NCJ Number
138619
Date Published
1990
Length
250 pages
Annotation
This report considers the implementation, utilization, and replication of the Homicide Information and Tracking System (HITS), a model homicide investigation resource and tool supported by 274 law enforcement agencies in Washington State, and provides 17 guidelines for developing and implementing a HITS model in jurisdictions comparable to or smaller than Washington State in the annual number of murders.
Abstract
A HITS form is used to collect comprehensive, detailed information on 467 items that tap the essential characteristics of a murder and its investigation. The most important feature of the relational-based data management system that operates HITS is its ad hoc interactive search capability. A homicide investigator can design queries from the 467 fields of information on the HITS form or from the information contained in other HITS data files. HITS has received about 200 requests for investigative assistance in murder cases since the summer of 1988. Information was provided that facilitated the investigation in almost one-half of the queries. A case example is cited that illustrates the efficacy of HITS in facilitating coordinated homicide investigations. 14 tables and 11 appendixes