The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is working with University of Chicago researchers to predict and prevent abusing police behavior. The Charlotte Observer provides an informative update on the initiative:

[CMPD Chief Kerr] Putney appears on board.

“This gives us a more holistic picture,” he says. We remain on the cutting edge trying to make sure we are able to weed out bad behavior but we’ve cut down on false positives. You don’t want to give the impression that officers are doing something wrong when they really aren’t.”

Police already are considering a real-life benefit from the partnership. As of now, CMPD sends two officers to most domestic abuse calls. But based on how many of those incidents end up in a fight, Putney says the department may soon add a third or fourth officers in hopes of deescalating the situation from the start.

The goal is to make all sides safer, not winning the fight, Putney says. “We hope we don’t have the fight at all.”