Indianapolis Gun Violence Project Team

Lauren Magee, PhD

Lauren A. Magee is an assistant professor at Paul H. O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IUPUI. Her research areas include public health and criminal justice. These fields investigate how social factors such as health, poverty, and neighborhood dynamics impact violence among young adults. As one of the leaders of the Indianapolis Gun Violence Project, Dr. Magee observed the rise of gun violence in Indianapolis and identified the need for 317PROGRESSION, a website to offer resources for firearm injury survivors. Dr. Magee's purpose for this site is to provide auxiliary support to firearm injury survivors.

Eric Grommon, PhD

Eric Grommon is a professor and a criminologist at the O'Neill School of IUPUI. His research areas include corrections, offender reentry, and evaluation of various policies and operations. Dr. Grommon is currently conducting research with the Indianapolis Gun Violence Project. The team focuses on collecting gun violence data around Indianapolis. As the co-founder of 317PROGRESSION, Dr. Grommon's goal for this site is to provide useful resources for all gun violence victims.

Erin Spivey, Research Assistant

Erin Spivey is a crime and intelligence analyst and currently serves as a research assistant at Paul H. O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IUPUI. Her experience includes work as an intelligence analyst for the Indiana Intelligence Fusion Center, crime analyst with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, and intelligence analyst with the Indiana Crime Guns Task Force, a collaboration between state and federal law enforcement agencies focused on addressing violent crime related to illegal possession of firearms. Erin joined the Indianapolis Gun Violence Project in September 2022 and has assisted in data collection and identifying emerging trends and intelligence gaps related to shootings throughout the city.

Amarpreet Kaur, Research Assistant

Amarpreet Kaur is a completing her master of science in Criminal Justice at O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IUPUI. Amarpreet joined the Indianapolis Gun Violence project in March 2022. She has assisted in data collection on gun violence in Indianapolis and is the co-author of projects related to vehicular and gas station shootings. Amarpreet also took the lead in the creation of 317progression website for gun shot victims in Indianapolis city.

Jara Deanne Crawford, Research Assistant

Jara Crawfor is a MD/MPH student at Indiana University and plans to pursue a career as an OB/GYN after medical school. She is highly interested in the intersection of health and gun violence and exploring ways to engage in harm reduction and injury prevention. She joined the Indianapolis Gun Violence project team in March 2022. She has assisted in projects related to vehicular shootings and gun violence at local apartment complexes, in addition to contributing to data collection and presentation efforts.

Mary Allison, Research Associate (Alumna)

Mary Allison is an Economic Development Consultant at Thomas P. Miller & Associates. Mary has assisted in the foundation of Indianapolis Gun Violence Project in year 2020. While managing the gun violence database from 2020 to 2021, Mary has also produced many reports that identify various trends and variables of shootings in Indianapolis. Her efforts towards IGVP are greatly appreciated by the team!

Alex Van Dyke, Research Assistant (Alumni)

Alex Van Dyke completed his masters of public affairs in Concentration in Homeland Security and Emergency Management at IUPUI. He currently works as a Strategic Intelligence Analyst with Ohio Narcotic Intelligence Center at the Ohio Department of Public Safety. Alex joined the Indianapolis Gun Violence Project in July 2021. He has assisted in many research projects that provided various clarifications to why Gun Violence has been in increase. While identifying many variables, Alex assisted in managing the database from the past twelve months. He is also the lead author of Cease Fire Indianapolis report, Female Shooting Victimization report.