Originally called, Place Network Investigations, or PNI, this initiative is an emerging violence reduction strategy that specifically targets street gun violence. The strategy is founded on evidence in crime science that shows crime is concentrated, with a small number of offenders, victims, and places accounting for a disproportionate amount of criminal activity. PNI seeks to dismantle the entire criminal operation within a hotspot by identifying, investigating, and intervening against crime place networks.
City of Tucson initially became involved in PNI when the National Policing Institute (NPI), with funding from Arnold Ventures, partnered with six jurisdictions nationwide to implement PNI and evaluate the strategy in a process and outcome evaluation. Tucson is one of the six jurisdictions currently implementing PNI as part of the nationwide evaluation. When TPD agreed to join the research project in late 2020, it committed to giving the NPI research team complete access to document the implementation process, sharing data with the research team, developing PNI investigative teams, developing and hosting PNI Board meetings, and implementing initiatives to disrupt crime place networks in three PNI sites. In the process, TPD’s Analysis Division reports stunning reductions in violence at the three current PNI sites. Tucson’s commitment to enhancing the evidence base of PNI places the COT at the forefront of violence reduction efforts nationally.
TPD’s Analysis Division sent all gun-involved calls for service and incident data to the NPI research team for analysis of potential sites for PNI efforts. The NPI research team produced seven potential PNI sites that showed chronic and persistent gun violence and also had enough statistical power to detect changes in crime post-intervention. The final three PNI sites to be included in the research project were: The Analysis Division
conducted a quantitative and qualitative assessment of all seven potential sites to produce recommendations for three sites that appeared to be the best fit for the intervention. As part of the qualitative assessment, Analysis Division analysts met with command staff, investigators, and patrol officers in all four divisions to discuss place dynamics in the seven sites. Analysts also conducted site tours to observe the crime sites and brainstorm relevant situational crime prevention techniques that could be deployed to disrupt place network components. The Analysis Division recommended the following sites as the final locations for the PNI evaluation in April 2021:
- 6200 S. Campbell Ave., Ward 5, (Campbell/Bilby)
- E. Grant Road and North Alvernon Way, Ward 3 bordering Ward 6, (Grant/Alvernon)
- E. 22ⁿᵈ Street and South Prudence Road, Ward 4 bordering Ward 2, (22nd/Prudence)
From its inception through July 2023, VIVA efforts demonstrated a substantial reduction in gun violence at the initial 3 locations: Grant Road/Alvernon Way - 75% reduction, Campbell Avenue/Bilby Road - 80% reduction, 22nd Street/Prudence Road - 77% reduction.
In the summer of 2024, the PNI Board, which is comprised of 60-75 individuals representing diverse COT departments, Mayor and Council Offices, other criminal justice organizations, local non-profits, and community groups, went through a rebranding process as we transitioned from a pilot program to a permanent program and to define it as a strategy unique to Tucson. At this time the name board renamed the program from PNI to VIVA, Violence Interruption and Vitalization Action. While the goals and approach have not changed, VIVA has been adopted to better reflect the thoughtful and holistic nature of these endeavors.
Additionally, in October 2024, a fourth VIVA location was added: Fort Lowell Road between Oracle and Mountain, also known as the Fort Lowell Corridor. This location is unique in that it encompasses several blocks along Fort Lowell Road. The other three locations are centered around apartment complexes or one intersection that were feeding into the crime seen at those sites. The idea being a corridor approach was understanding that working at one intersection alone would only push the problem to the next intersection. Addressing the corridor as a whole will allow the team to disrupt the gun violence and crime in the entire area.
Read the full report referencing the history.