Law Enforcement Innovation Center

Mission Statement

Our mission is to provide innovative and technologically based training and technical assistance (services) to law enforcement agencies and communities, meeting their ever changing needs as we move forward in the 21st century.

News and Announcements

KAT provides terrorism training

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For more information on Transit Terrorist Tools & Tactics (T4), visit the T4 web site or contact Deidra Phillips.

UT's National Forensic Academy assists with Gallatin skull find

When a Sumner County man found a human skull, he called police. The police called the University of Tennessee.

William Browning, 19, found a human skull while clearing old farm equipment from rural property near Gallatin. The Gallatin Police Department (GPD) and the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office responded to investigate.

For Crime Scene Investigator Danny Deyhle and Lt. Lamar Ballard at GPD, the skull discovery meant a bone scattered scene that would require special resources and management. Ballard instinctively called the UT National Forensic Academy (NFA) for advice on identifying and processing the scene. Ballard had completed Session 4 of the UT NFA in 2002, and he knew the university would have the resources needed for the investigation.

UT NFA Specialist Nathan Lefebvre referred Ballard to Dr. Lee Jantz at the UT Knoxville Department of Anthropology, and soon anthropology staff and students were on the way to the scene to help search for more remains and potential evidence. Anthropologists from Middle Tennessee State University assisted in the search as well.

Ballard knew he could count on UT's advice due to the connections he made during the 10-week Academy. "With the UT NFA training, we knew exactly what to do and how to manage the crime scene," he said.

In addition to Ballard, Deyhle (UT NFA Session 8, 2004) and GPD Evidence Technician Melissa Proctor (NFA Session 22, 2008) are UT NFA alumni. "I was confident Deyhle and Proctor knew how to properly process the scene because of their training at the NFA," said Ballard.

Ballard praised the UT NFA as one of the most innovative training opportunities available to law enforcement officers. Realizing the uniqueness of the training, Ballard saw to it for Deyhle and Proctor to attend the Academy. “Those 10 weeks of training are equal to a lifetime of law enforcement experience,” said Ballard.

With just two years as an evidence technician, Proctor said, “I think I would have been intimidated by such a task, but I felt completely comfortable due to the NFA training I received in 2008.”

"With UT's assistance, we were able to expedite the search of the area within hours of initial contact with Dr. Jantz. The quick response and knowledge of the team shows the professionalism of the UT Department of Anthropology," said Ballard.

Jantz is one of the UT NFA's most notable instructors and is the coordinator of the UT Forensic Anthropology Center. “When you attend the NFA, you are learning from the top experts in each field," said Deyhle.

The UT NFA is a program of the UT Law Enforcement Innovation Center at the statewide UT Institute for Public Service. For more information, visit the NFA web site or contact Nathan Lefebvre.

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Phone: (865) 946-3201
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