Minneapolis police data guru recognized by national think tank

Minneapolis police Sgt. Jeff Egge, who has shepherded the department's crime-analysis operation, has been inducted into the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy's (CEBCP) hall of fame.

The think tank, based at George Mason University in Washington, D.C., recognized Egge at a symposium last week. Past honorees include Tony Bouza, who served as police chief in Minneapolis from 1980 to 1989, and former Philadelphia and Washington top cop Charles Ramsey.

"Sgt. Egge has played a key role in integrating crime analysis into the regular management of the MPD, incorporating evidence-based policing principles into the agency's business plan, and carrying out other strategic analyses to guide agency policy and reorganization," the center said in a statement on its website. It also credited Egge with pioneering a "case of place" approach at the department that looked at the underlying reasons for why gun crime occurred more often in certain areas.

The CEBCP's mission is "to make scientific research a key component in decisions about crime and justice policies," according to its website.

Also inducted this year was Michael Newman, a detective inspector with the Queensland (Australia) Police Force.

Egge, who first took over the department's Crime Analysis Unit in 2007, has collaborated with George Mason researchers on several studies, focusing on topics such as gun violence, crime hot spots and police legitimacy. Still, he said in a statement that the honor came as a surprise.

"Amid the daily chaos of calls, crimes, and conflict, it is critical for police leadership to have a solid foundation of factual knowledge from systematic truth," his statement said. "Research has been easily discarded because it's too complex and time consuming. But we should never lose sight of the bigger picture and what we can build and achieve with data and science."