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By the field, for the field
The Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC) program provides critical and tailored technical assistance resources to state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies on a wide variety of topics. It features a “by the field, for the field” approach while delivering individualized technical assistance using leading experts in a range of public safety, crime reduction, and community policing topics. CRI-TAC is a public service and offered at no-cost to your agency.
- "The assistance was timely, forward thinking, progressive, and deeply appreciated."
- Feedback received through the CRI-TAC Customer Satisfaction Survey
Request Technical Assistance
To help us best serve you, please include the following information: 1) Name of your agency 2) Number of sworn officers 3) Size of population served 4) Topic and service requested 5) Contact information
If you wish to contact the COPS Office Collaborative Reform Initiative team, please email TechnicalAssistance@usdoj.gov or call the COPS Office Response Center at 1-800-421-6770.
"This is not similar to other federal programs that bog down [an agency] in paperwork and bureaucracy.
This is truly a "where the rubber meets the road" program that provides inputs and guidance/supports where it is locally needed and necessary."
- Feedback received through the CRI-TAC Customer Satisfaction Survey
Areas of Assistance
Technical assistance encompasses a host of methods including training, peer-to-peer consultation, analysis, coaching, and strategic planning. Participating agencies identify areas of assistance to best suit their local needs, which may include the following:
- Active Threat Response (see example case study)
- Addressing Elder Abuse
- Addressing Gangs
- Addressing Hate Crimes
- Addressing Human Trafficking
- Addressing Interpersonal Violence
- Agency and Officer Safety and Wellness (see example case study)
- Community Engagement
- Crime Analysis (see example case study)
- Crisis Intervention (see example case study)
- De-escalation (see example case study)
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
- Drug-related Crime
- Duty to Intervene/Peer Intervention
- Evidence-Based Policing
- Focused Deterrence
- Gun Violence Reduction and Prevention
- Implicit Bias
- Intelligence and Information Sharing
- Interview and Interrogation
- Leadership
- Management and Supervision
- Mass Demonstration Response (see example case study)
- Mass Violence Response
- Mentoring
- Procedural Justice
- Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention (see example case study)
- Report Writing
- School and Campus Safety (see example case study)
- Shared Service Models
- Strategic Partnerships
- Strategic Planning
- Technology
- Traffic Safety
- Unhoused Populations
- Unmanned Aerial Systems
- Violent Crime Reduction and Prevention
- Youth Engagement
In addition to the General Topics, areas include:
- Agency and Officer Safety and Wellness
- Border Security
- Civil Process
- Corrections/Jail Operations
- Court Security
- Interdiction Teams
- Prisoner Transport
- Technology
Smaller and Rural Agency Initiative
CRI-TAC is launching a renewed focus on assisting smaller and rural law enforcement agencies. Smaller and rural agencies will continue to have access to the no-cost training and technical assistance that CRI-TAC is known for, but now CRI-TAC will provide training and technical assistance opportunities geared for the unique challenges confronting smaller and rural policing agencies. Through the Smaller and Rural Agency Initiative, agencies will be able to participate in training programs addressing areas such as active assailant response, multi-jurisdictional coordination, community partnerships, resource allocation, addressing hate crimes, report writing, duty to intervene, and crash re-construction.
Mass Demonstrations Response: Virtual Training for Campus Agencies
In response to the continued risk of mass demonstrations across the United States, CRI-TAC is partnering with the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators to deliver no-cost, virtual training related to planning for and responding to mass demonstrations on college campuses. Starting Tuesday, July 30, CRI-TAC will host one-hour, bi-weekly webinars for college campus agencies to hear expert recommendations. These webinars are open to all college campus police leaders and administrators. To register for upcoming webinars (8/27, 9/10, 9/20, 9/24) or view previous recordings, please visit https://www.iaclea.org/mass-demonstrations-response-virtual-training-for-campus-agencies.
Services
CRI-TAC staff will work with you to provide a customized solution. Types of services the CRI-TAC can provide include:
- Resource Referral
Toolkits, reports, and other relevant publications - Web-based Training
Recorded webinars and live online training - In-person Training
Existing and customized on-site training - Virtual Mentoring
Personnel from the requesting agency will be connected with subject matter experts to share information and promising practices via phone or video conference call. - Meeting Facilitation
Subject matter experts will assist in facilitating meetings among agency members and other public and private sector stakeholders - Mass Demonstration Rapid Response Team (MDRRT)
Provides resources, tools, strategies, and information to problem-solve and maximize communications between the agency and community when faced with a mass demonstration
"The subject matter experts were the best in the nation! Fantastic instructors, flexible and responsive.
They bring years of experience to the table and were fantastic resources."
- Feedback received through the CRI-TAC Customer Satisfaction Survey
Trainings
CRI-TAC is pleased to offer the following CRI-TAC developed trainings upon request:
- Take Action: Make the R.I.G.H.T. Choice and Intervene trains, encourages, and empowers law enforcement personnel to actively intervene when needed to prevent colleagues from committing policy or procedure mistakes or unprofessional, unethical, or criminal conduct. Intervening is critical for officer safety and wellness and community trust. This curriculum was developed for law enforcement officers of all ranks and experience, including basic entry-level recruits. This training can be delivered as an 8 hour direct or a 16 hour train the trainer.
- Hate Crimes: Recognition and Reporting enhances law enforcement’s response and the uniform patrol officer’s ability to recognize and report a hate crime. This includes addressing victim needs, reporting incidents, and building community trust. This curriculum was developed primarily for uniformed law enforcement officers (e.g., police, sheriff deputies, troopers, agents, etc.) and first line supervisors. This training can be delivered as an 8 hour direct or a 16 hour train the trainer.
- Hate Crime Investigations provides step-by-step methods for conducting a thorough hate/bias crime investigation to ensure accurate reporting and successful prosecution. The training provides specific strategies that effectively support victims and engage communities in the aftermath of a hate crime or hate incident. The curriculum was developed primarily for law enforcement personnel with investigatory responsibility (e.g., police, sheriff deputies, troopers, agents), investigators, and local prosecutors. This training is delivered as an 8 hour direct training.
- Volunteer Engagement for American Indian and Alaska Native Missing Person Cases prepares and introduces the basic elements and practices for creating a volunteer engagement program to support law enforcement and communities in responding to emergent missing person cases. This training program includes two components: (1) Leadership Kick-Off Meeting is a 90-minute briefing that assists in preparing and gaining agency buy-in for the 8-hour volunteer engagement program training. This briefing is designed to be delivered virtually or in person. (2) Volunteer Engagement for American Indian and Alaska Native Missing Person Cases is an 8-hour training that introduces the practices and strategy for developing, implementing, and maintaining a volunteer engagement program. This training can be delivered in person or virtually.
These trainings are provided at no cost to your agency through CRI-TAC. To request a training, please submit a request.
CRI-TAC Resources
- CRI-TAC Library of Resources is a compilation of more than 300 resources shared by the field, for the field to assist in informing your agency response to COVID-19.
- Law Enforcement and COVID-19 is a 28-page supplemental guide to the May Police Chief magazine that provides a snapshot of officer safety and wellness resources related to COVID-19.
- Law Enforcement Officer Exposure to COVID-19 provides guidance in the event officers are exposed to COVID-19.
- HIPAA and Law Enforcement: COVID-19 Pandemic Considerations breaks down the important information you need to know regarding the proper and legal disclosure to law enforcement of protected health information.
- Considerations for Law Enforcement Encountering COVID-19-Related Deaths provides guidance to prepare officers for the unfortunate situation of encountering a COVID-19-related unattended death.
- Law Enforcement Officer Sickness with COVID-19 provides guidance in the event officers contract COVID-19.
- Officer Wellness and Resiliency in COVID provides guidance on officer mental and physical wellness.
- Line of Duty Deaths Due to COVID-19 provides a brief analysis of line of duty deaths in 2020, specific to COVID-19.
- COVID-19 Field Feature: Pivoting to a COVID-19 Response in the Greater Houston Region describes the measures enacted by the Montana Law Enforcement Academy (MLEA) in order to continue to provide law enforcement, corrections/detention, public safety communicator, and probation and parole training while keeping its students and staff safe.
- COVID-19 Field Feature: Keeping Montana Officers Trained During a Pandemic describes the measures taken to manage public health and critical infrastructure during the pandemic by the local partnerships in which Houston’s law enforcement community participates, including a regional supply chain group.
CRI-TAC Metrics
| Status | # Sites |
|---|---|
| Technical Assistance In Progress | 62 |
| Technical Assistance Completed | 854 |
| Total | 916 |
Map of CRI-TAC Sites
FAQs
All requests must be received from the chief executive of a law enforcement agency or with expressed authorization from the chief executive of the law enforcement agency. Requesting agencies do not need to be a member of the IACP or any partnering organization to be considered for technical assistance services. Requesting agencies should be from a state, local, county, tribal, campus, or territorial law enforcement agency.
Are other services provided beyond those already described?
The CRI-TAC understands that each technical assistance request is unique and are open to exploring other services should specific needs arise. Please note this is not a grant program and certain costs cannot be supported through CRI-TAC project to include agency personnel and equipment needs.
What happens after I submit a request?
- Upon receipt, CRI-TAC staff will contact you to schedule a screening call, discuss the process, and obtain additional pertinent information.
- From there, an intake call is scheduled with CRI-TAC staff and partners. This call gives you the opportunity to discuss your technical assistance needs in detail including your vision for the goals and outcomes of the technical assistance.
- Post intake, we will develop a formal technical assistance request for review and approval.
- Once your request is approved, we will develop a technical assistance work plan. This work plan includes a detailed description of the technical assistance, SMEs, and staff assigned to your project. The work plan is subject to your review, input, and approval before we move forward to begin delivering technical assistance.
- Upon your approval of the work plan, we will initiate the technical assistance delivery. Throughout delivery, we will continue to ensure we are meeting your needs with regular communication.
Partnering Organizations
"The staff is outstanding and goes above and beyond for the local and county agencies they serve. They truly understand their market and their "customers" and have made this experience quite enjoyable!"
- Feedback received through the CRI-TAC Customer Satisfaction Survey
For any press inquiries, please contact the COPS Office Communications Division at (202) 514-9079 or cops.office.public.affairs@usdoj.gov
