When someone shows concerning behavior or makes a threat, how do you determine whether they actually pose a risk of violence — and what do you do next?
In this episode, Brink and Tom sit down with Clay Harris of Homicide Zero to explore a different approach to behavioral threat assessment. Homicide Zero turns an empirically tested threat assessment into a software platform designed to make the process faster, more consistent, and accessible beyond behavioral threat experts. Instead of relying on open-ended questions or gut instinct, users work through simple questions that help determine a threat level, explain how that conclusion was reached, and provide actionable next steps.
Clay breaks down the pathway to violence, the warning signs that can create opportunities for intervention, and why prevention is such an important layer of a comprehensive safety strategy. They also discuss zero-tolerance policies, the consequences of overreacting to threats, and how organizations can intervene before concerning behavior progresses to violence.
0:57 Homicide Zero is a platform designed to help evaluate an individual’s potential threat level for committing violence.
3:19 Where does an organization start when building its defense?
5:45 The “fruit basket” analogy: Why every layer of protection matters to a complete safety strategy.
6:30 Where do you start when determining whether a threat is credible?
8:30 Dr. Robert Moore’s, co-founder of Homicide Zero, threat assessment tool and the research behind a structured approach to evaluating threats and determining when to intervene.
10:09 Understanding the pathway to violence: How a stressor can progress
13:20 Intervention can happen at any point along the pathway to violence, and Homicide Zero helps organize that process.
14:20 Understanding “leakage,” when an at-risk individual displays indicators that could signal concern.
18:00 How Clay used Dr. Moore’s expertise to create the Homicide Zero platform and make the assessment process integratable with existing systems.
20:15 “Left of bang” vs. “right of bang”: Prevention before an incident compared with response after an incident occurs.
22:00 Moving beyond gut instinct and emotion when evaluating an individual.
24:20 How Homicide Zero turns threat assessment into software using simple yes, no, or “I don’t know” questions, then provides a threat level and explains how it reached that conclusion.
26:12 The danger of overcorrecting: How concerning behavior can lead to serious consequences for someone who may not actually pose a threat.
28:30 What happens after a student is expelled? The importance of reassessing before a student returns to school.
31:00 The long-term cost of missing opportunities for early intervention.
32:20 The potential problems with “zero tolerance” policies.
35:15 With many threat assessment tools already available, what does Homicide Zero add? Simple questions, accessibility for facilitators beyond behavioral threat experts, and a goal of making threat assessment widely available.
39:45 An assessment can be completed in about 20 minutes, compared with manual threat assessments that may take days or weeks.
48:00 How Homicide Zero provides specific, actionable next steps based on the assessment results.
51:00 The challenges of addressing criminal behavior involving young people and how fact-based reporting can help inform decisions about potential criminal charges.
53:30 Learn more, request a demo, and see how the platform works at HomicideZero.com.