Booker, Colleagues Reintroduce Bipartisan Bill to Help Improve Clearance Rates for Homicides and Gun Violence

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Kennedy (R-LA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Thom Tillis (R-NC), members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, reintroduced the bipartisan Violent Incident Clearance and Technological Investigative Methods Act (VICTIM Act), a bill to help improve the clearance rate for murders and violent gun crimes. The legislation would establish a grant program at the Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide funding to State, Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies to hire, retain, and train detectives and victim services personnel to investigate unsolved homicides and support victims. U.S. Representatives Don Bacon (R-NE-02) and Dwight Evans (D-PA-03) will introduce companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

The national clearance rate for murders – or the percentage of murder cases solved by law enforcement agencies— has been in continual decline for decades and, in recent years, has reached its lowest point. Between 2019 and 2022, murder clearance rates fell from 61 percent in 2019 to 53 percent, marking an all-time low. This means that today, almost half of murders in the United States go unsolved – leaving families with no answers, closure, or justice.

Tragically, people of color disproportionately suffer from murders and poor clearance rates: Despite comprising 13.4 percent of U.S. population, Black victims made up at least 54 percent of those murdered in 2022, and local and national reports show that cases involving Black and Hispanic victims go unsolved at substantially higher rates than those involving white victims.

The problem of low clearance rates is not just limited to homicide. For all violent crimes, the clearance rate went from almost 46 percent in 2019 to 36.7 percent in 2022, a decline that occurred in both big cities and rural communities. Failure to solve homicides and violent gun crimes deprives families of justice, erodes community trust in law enforcement, and jeopardizes the safety of our communities.

“Far too many murders in our country go unsolved, leaving families and communities shattered and without answers. This lack of justice is unacceptable, and we can and must do more,” said Senator Booker. “I am proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation that will provide law enforcement agencies with the appropriate training and resources to deliver justice to more grieving families, promote community safety, and assist victims in healing after unimaginable tragedy.”

“As crime rises in the U.S., many cases go unsolved,” said Senator Kennedy. “This true for Louisiana’s small towns and large cities alike, where local law enforcement has to do more with less. The VICTIM Act would provide law enforcement with key financial and technical support to help bring violent criminals to justice and give victims closure.”

“Gun violence and violent crime must be addressed with a holistic approach,” said U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “This bipartisan, bicameral bill will help ensure our law enforcement agencies have the resources needed to keep our communities safe, while also supporting victims and families who are rebuilding their lives in the aftermath of violent crime.”

“Far too many homicide cases go unsolved, leaving families of victims without answers or justice,” said Senator Tillis. “I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to provide the necessary resources to state and local law enforcement agencies to reduce the number of unsolved homicide cases and make our communities safer.”

“I support the VICTIM Act because it grants funding to ensure more homicide and non-fatal shooting cases can be solved,” said Representative Bacon. “Through this grant, personnel will receive improved training covering reporting and investigating. Necessary technology will allow agencies to be more effective and precise while handling these sensitive cases. This act ultimately benefits individual families, law enforcement, and Nebraska as a whole.”

“I’m proud to co-lead this bipartisan bill that would help our state and local police solve more fatal and non-fatal shooting cases. This would be a huge win for public safety in Philadelphia and across the country – district attorneys can’t bring cases that don’t reach them, so this would help make our neighborhoods safer,” said Representative Evans. “As someone who has pushed for help for victims of gun violence, I’m also very pleased that this bill would provide victims and family members with mental health resources and assistance with shelter, wage, and relocation costs.”

Specifically, the Violent Incident Clearance and Technological Investigative Methods Act, or the VICTIM Act, will be used to improve clearance rates for homicides and violent gun crimes by allocating funds for:

1. Hiring and retaining detectives and evidence-processing personnel to investigate and solve, homicides and violent gun crimes;
2. Acquiring, upgrading, or replacing investigative, evidence-processing, or forensic testing technology or equipment;
3. Training detectives and personnel in effective procedures and techniques;
4. Developing evidence-based practices to improve clearance rates; and,
5. Ensuring victims and family members of homicide victims receive mental health treatment, grief counseling, relocation support, emergency shelter, and transportation.

The bill would require grantees to report their use of the funds and how it affected clearance rates to the DOJ. Additionally, the National Institute of Justice will conduct periodic evaluations of the grant programs to identify practices and procedures that successfully improved clearance rates for homicides and have potential to be scaled nationally. All reports and data collected from individual grant recipients, will be compiled by the DOJ and provided to Congress.

The VICTIM Act is endorsed by the following organizations: Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), Major County Chiefs Association (MCCA), Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA), Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies (ASCIA), the Niskanen Center, and Arnold Ventures.

“Homicide cases can be very difficult to clear—and violent firearms-related cases can be even more so,” said Patrick Yoes, FOP National President. “Closing these types of crimes requires diligence, manpower, and a sustained investigative effort. Given the limited resources of law enforcement agencies, it’s important to provide the significant, dedicated resources that clearing these crimes requires, especially given their oftentimes heinous nature. The resources the VICTIM Act would provide would improve the ability of law enforcement agencies to punish the perpetrators of these crimes, provide justice for the victims and their families, and grant peace of mind for communities and the dedicated law enforcement officers that serve them. When we can clear more crimes like these, our communities are safer places to live and work.”

A high clearance rate is something every law enforcement agency strives to achieve,” said Chief Eddie Garcia, MCCA President. “Recognizing the challenges our profession faces such as understaffing and technological advancements, the Major Cities Chiefs Association was proud to work collaboratively with Senators Booker and Kennedy to produce a bipartisan bill that will assist local law enforcement agencies augment, implement and administer programs and technologies to increase clearance rates for homicides and firearm related violent crimes.”

“The Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA) is proud to support the VICTIM Act and thanks Senators Booker and Kennedy for their leadership on this important legislation, which will provide law enforcement agencies with the necessary tools and resources to investigate and solve violent crimes,” said Megan Noland, MSCA Executive Director. “The new resources this legislation would provide will assist agencies across the country with hiring and training investigative personnel while acquiring necessary investigative technology and forensic equipment to keep our communities safe.  We stand ready to support all efforts to advance this important bill.”

“Building capacity across state and local law enforcement agencies to investigate violent crime is an important priority,” said Drew Evans, ASCIA President. “The Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies (ASCIA) appreciates Senators Kennedy and Booker for introducing the VICTIM Act, which would provide new resources to help agencies strengthen their abilities to efficiently, fairly, and accurately analyze forensic evidence, investigate, and solve violent crimes.”

“Unsolved violent crimes lead to tremendous suffering for families across America. We’re grateful for Senator Booker’s leadership in sponsoring the VICTIM Act, which will help put an end to criminal impunity and protect our most vulnerable communities,” said Greg Newburn, Director of Criminal Justice at the Niskanen Center. 

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

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