In a pivotal gathering that brought together academia, policy experts, and researchers, a workshop addressing the urgent concern of excessive use of force by police unfolded. Six individuals, including an community-based research-driven professor and five of his fresh and enthusiastic students, immersed themselves in discussions and deliberations on issues that have become central to sociologists, statisticians, policymakers, and the general public.

Jamell Dacon earned his master’s and doctoral degrees in computer science and engineering from Michigan State University in 2020 and 2023, respectively. In September 2023, Dacon became an assistant professor in computer science at Morgan State University, a historically Black research university in Baltimore, Maryland.