The Leon County Sheriff’s Office is preparing a second edition of its groundbreaking Anatomy of a Homicide project. The upcoming version will include expanded data classifications.
The first Anatomy of a Homicide project looked at 141 homicides in Tallahassee-Leon County from 2015 through 2020. It focused primarily on street violence but omitted many other cases, such as domestic violence. The next project underway is looking at cases from 2021 through 2025.
The new report will expand its data collection by examining non-fatal shootings with injuries, domestic violence incidents, and incidents where the suspect was deemed incompetent. It will also consider justifiable homicide.
Sara Bourdeau is the executive director of LCSO’s research division.
“We want to look at not just the demographics of these people, not just the locations and where this is occurring but the circumstances that are affecting them and the causes of this violence in our community," Bourdeau said. "And we’re committed not just to produce reports and not just to put statistics out but to find solutions and make our society better for everybody.”
The first report was widely praised but drew some criticism for omitting other types of violent crimes that lead to homicide, such as intimate partner violence.
Dixie Rocker is the research and planning administrator for the sheriff’s research division. She says LCSO puts a lot of resources into preventing violence or correcting behavior.
“But if those choices are not being made based off of evidence, then they’re not going to be successful," said Rocker. "And so, part of this project is to ensure its success. And then relaying all of that to the public and being very transparent about, ‘Here’s this data.’ Because the Leon County Sheriff’s Office serves the public, right? We are here to create a safer community for everybody. And the best way to do that is to do it with evidence-based practices. And that’s really the overall goal here.”
The second Anatomy of a Homicide project is expected to be published in January.
