dallas and our other partner cities.
Strategy, Implementation, & Evaluation
Law enforcement agencies and city governments that work with Sentinel Strategies Group get a credible partner with a proven track record of success and over 25 years of experience working across communities of all sizes and types. We help cities reduce crime by implementing scientifically-defensible approaches to public safety and relentlessly evaluating their impacts. This evidence-based approach helps ensure agency buy-in, increase community trust, and secure the support of city leadership and elected officials.