FY 2022 Massachusetts SJS Program

The Massachusetts SAC is applying for funding of a core capacity-building project under the 2022 State Justice Statistics (SJS) program. The MA SAC collects Electronic Control Weapon (ECW) data from MA law enforcement agencies and prepares and publishes an annual ECW report, which is disseminated in PDF format. The SAC will use funds towards the creation of a public-facing ECW Tableau dashboard to be embedded on the Mass.gov website. An ECW dashboard would enhance the SAC’s capability to analyze data and prepare and disseminate reports electronically to agency partners, the public, and other stakeholders. The first phase of the project involves strategic planning and relationship building associated with constructing a public-facing dashboard. The SAC will leverage existing relationships with Tableau and research and technology contacts at other MA agencies that have published their own dashboards. Securing server space and receiving executive approval will occur during this phase. The second phase of the project involves the design, creation of, and implementation of an ECW Dashboard. Phase II includes connecting data sources, designing visualizations, constructing dashboards, and performance testing before going live with the dashboard. An ECW dashboard would allow for analysis and presentation of data and findings through visualizations that can be used internally and published via the state website. The dashboard would gather the data from 294 ECW-reporting agencies into a single interface, increasing the accessibility of the data. ECW agencies could use the dashboard to view historical data and annual trends within their department. The accessibility of a dashboard would increase the utilization of ECW data, which could improve the quality of the data as it is used more, and agencies become more invested. The SAC’s goal is to apply the knowledge, framework, and process gained from this project to implement additional public-facing and internal-facing dashboards.