Justice Department Awards More Than $17.5 Million To Support Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Department of Justice announced today that it has awarded more than $17.5 million in grants to support the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program. Funding will support efforts across the country to address violent crime, including the gun violence that is often at its core.

“This latest Project Safe Neighborhoods grant is critical to addressing the violent crime threatening cities and towns all across our country,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Ensuring the safety of all Americans is the highest priority for the Department of Justice, but when it comes to violent crime, there is not a one-size-fits-all solution. We have to work closely with local public safety agencies as well as community organizations to craft individual strategies unique to each community’s needs. Programs like Project Safe Neighborhoods and the funding it provides allow us to do just that.”

The North Carolina Gang Investigators Association (NCGIA) was awarded $181,000 in PSN funds. NCGIA will begin the process of administering the funds in support of local PSN projects in the Western District of North Carolina.

In addition to PSN funding, in 2021, more than $3.7 million in federal grants have been awarded to non-profit organizations, local law enforcement agencies, and Tribal government programs in the Western District.

“Federal grants are a vital financial resource for local law enforcement as well as organizations and service providers in the nonprofit sector. The awarded funds will be used to support critical work addressing a broad range of community needs and to enhance public safety activities in the Western District and the Qualla Boundary,” said U.S. Attorney Dena J. King.

Grantees in eight counties across the Western District and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have received federal funding awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Office of Violence against Women, and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

In Buncombe County, funding allocated for the provision of comprehensive services to domestic and sexual violence survivors will be used to support case management, court advocacy, emergency shelter services, individual and group counseling, prevention and education programs and to enhance outreach efforts in the LBGTQ+ community.

Funding allocated to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will support the civil and criminal Tribal court systems and improve access to those systems. Specifically, a portion of the funding will be used to create and implement a Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court, to address gaps in the juvenile system; increase juvenile behavioral health involvement in the court system; and develop screening tools to better determine the needs of juveniles for healing to wellness court intervention.

Funding allocated to law enforcement agencies in Buncombe, Catawba, Gaston, Haywood, Iredell, Mecklenburg, Rutherford and Union Counties will support community safety initiatives, prevention and education programs, technology and forensic analysis improvements, equipment and training, and mental health and wellness services for law enforcement.

“Investing in our communities, supporting victims and building a justice system that both keeps people safe and earns their trust – these are mutually reinforcing goals that stand at the heart of Project Safe Neighborhoods,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon for OJP. “The Office of Justice Programs is pleased to join with our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and with jurisdictions across the country, as we work together to meet the challenges of crime and violence and achieve our shared aspirations of public safety and community trust.”

In May 2021, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a new effort to reduce violent crime, including the gun violence that is often at its core. Integral to that effort was the reinvigoration of PSN, a two-decade old evidence-based and community-oriented program focused on reducing violent crime. The updated PSN approach, outlined in the department’s Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime issued by Deputy Attorney General Monaco, is guided by four key principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities and measuring the results of our efforts. The fundamental goal is to reduce violent crime, not simply to increase the number of arrests or prosecutions.

PSN programs are led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in collaboration with local public safety agencies, community stakeholders and other agencies and organizations that work to reduce violent crime.

For a list of all grantees, please visit: https://www.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh241/files/media/document/FY21-Project-Safe-Neighborhoods-Awards.pdf  

The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance racial equity in the administration of justice, assist victims and enhance the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at  www.ojp.gov. Information about these and other FY 2021 grant awards from the Office of Justice Programs can be found online at the OJP Grant Awards Page.

The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) currently administers grant programs authorized by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) of 1994 and subsequent legislation.  More information about OVW and additional grant funding information is listed at: http://www.justice.gov/ovw/grant-programs.

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) is the component of the U.S. Department of Justice responsible for advancing the practice of community policing by the nation’s state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies through information and grant resources.  For more information about the COPS Office grants please go to: http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/grants.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) provides leadership and assistance to local criminal justice programs that improve and reinforce the nation’s criminal justice system.  BJA’s goals are to reduce and prevent crime, violence, and drug abuse and to improve the way in which the criminal justice system functions. BJA Funding announcements are posted at: https://www.bja.gov/funding.aspx