MIT Solve

Solution Overview

Solution Name:

On Scene Services

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.

In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?

New Orleans, LA, USA

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.

Explain 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