Foreseeability
Crime foreseeability & premises security
Prior crime, location context, and the adequacy of security measures, including CPTED assessments and independent review of security programs.
For attorneys, insurers & agencies
Expert witness services
Research-grade analysis and testimony on crime foreseeability, premises security, and offender risk, delivered through Bachmann Consulting, LLC.
Why it matters
Evidence that survives cross-examination
Most litigation about crime turns on a comparison: what happened at this location, against what was happening around it, and what the owner or agency knew. Answering that well takes the same work as a rigorous program evaluation: clean data, defensible denominators, and an honest account of uncertainty.
Magnus Research Group was founded in 2019 as a nonprofit research organization. Select researchers of our team have served as the independent research partner for Project Safe Neighborhoods taskforces across Texas since 2012, work that runs on crime data, geospatial analysis, and evaluation design. Through Bachmann Consulting, LLC, that same expertise is available to counsel and insurers who need it explained on the record.
We are not a testifying shop with a research habit. The people who design the analysis are the people who defend it in a deposition—which is why our reports are written to be read by an opposing expert, and why the method holds up when it is challenged.
Who we work with
- Law firms
- Insurers and risk managers
- Corporate legal teams
- Government agencies
- Nonprofits in litigation
Ready to scope a matter? Start here or call Bachmann Consulting at (817) 773-0073.
25+
years of academic and applied experience across the team
15
years of expert witness testimony on foreseeability and security
2012
research partner to Project Safe Neighborhoods taskforces across Texas
TX + US
Texas courts, with remote consultation and testimony nationwide
Practice areas
What we are retained to examine
Every engagement starts with the question the court is actually asking, then works back to the data that can answer it.
Geospatial
Crime mapping & incident analysis
Crime density, hotspot mapping, and spatio-temporal analysis of incident data, built into exhibits a jury can read at a glance.
Risk
Offender risk & recidivism assessment
Evidence-based evaluation of re-offending risk for violent and sexual offenders, including the factors that raise or lower it.
Supervision
Community supervision, probation & parole
Standards and practices for supervision and monitoring, revocation proceedings, and modification of conditions, from practitioners with hands-on experience.
Pretrial
Bail, pretrial & sentencing considerations
Assessment of mitigating and aggravating factors bearing on bond, bail, electronic monitoring, supervision levels, and sentencing.
Liability
Negligence & liability involving offenders
Expert opinions in matters involving violent and sexual offenders and the agencies, providers, and property owners connected to them.
Analytics
Geospatial analytics & machine learning
Hotspot and trend analysis, risk-terrain concepts, and predictive modeling, including a patented resource-need and resource-availability mapping method.
Evidence
Data analysis & visual evidence
Statistical analysis, reproducible methods, and charts and maps prepared for depositions, hearings, and trial.
How an engagement works
From first call to testimony
A predictable process, a written scope, and no surprises about fees. Most matters follow these four stages.
- 01
Scope
A conflict check, a scoping call, and a written scope of work with a fee estimate before any analysis begins.
- 02
Records & data
We identify the records that matter: incident and calls-for-service data, security policies, site plans, depositions, and inspection reports.
- 03
Analysis & report
Reproducible analysis, a written report with exhibits, and a clear statement of assumptions and limits.
- 04
Testimony
Deposition and trial testimony, supporting exhibits, and follow-up analysis as the case develops.
Where we work
Texas courts, and matters nationwide
Expert work is concentrated in North and North-Central Texas, with cases in the major Texas metros and remote consultation available across the country.
Fort Worth & Tarrant County
Tarrant County courts and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division.
Dallas & Dallas County
Foreseeability and premises-security analysis for Dallas County cases and the Dallas Division of the Northern District of Texas.
DFW Metroplex & North-Central Texas
Collin, Denton, Johnson, Parker, Ellis, and Kaufman counties, plus the wider Northern District of Texas.
Houston & Harris County
Crime-pattern and premises-security analysis for Harris County cases and the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas.
Beaumont & Southeast Texas
Jefferson County matters and the Beaumont Division of the Eastern District of Texas.
Stephenville & Erath County
Matters arising in Stephenville and surrounding Erath, Hood, Comanche, and Somervell counties.
Outside Texas? Remote consultation, records review, and remote testimony are available nationwide.
Questions
Before you retain an expert
Who provides the expert witness services?
The analysis and testimony come from the Ph.D.-level criminologists, statisticians, and geospatial analysts who lead our nonprofit research, engaged through Bachmann Consulting, LLC, our affiliated consulting practice in Texas. Expert witness engagements are contracted with Bachmann Consulting, LLC.
What kinds of cases do you consult on?
Premises liability and negligent-security claims, crime foreseeability disputes, and allegations that a property owner or manager failed to provide adequate security. We also handle matters involving offender risk, community supervision, probation and parole, pretrial and sentencing questions, and the analysis of crime data.
Do you testify, or only write reports?
Both. Engagements normally include a written expert report and continue through deposition and trial testimony if the matter proceeds. Counsel also retain us for consulting-only analysis when they need to evaluate a case before filing or before deciding whether to designate an expert.
What data do you analyze in a foreseeability assessment?
Reported crime and calls-for-service data, site and land-use context, the proximity, recency, frequency, and similarity of prior incidents, security practices measured against industry standards, and, where relevant, CPTED principles. The point is to separate patterns that bear on foreseeability from raw statistics that do not.
How does an engagement begin?
Contact Bachmann Consulting at (817) 773-0073 or consult@bachmann.tech with the jurisdiction, the deadline, and a short description of the matter. A conflict check and a scoping call come first, followed by a written scope of work and fee estimate.
Does expert witness work affect Magnus Research Group’s nonprofit research?
No. Litigation engagements are contracted through Bachmann Consulting, LLC and are handled separately from MRG’s nonprofit research partnerships, program evaluations, and grant work. The methods and standards are shared; the engagements and client relationships are separate.
Retain an expert for your matter
Tell us the jurisdiction, the deadline, and what is in dispute. We will confirm conflicts and scope the work.
Expert witness engagements are contracted with Bachmann Consulting, LLC, which brings more than 25 years of academic and applied experience and 15 years of expert witness testimony.