NCJ Number
141580
Journal
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Volume: 62 Issue: 3 Dated: (March 1993) Pages: 1-4
Date Published
1993
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article discusses how the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) established a special team of investigators, Murders Unsolved Team (MUST), to work unsolved homicides throughout the State.
Abstract
The SBI implemented MUST in 1986 to deal with the pervasive problem of unsolved murders. With the formation of MUST, local law enforcement agencies in North Carolina can now request assistance in the investigation of unsolved homicide cases. MUST agents are assigned to only one case at a time and work cooperatively with the requesting agency. The SBI divides the State into eight geographic districts, with a MUST agent assigned to each district. MUST agents use a data base to help manage complex cases involving multiple agencies. This data base allows investigators to store information and to share that information with other agencies involved in a case. MUST has a relatively successful record; investigators have solved more than 46 percent of the cases assigned to them. Tentative plans call for doubling the number of MUST agents in each district of the State because the MUST methodology has proven effective and because local agencies now tend to solicit assistance earlier in their investigations.