CAP Index Expands Research & Innovation Team

CAP Index, the foremost authority in crime risk forecasting, is pleased to announce the addition of two members to its newly established Research & Innovation Division. Emily Blackburn and Christy VanMeter have joined Dr. Grant Drawve to round out the team.  

Dr. Grant Drawve, PhD – VP, Research & Innovation

Grant has over a decade of experience researching how place matters and working with practitioners to prevent and mitigate risk. He has over 50+ publications and has received numerous local, state, and federal awards to study public safety issues. He previously led the Crime & Security Data Analytics Lab at the University of Arkansas.

Emily Blackburn – Sr. Public Safety Analyst

Emily has over 20 years of experience in state and local law enforcement and has been a certified law enforcement analyst (CLEA) by the IACA since 2011. Emily’s expertise centers around crime, geospatial analysis, and police technology. She was a 2021 ESRI Special Achievement in GIS award winner for a suite of dashboards she and her team made for the City of St. Louis Police Department.

Christy VanMeter – Jr. Public Safety Analyst

Christy began her career as a crime analyst with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Christy earned her Bachelor of Arts in Administration of Justice and a Master of Arts in Criminology and Criminal Justice with an emphasis in Crime Analysis and Geography & Crime from SIU Carbondale. She recently earned her second graduate degree, a Master of Science in Data Science and Analytic Storytelling from Truman State University.