Dean Obermark is a research analyst in the Justice Policy Center at the Urban Institute. His core interests lie at the intersection of gun violence, neighborhoods, and policing. Obermark also has a strong interest in research methods that put the dignity of people and places in the forefront of the work. Before his time at Urban, Obermark was an internal researcher with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, where he cultivated cross-sector and community-based responses to violence.