New Resource: “Mock Case Review” Video for Violence Reduction Councils
The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions at the Bloomberg School of Public Health has released a new video that simulates the deliberations of a Violence Reduction Council's case review process.
Communities considering creating a Violence Reduction Council (VRC) have a new resource to see how the process plays out. The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions at the Bloomberg School of Public Health has released a new video that simulates the deliberations of a VRC's case review process.
This video begins with an overview of VRCs and offers a realistic, scripted walkthrough of how stakeholders might examine a shooting death from multiple angles: criminal justice, community services, neighborhood watch, and more, and collaboratively develop prevention-focused recommendations.
Why This Video Matters
- Training & capacity building: The video serves as a practical training tool for new VRC members, agency partners, or community stakeholders who are unfamiliar with the review meeting format.
- Transparency and clarity: By showing a hypothetical case in action, it demystifies the review process — how cases are discussed, what kinds of information are shared, what questions get asked, and how analysis leads to recommendations.
- Discussion prompt: The video can be used in workshops, meetings, or webinars to prompt dialogue on how local data, practices, or interagency coordination might differ in your context.
We hope this becomes a go-to reference for communities establishing or sustaining VRC processes.
What Is a Violence Reduction Council (VRC)?
VRCs are a public-health–grounded, interdisciplinary model for violence prevention.
The VRC model builds on the first rigorous homicide review process in Milwaukee, which led to a more than 50% reduction in homicides in just two years (2005–2007) following adoption of their review infrastructure. Through replication in other cities, communities have strengthened collaboration, data capacity, and the ability to detect systemic opportunities for prevention.
Core Features of VRCs
- VRCs convene law enforcement, public health, social services, community-based organizations, prosecutors, hospitals, and others to jointly review cases of homicide and serious violence.
- Review teams share information about victim and suspect characteristics, incident circumstances, neighborhood conditions, prior service interactions, and broader local trends.
- From these reviews, the VRC identifies gaps or weaknesses in systems (e.g. in coordination, data sharing, response pathways), and develops actionable recommendations to strengthen violence prevention infrastructure.
- A smaller working group refines and prioritizes recommendations, which are then elevated to an executive committee (often composed of city leadership, agency heads, community voice) for implementation and oversight.
Getting Started: Toolkit & Support
To help communities in launching or strengthening their own VRCs, Mallory O'Brien, PhD, MS, and Cass Crifasi, PhD '14, MPH led the development of a VRC toolkit with the support of the Bloomberg American Health Initiative.
Interested communities can download the toolkit and summary guides, and request technical assistance and peer support via the project contacts.
