The city of Shawnee, Kansas, is a suburban community on the western edge of the Kansas City Metropolitan area. The Shawnee Police Department (SPD) employs 85 sworn officers and 22 civilians and serves a population of 62,290 residents.1 Shawnee has typically experienced relatively low crime rates; however, between 2008 and 2010, the city experienced a 22 percent increase in violent crime at a time when violent crime rates in the United States dropped by 14 percent.2 Traffic crashes have also been a perennial concern for SPD. In 2002, the SPD formed a Traffic Safety Unit (TSU) specifically tasked to investigate crashes and enforce traffic violations. Since the formation of the unit, the number of automobile crashes has trended steadily downward, but persistent hotspots of traffic problems continue to exist. Based on the combination of traffic problems and violent crime, SPD explored the implementation of Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety (DDACTS) in its community.
