U.S. DOJ awards $6.3 million to local and state law enforcement

Seattle – U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran today announced more than $6 million in federal grant funds to support law enforcement officers and community safety in Washington.  Speaking at Microsoft for the 2019 Regional Conference for the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces, U.S. Attorney Moran congratulated the Seattle Police based ICAC  for successfully competing for a $606,404 grant to support ICAC investigations in 25 of Washington’s 39 counties.

“More than 100 partner law enforcement agencies are working with the Seattle based ICAC to investigate predators who are using the internet to lure children and steal their innocence,” said Moran.  “These grant monies are a tangible indication of how important our ICAC task forces are – they are literally saving children from predation and exploitation, and we owe the men and women who have devoted their professional lives to preventing these crimes a debt of gratitude.”             

The ICAC grant is just one of a number of grant awards to law enforcement at the state and local level to enhance public safety.  Just over $3.3 million was awarded to Washington State as part of the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program.  The monies will be funneled to state and local organizations supporting a variety of initiatives including anti-gang and drug task forces, crime prevention, and officer safety.

Other Byrne grants include: $672,410 to the City of Seattle; $290,738 to Tacoma; $96,127 to Clark County; $51,888 to Snohomish County; $35,915 to Kitsap County; $20,200 to Bremerton; $36,076 to Bellingham; $41,723 to Lakewood; $13,585 to Marysville; and $12,972 to Longview.

The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs were awarded two grants totaling $368,667 under the Project Safe Neighborhood program.  The grant monies are used to support gang task forces working to reduce violent crime, firearms offenses, human trafficking and drug trafficking.

Finally, under the National Officer Safety Initiatives Program, Polis Solutions of Seattle was awarded $750,000 to evaluate and update defensive training for state, local, tribal and territorial law enforcement agencies.  The grant is to develop a model defensive tactics training program that law enforcement agencies and academies can implement.

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.

For additional information on individual grants, please contact the recipient organizations.