DOJ awards multiple grants to state, cities, counties, and non-profits in Western Washington to combat gun violence and support community safety

Seattle – U.S. Attorney Nick Brown today announced 19 U.S. Department of Justice grants totaling nearly $10 million that will support community safety, meet the needs of law enforcement, and provide a foundation for youth violence intervention programs.  The grant funding is through four different DOJ programs, with the bulk of the grants awarded via the Byrne grant program.

“Each year police and sheriff’s departments identify specific needs and apply for Byrne Grant funding.  These federal dollars help each department meet its local priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown.  “Western Washington organizations also obtained funding for innovative programs aimed at youth violence intervention.  I’m pleased to see the Peacemaking Academy, the Children and Youth Justice Center, Burien’s Enhanced Youth Services, and the Washington Partnership on Juvenile Justice all obtained substantial federal dollars to support their work.”

The Alliance for Gun Responsibility Foundation was awarded $300,000 to support the Peacemaking Academy – a program that works to divert juveniles from the traditional court process to a transformative approach that utilizes Peacemaking Circles.

The Children and Youth Justice Center in Seattle was awarded $2 million to support the Leadership, Intervention & Change (LINC) program working with 200 at-risk youth in King County, to reduce youth gun violence and gang involvement.

The city of Burien Enhanced Youth Services program was awarded $300,000 for its violence intervention program that works with families and youth to provide therapeutic and restorative services to disrupt community violence.

Finally, nearly $1 million was awarded to Washington State Partnership Council on Juvenile Justice for its work focused on innovations and improvement to the juvenile justice system.  The funds support increasing alternatives to incarceration as well as re-entry services for youth who have been incarcerated.

Ten cities, three counties and Washington State were awarded Byrne grants to support local police needs.  Washington State was awarded $3.7 million which can be used to support local jurisdictions’ needs.  The other Byrne grant recipients are:

• Seattle - $829,956
• Tacoma- $310,110
• Lakewood -$42,486
• Bellingham $38,840
• Bremerton -$15,979
• Lynnwood - $10,528
• Marysville - $14,207
• Everett – $37,989
• Puyallup - $11,618
• Longview - $10,664
• Kitsap County - $42,997
• Thurston County - $25,621
• Clark County - $120,575

In addition to the Byrne grant funding, the City of Seattle was awarded nearly $1 million for its body-worn camera program.  The funding will help migrate and integrate the 2.1 million digital files that SPD has from its body-worn cameras.  The migration to the cloud will assist in making the videos available for investigators as well and the Seattle City Attorney’s Office and King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

The Byrne Grants are named in honor of New York City Police Officer Edward R. Byrne, who was killed in the line of duty on February 26, 1988. Officer Byrne was just 22 years old.