Skip to page content

Homeland Security and Public Safety

Featured

RAND conducts analyses and makes recommendations to strengthen the U.S. Department of Homeland Security across its full set of missions to prevent terrorism and enhance security, secure and manage America's borders, enforce and administer immigration laws, safeguard and secure cyberspace, and strengthen preparedness and resilience. In the area of public safety, RAND research addresses drug policy, crime, prison reform, and prisoner reentry, and other topics.

Tool
New Tool Shows State-by-State Firearm Policies and Death Rates
An online tool allows users to see how firearm death rates vary across the United States and explore how changes in gun policy might affect those rates for each state. It shows that states in the northeast and the coastal west have the lowest firearm death rates, while states in the south and mountain west have rates that are especially high.
Feb 22, 2023
News Release
Frequent Alcohol Testing Combined with Swift and Certain Sanctions Is Associated with Lower Death Rates
A statewide alcohol-monitoring program that requires people arrested for drunk driving and other alcohol-involved offenses to be tested frequently for alcohol use can reduce the likelihood that participants die for several years after their involvement with the program.
Feb 28, 2023

Topics in Focus:

Explore Homeland Security and Public Safety

News Release
Physicians with Waivers to Prescribe Buprenorphine for Opioid Addiction Have Capacity to Treat More Patients
Many American physicians who prescribe buprenorphine to treat individuals addicted to opioids are prescribing substantially below the patient limits allowed by law. More than 20 percent of waivered physicians treated only three or fewer patients.
Sep 20, 2016
News Release
Al Shabaab Weakened but Not Defeated in Somalia
Efforts to weaken the al Qa'ida-linked terrorist group al Shabaab in Somalia have had some success, but the U.S. campaign there is in jeopardy. Urgent steps are needed to address the political, economic, and governance challenges at the heart of the conflict.
Sep 13, 2016
News Release
First Estimates of Judicial Costs of Specific Crimes, from Homicide to Theft
When considering the costs of crime, policymakers and the public typically think about the price of housing prisoners, not the judicial costs. The costs to taxpayers of prosecuting, defending, and adjudicating crimes can vary widely, from $200 to $400 for a motor vehicle theft to $22,000 to $44,000 for a homicide.
Sep 12, 2016
News Release
U.S. Rules for Targeted Killing Using Drones Need Clarifying
Current U.S. policies on using drones for targeted killing are characterized by ambiguities in interpretations of international law and too many generalities, despite recent efforts by the Obama administration to clarify the policies.
Sep 8, 2016
News Release
Mass Marketing Fraud Costing Each UK Victim Nearly £7,000 on Average During Their Lifetime
Mass marketing fraud affects all members of society, regardless of their age, class, occupation, socio-economic background, race, or gender. Victims lose £6,744, on average, during their lifetime.
Sep 1, 2016
News Release
Untangling the 'Dark Web': New Study Shows Steady Growth of the Online Illicit Drugs Trade
The number of transactions for illicit drugs on cryptomarkets, which exist on the “dark web,” have tripled and revenues have doubled since 2013, when Silk Road 1.0 was shut down by the FBI.
Aug 8, 2016
News Release
Exploring the Course and Consequences of a Sino-U.S. War
Premeditated war between the United States and China is very unlikely, but the danger that a mishandled crisis could trigger hostilities cannot be ignored. A new analysis illuminates various paths a war could take and their possible effects.
Jul 28, 2016
News Release
Suicide Prevention Hotlines in California Could Expand Digital Offerings and Partnerships with Health Systems to ...
Suicide prevention hotlines in California respond to callers in need and reduce their distress. They could reach more people and improve services by expanding digital offerings such as chat and establishing programs to monitor and improve quality.
Jul 12, 2016
News Release
Alcohol and Marijuana Use by Southern California Adolescents Predicts Poor Academic Performance and Health Problems
Adolescents who use both marijuana and alcohol are more likely to have poor academic performance and mental health during high school. Marijuana use is predictive of poorer functioning across more areas than alcohol use, and nonwhite youth tend to experience poorer functioning than white youth.
Jun 14, 2016
News Release
Declassified Documents Provide Insight into Origins of the Islamic State and How to Defeat the Group
Looking at more than 140 recently declassified documents from the predecessors of the Islamic State, it is evident that the group has been operating for years with remarkable continuity in its philosophy, methods, and goals, including the long-standing aspiration for creating a caliphate.
May 19, 2016
News Release
Body-Worn Cameras Associated with Increased Assaults Against Police
Rates of assault against police officers are 15% higher when they wear cameras, possibly because they feel more confident about reporting assaults once they are captured on camera. The camera also may make officers less assertive and more vulnerable to assault.
May 17, 2016
News Release
Southern California Middle School Students Exposed to More Than Three Alcohol Ads Each Day
African American and Hispanic youths are exposed to an average of 4.1 and 3.4 alcohol ads per day respectively, while white youths are exposed to an average of two ads per day. Greater restrictions on alcohol advertising outdoors and on television should be considered.
May 17, 2016
News Release
Countering Islamic State Requires a Stronger U.S.-Coalition Strategy
While the campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has degraded the group by targeting its leadership and retaking a portion of territory, achieving lasting defeat of ISIL in Iraq and Syria will be elusive without local forces capable of holding territory.
Apr 20, 2016
News Release
One-Fourth of American Adults Notified of Data Breach in Past Year; Few Consumers Penalize Hacked Companies
About a quarter of American adults reported that they were notified about their personal information being part of a data breach in the previous year, but only 11 percent of those who have ever been notified say they stopped doing business with the hacked company afterwards.
Apr 13, 2016
News Release
Autonomous Vehicles Cannot Be Test-Driven Enough Miles to Demonstrate Their Safety; Alternative Testing Methods Needed
Under even the most-aggressive test driving assumptions, it would take existing fleets of autonomous vehicles tens and even hundreds of years to log sufficient miles to adequately assess the safety of the vehicles when compared to human-driven vehicles.
Apr 12, 2016
News Release
U.S. National Security Decisionmaking Processes Need Trimming
Increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the National Security Council is necessary as the country contends with many more state and nonstate actors, around-the-clock public scrutiny, and exploding nontraditional threats.
Apr 5, 2016
News Release
New Research Finds Counter-Terrorism TACTICS for European Cities
Counter-terrorism technologies and diverse partnerships are essential when dealing with terrorist threats in cities. The TACTICS project team has developed a technology-ready concept that could support counter-terrorism operations across Europe.
Mar 31, 2016
News Release
The Cost of Corruption in Europe — Up to €990 Billion (£781.64 Billion) Lost Annually
New estimates of the cost of corruption in the EU show that up to €990 billion (£781.64 billion) in GDP terms is lost annually. Three policy measures to address corruption are recommended.
Mar 22, 2016
News Release
Frequent Alcohol Testing Combined with Swift, Certain and Modest Sanctions Is Associated with Drop in Mortality
An innovative program that requires alcohol-involved offenders to abstain from alcohol and submit to frequent tests was associated with a 4 percent drop in deaths. The associations were most evident among causes of death related to excessive alcohol use, such as circulatory conditions.
Feb 9, 2016
News Release
Medical Marijuana Users More Likely to Consume Edibles and Vaporize
People who use marijuana for medical purposes are much more likely to vaporize or consume edible forms of the drug than recreational users. They are also more likely to report daily or near-daily use and consume more grams per day.
Jan 28, 2016

Previous
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Next

RAND Topic:
Homeland Security and Public Safety

Topic Synonyms:
Homeland Defense

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Timothy R. Heath

Senior International/Defense Researcher

Timothy R. Heath is a senior international defense researcher at the RAND Corporation. Prior to joining RAND in October 2014, he served as the senior analyst for the USPACOM China Strategic Focus Group. He has over twenty years of experience researching and analyzing military and political…
Chryssa Politi

Research Assistant

Chryssa Politi is a research assistant at RAND Europe working in the area of science and emerging technology. She studied political science and international relations at the University of Peloponnese in Greece. Simultaneously, she worked as an intern at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and…

Explore Our People »