Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN)
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is a collaborative effort by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors and communities to prevent and deter gang and gun violence. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina (USAO-WDNC), PSN has engaged in strategic planning with federal, state and local law enforcement; strengthened partnerships among law enforcement agencies to improve gang and gun violence investigations and prosecutions; engaged in public outreach; provided training to state and local law enforcement; and sought community involvement in the fight against gang and gun violence.

Strategic Planning
The U.S. Attorney's Office is constantly looking for better ways to curtail gang and gun violence. It has developed case-screening mechanisms to help determine the best jurisdiction for prosecution of gang and gun cases, and identified and focused resources on "hot spots" - specific geographic areas that have experienced an increase in gang and gun violence.
Partnerships
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with state and local agencies to appropriately deploy law enforcement resources. Federal and county prosecutors work together to select the appropriate jurisdiction for prosecution of gun cases. The U.S. Attorney's Office also works hand-in-hand with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to bolster federal firearms investigations.
Public Outreach
The U.S. Attorney's Office is proud of its efforts to get the PSN message to the public. In the past, locally-produced radio and television spots carry the message across WDNC, while newspapers and radio stations continue to broadcast news of the stiff sentences handed out to gun and gang defendants.
Training and Community Involvement
The U.S. Attorney's Office provides training to state and local law enforcement in an effort to effectively work as a community to prevent gun and gang violence, successfully prosecute those who pose a danger to our community, and to work with those defendant's reentering the community after serving a prison sentence.
In the past, the U.S. Attorney's Office has partnered with district school systems to sponsor anti-violence Youth Summits. The Summits have focused the topics of bullying, conflict resolution, leadership, and becoming a catalyst for improvement and change.