Related Content
Press Release
Speech
New York
Today, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a new Collaborative Reform Initiative. Managed out of the Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office), this initiative will be offering three different levels of assistance and expert services to state, local, and Tribal law enforcement partners nationwide. Each level of the initiative’s assistance is completely voluntary and provided at the request of law enforcement agencies. Attorney General Garland and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta unveiled the new initiative at the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) 2022 CEO symposium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
“The Justice Department recognizes how much is being asked of law enforcement officers every single day, and we are committed to providing them with the support they need to build the collaboration, trust, and legitimacy that is essential to public safety,” said Attorney General Garland. “The Department’s new Collaborative Reform Initiative will provide our law enforcement partners nationwide with the opportunity to request support from a suite of customizable, targeted tools that will shape their capacity to keep communities safe and foster community trust.”
“Extensive consultation with law enforcement, community groups, and civil rights organizations identified a real opportunity to expand technical assistance options for law enforcement agencies that need it – and want it,” said Associate Attorney General Gupta. “This new collaborative reform approach builds on our highly successful CRI-TAC program and draws on the expertise of our partners to support law enforcement agencies as they implement best practices in community policing.”
The initiative will consist of three programs designed to build trust between law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve; improve operational efficiencies and effectiveness; enhance officer safety and wellness; and develop and disseminate evidence-based, promising, and innovative public safety practices. This will be the first time in history that the COPS Office is managing and providing these various levels of assistance at the same time.
The new Collaborative Reform Initiative continuum will include:
In the coming weeks, the COPS Office will be releasing open solicitations for experienced service providers to reestablish the Critical Response program and the Organizational Assessments program. CRI-TAC is currently operational and will continue to be a resource that is part of the continuum of services.
Additional information on these new programs can be found on the COPS website at https://cops.usdoj.gov/CRIprogram.
The COPS Office is the federal component of the Department of Justice responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Department of Justice agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation’s crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to agency for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. The COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of more than 135,000 officers.