LeadsOnline of North Texas launches automated cartridge screening solution to speed gun crime investigations » Dallas innovates

According to the FBI, there were 362,348 gun-related crimes committed in the US in 2023 alone. In many of these cases, criminals left behind important evidence: shell casings from bullets fired at the scene. With the increased use of assault rifles and machine gun conversion devices, there has been a significant increase in the number of shots fired at crime scenes – leading to an increasingly urgent need to identify shell casings and help get shooters off the streets. .

Now, Plano and Montreal-based LeadsOnline – a provider of data, technology and intelligence tools for law enforcement agencies – has launched a new ballistics analysis tool that aims to do just that.

The tool, called IBIS ClearCase, is “a fully automated system that streamlines the triage of shell casings collected at a crime scene,” the company said. In just a few minutes, he can:

Capture exposure images and location data at the crime scene
Determine the number and caliber of firearms used in the incident
Identify ideal casings for submission to the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN) managed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)

Looking to generate ‘the most reliable leads’

ClearCase is built on the same proven algorithms used by IBIS, the world’s leading ballistic identification technology, said LeadsOnline, ensuring the ideal candidates are sent to NIBIN to then generate the most reliable leads. Based on this same technology and decades of experience, ClearCase’s Plano company sasys results are “fast, unbiased and reliable so investigators can more quickly establish and pursue leads to take crime guns and their users off the streets.” .

This innovation is necessary, the company notes, because the current process of screening casings for submission to NIBIN is “predominantly manual and depends on the availability of trained technicians.” Additionally, some shell casing cases cannot be triaged until other evidence is processed, including DNA, fingerprints and gunshot residue – which can take weeks or even months to complete.

This delay means offenders “remain at large with the ability to shoot again,” the company said.

“IBIS ClearCase addresses the challenges of modern law enforcement – more shootings and a growing volume of recovered shell casings – by providing an automated solution that generates fast, reliable investigative leads without waiting for overburdened firearms technicians to respond. perform subjective and manual analyses. ,” said Thomas Brandon, former acting director of the ATF and vice president of business development and government affairs at LeadsOnline.

The 2024 box featured 60 fired cartridge cases

An initial test of LeadsOnline’s new technology involved an active investigation stemming from a shooting in July 2024. The investigating detective had been waiting for ballistic results for nearly three months, the company said. “Within an hour, the detective ran the 60 rounds fired through ClearCase, which identified four unique firearms.” With this information in hand, he was able to begin pursuing the weapons used in the incident.

“IBIS ClearCase is designed to complement ATF’s highly successful NIBIN program by reducing delays in ballistics analysis while enabling law enforcement to obtain simple but essential answers more quickly regarding their ballistics evidence,” he said. LeadsOnline CEO Alex Finley said in a statement. “The system is easy to use and requires no specialized training, but produces immediate and reliable investigative insights so that leads can be pursued and cycles of violence interrupted. It also supports workflows to preserve trace evidence, such as DNA and fingerprints, keeping investigations moving and allowing lab technicians to focus their time on confirming hits and other critical activities.”

ClearCase is sold as an as-a-service solution for an annual fee, the company said.

Founded in 2000, LeadsOnline said it now serves more than 5,000 U.S. law enforcement agencies and global public safety organizations in nearly 80 countries. The company is headquartered in the Dallas suburb of Plano and Montreal, Quebec, Canada.