United States Attorneys Announce $72.4 Million in Grants Received From the Department of Justice

LEXINGTON, Ky. – To close the 2019 Fiscal Year, the United States Department of Justice awarded 51 grants, amounting to more than $72.4 million to support public safety and crime fighting initiatives throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky, announced Western District United States Attorney Russell Coleman and Eastern District United States Attorney Robert M. Duncan Jr.

“These are significant federal resources coming to Kentucky for one purpose, to keep families safer in all 120 counties of our Commonwealth,” said U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky Russell Coleman.

“We appreciate the Department’s support in funding these important public safety and criminal justice initiatives,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky Robert Duncan Jr. “These grants help make the entire Commonwealth a safer place.”

The 51 grants cover cities in both the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky, six cities (Bowling Green, Frankfort, Lexington, Louisville, Paducah, Radcliff) alongside five counties (Christian County, Daviess County, Madison County, Kenton County, Warren County) are receiving funding through the Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program. Under the JAG program, the cities will receive a total amount of $968,160 to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime based for their own state and local needs and conditions. The Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet also received $2.1 million in funding under the JAG program. JAG funds will be used to support all components of the criminal justice system, from multi-jurisdictional drug and gang task forces, to crime prevention and domestic violence programs, courts, corrections, treatment, justice information enforcement, and programs aimed at reducing crime and/or enhancing public/officer safety.

The Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet will also receive $30,568,043 from the Office for Victims of Crime VOCA (Victims of Crime Act Formula Program) Victim Assistance Formula. The Justice and Public Safety Cabinet was also awarded grants through the Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) through the United States Attorney’s offices Project Safe Neighborhoods, the Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) for state Prisoners Program, State Justice Statistics Program for Statistical Analysis Centers, and Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program Formula.

The Kentucky Department for Corrections (KYDOC) was awarded $923,138 through the Bureau of Justice Assistance Innovations in Supervision Initiative (ISI): Building Capacity to Create Safer Communities. ISI funds will be used to develop place-based supervision strategies to reduce distances between clients, supervision offices and treatment centers.

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services will receive $990,249 through the Bureau of Justice Assistance Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Site Based Program: Harold Rogers Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) aimed at enhancing KASPER. The Cabinet will use the grant funds to engage one full time grant law enforcement liaison, and one full time grant criminal epidemiologist who will support law enforcement requests for PDMP data and assistance. The grant liaison will work with five pharmacist consultants already employed by KASPER to provide knowledge of criminal investigations and prosecutions of offenders violating state and federal control substances laws.

The Catholic Charities of Louisville Inc. has been awarded $919,476 under the Sustaining Capacity to Provide Comprehensive Services through the Office of Victims of Crime. Catholic Charities will implement the Central Kentucky Comprehensive Services Project to sustain capacity to provide services to survivors of human trafficking through implementation of a comprehensive services model. The initiative will include in-house services, and collaborations with community partners for housing, mental health services, medical services, and education services.

A full list of OJP Award Data is available at this link: https://ojp.gov/funding/Explore/OJPAwardData.htm

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