One-line solution summary:
OSS provides alternative police response to auto accidents.
Pitch your solution.
Auto accidents are non-violent, civil incidents which, by law, require police response. OSS responds to car accidents on behalf of police. OSS reduces police interaction with the public. For each call serviced by OSS, a police department saves over $200 and has 2.5 man hours available for redeployment to higher priority calls for service. Fewer opportunities for law enforcement to interact with the public, especially on low priority calls such as auto accidents, leads to decreased opportunities for biased interactions with police and increased opportunities for racial equity in policing.
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
Society is re-evalutating the role of police in our everyday lives. Most police departments are overloaded with calls for service. Many of these calls are nonviolent, low priority, calls to resolve civil matters such as car accidents.
The largest venue for public interaction with police originates from traffic stops and auto accidents. Auto accidents are almost exclusively civil matters.
By re-prioritizing the use of police manpower for high level, high priority calls for service, primarily for violent or criminal matters, we can reduce unnecessary police interaction with the public.
What is your solution?
OSS "unbundles" policing. Our civilian Agents respond to nonviolent, civil calls for service on behalf of police departments. We remove law enforcement from responding to low priority calls for service and handle these calls with civilians in a civil manner.
OSS has formed a public-private partnership with police departments to respond to car accidents on behalf of police. When parties call 911 for a car accident, a civilian OSS Agent is dispatched by police. Using proprietary tech (app), the OSS Agent promptly completes the entire crash investigation and submits all required documents (accident / crash report) to police & parties to the accident. Law enforcement reviews the OSS Agent report to comply with state laws. There is no officer interaction with parties for this exclusively civil matter.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
OSS provides a 4x civic impact:
Law Enforcement benefits by reducing public interaction & redeploying officers to higher priority, criminal calls for service.
City Administration benefits by offering a new, citizen centric, civil service (funded from law enforcement budget)
Citizen Motorists benefit from our prompt, citizen-centric response. Motorists do not engage with police and are able to continue with their day after the OSS investigation process. OSS processing times are over 50% faster than traditional police processing times.
Insurance carriers benefit from having access to data faster. Carriers are able to serve their insureds faster than traditional means.
Finally - OSS Agents are civilians and have no citation authority or arrest powers. OSS Agents have a sole mission to investigate and document the scene of the civil accident & return the parties to their normal day as quickly as possible. Race, creed, nationality, etc. are non-factors for OSS Agents and police intervention is only required on a criminal (DUI / DWI) accident.
Which dimension of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?
Create new public safety systems that ensure racial equity and provide alternatives to harmful technologies such as biased facial recognition.Explain how the problem you are addressing, the solution you have designed, and the population you are serving align with the Challenge.
Studies show that the BIPOC population are adversely and disproportionately charged with criminal acts. Current response by police increase the opportunity for more criminal citations to this portion of society.
By responding to a civilian matter (auto accident) with civilians, OSS removes the potential for criminalization. This encourages cooperation by all parties and promotes racial equity.
What is your solution’s stage of development?
Growth: An organization with an established product, service, or business model rolled out in one or, ideally, several communities, which is poised for further growth.In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
New Orleans, LA, USAExplain why you selected this stage of development for your solution.
OSS has been operating in partnership with the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) since December 2018. We have responded to over 2,000 auto accidents, and our program has been deemed a success by all vested parties, including the Federal Monitor of the NOPD-USDOJ Consent Decree.
OSS is expanding to Baltimore, MD in 4Q 2021 and is in discussion with various metropolitan police departments around the country.
Who is the Team Lead for your solution?
Ethan Cheramie
If you have additional video content that explains your solution, provide a YouTube or Vimeo link here:
Which of the following categories best describes your solution?
A new business model or process that relies on technology to be successfulWhat makes your solution innovative?
OSS is "unbundling the police".
Because of outdated laws and societal norms, police are called on to solve too many problems faced by citizens. OSS has taken a specific, non-violent, issue (car accidents) and has applied a civilian response to assist with resolution. Most car accidents are a civil matter. They should not and do not need police intervention.
Our solution is very catalytic. It allows police to redeploy limited officer man-hours to higher priority calls for service. By focusing the right resources for the right calls for service, all parties involved receive better service and a better experience. All parties win.
Our historical performance speaks to the success of the program. Many police departments are considering our services as an alternative police response. We are seeking partners to help us grow nationally in major cities and outlying communities.
Please select the technologies currently used in your solution:
Which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals does your solution address?
Select the key characteristics of your target population.
In which states / US territories will you be operating within the next year?
In which states / US territories do you currently operate?
How many people does your solution currently serve? How many will it serve in one year? In five years?
Currently - New Orleans metro area: 1,000,000
2022 Planned - New Orleans, Baltimore, Shreveport, Atlanta, Dallas, Cincinnati - 12 million
2026 - Top 30-40 American Cities - 30 - 50 million
How are you measuring your progress toward your impact goals?
We primarily measure our direct impact and short term outcomes by the number of calls that OSS Agents handle on behalf of police departments. We then extrapolate these calls on the unit metrics provided by police to determine our overall primary impact on cost and man-hours savings.
We also measure overall citizen impact through text responses and feedback provided by motorists involved in the auto accidents we process as well as feedback from other stakeholders including law enforcement and other civic groups.
What type of organization is your solution team?
For-profit, including B-Corp or similar models
How many people work on your solution team?
Full Time - 2
Part Time - 4
How long have you been working on your solution?
4 years
How are you and your team well-positioned to deliver this solution?
Ethan Cheramie - Founder & CEO
23 year attorney; 3x founder
25 year entrepreneur & civic patron & volunteer; 15x founder
What is your approach to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive leadership team?
As we scale our leadership team, we include experts in operational areas where we may be deficient. For each market we enter, we are also developing an advisory board composed of community stakeholders and law enforcement. Finally we are contemplating various metrics to fully measure our long, medium and short term affects and social impact.
Do you primarily provide products or services directly to individuals, to other organizations, or to the government?
Government (B2G)Why are you applying to Solve?
We're making a difference in the communities in which we operate & we need the right partners to help us grow. We can use help across the entire corporate and operational spectrum including funding, operations, networking, PR / exposure, resources, human capital, etc.
In which of the following areas do you most need partners or support?
Please explain in more detail here.
Warm introductions by Solve and/or respected community leaders to police departments / police chiefs would benefit us greatly.
Support by Solve and/or respected civic groups and community leaders would provide significant traction and validation to target cities and customers.
Support by Solve and/or civic groups and patrons will also increase or profile and validate possible investment from various grant making organizations and other private capital sources.
What organizations would you like to partner with, and how would you like to partner with them?
TBD
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Prize? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
Yes, I wish to apply for this prize
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for The ASA Prize for Equitable Education? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
Yes, I wish to apply for this prize
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for The Elevate Prize for Antiracist Technology? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
Yes, I wish to apply for this prize
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for The GM Prize? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
Yes, I wish to apply for this prize
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for The HP Prize for Advancing Digital Equity? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
Yes, I wish to apply for this prize
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for the Innovation for Women Prize? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
No, I do not wish to be considered for this prize, even if the prize funder is specifically interested in my solution
Do you qualify for and would you like to be considered for The AI for Humanity Prize? If you select Yes, explain how you are qualified for the prize in the additional question that appears.
Yes, I wish to apply for this prize
Solution Team
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Ethan Cheramie Founder & CEO, On Scene Services (OSS)
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Solution Name:
On Scene Services