The National Crime Gun Intelligence Center Initiative

What is a Crime Gun Intelligence Center (CGIC)?

CGICs are an interagency collaboration focused on the immediate collection, management, and analysis of crime gun evidence, such as shell casings, in real time, in an effort to identify shooters, disrupt criminal activity, and to prevent future violence. CGICs rely on an ongoing collaboration between the ATF, local police department, the local crime laboratory, probation and parole, local police gang units, prosecuting attorneys, U.S. Attorney’s Office, crime analysts, community groups, and academic organizations.

The primary outcome of a CGIC is the identification of armed violent offenders for investigation and prosecution. Other outcomes include the identification of crime gun sources, efficient resource allocation, providing decision makers with the most accurate crime data available, and increasing case closure rates, public safety, and the prevention of violent crime committed with firearms.

This program is based on the ATF Governing Board’s CGIC best practices, coupled with proactive law enforcement practices that provide timely ballistics and other relevant real-time investigative leads in an effort to identify shooters, particularly those worthy of state and/or federal prosecution. Paired with effective evidenced-based interventions such as Focused Deterrence and Hotspot Policing, these initiatives aim to decrease the incidences of gun crime; improve gun crime investigation, clearance rates, and prosecutorial outcomes; and increase public trust and confidence in law enforcement through effective community engagement.

To view the ATF Governing Board’s CGIC Best Practices Guide, click here.

To view a one-pager on the CGIC concept, click here.

For more information, go to the CGIC Concept page.

Crime Gun Intelligence Center Initiative — The evolution of NIBIN and CGIC as an investigative tool to target gun crimes by using real-time forensic ballistic information to connect gunshot incidents.