Lieutenant Nate Sparing of the Spokane Police Department told the City of Spokane Public Safety and Community Health Committee on Dec. 1 that the department's homicide clearance rate is about 93–94%, well above a roughly 55% national average.

Sparing, who presented the Major Crimes Unit's work, said Spokane recorded 19 homicides in 2024 — 10 involving firearms and five involving edged weapons — and that most 2024 cases showed a relationship between victim and suspect. He said year-to-date homicide counts for 2025 stood at 10, with eight involving firearms and two involving edged weapons. "The clearance rate for 2024, all but one of those is cleared," Sparing said.

Sparing attributed part of recent trends to improved data-gathering: the department now reviews every call for service that could be firearm-related and is using residential camera footage to distinguish fireworks from shooting events. He said that process improvements, along with digital-forensics capacity, are increasing accurate incident classification.

On evidence and laboratory support, Sparing described in-house digital forensics capabilities and use of outside labs for specialized testing such as genealogy DNA. He said the department plans to bring an in-house NIBIN (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network) machine online in early 2026; once deployed, he said NIBIN entries could be entered into the national system within 48 hours and produce nationwide "warm leads" tying shell casings to other incidents.

Sparing also reviewed investigative workflow: patrol officers' scene preservation, the Major Crimes Unit's first-48-hour assignments, autopsy attendance by detectives, use of crime analysts to overlay data, and routine collaboration with Spokane County Medical Examiner, Spokane County Sheriff's Office and Washington State Patrol forensic teams.

A council member asked about traffic-patrol updates; Sparing responded he had only anecdotal observations that traffic enforcement remains visible but had not provided formal patrol metrics to the committee.

The presentation included several specific figures presented by Sparing: 380 firearms recovered on domestic-violence incidents in 2024 and the department's staffing configuration (two major-crime sergeants, 12 detectives, two collision investigators and dedicated scan and digital-forensics technicians). Sparing described four 2025 homicides he characterized as self-defense homicides that will likely be recorded as exceptional clearances.

No formal committee vote or action on policy items followed the presentation. The department's next steps, as described to the committee, include continued data-collection refinement and bringing the NIBIN capability online.