FY21 EBCI Tribal Justice Systems Grant

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is a federally recognized tribe located in Swain, Jackson, Cherokee, Graham and Haywood counties within the state of North Carolina.  With this funding, the Office of the Tribal Prosecutor will: (1) employ results-based accountability methodologies to Prosecution’s operations and (2) develop information technology to improve Prosecution’s response to its heavy caseload. By accomplishing these objectives, Prosecution will be able to focus more heavily on crimes of violence and use data-driven strategies to proactively combat the opioid epidemic. 

This funding request is part of the EBCI’s demonstrated dedication to utilizing results-based accountability to drive community-wide improvement. The Tribe has adopted a law requiring all government programs to employ results-based accountability (RBA) measures to improve population outcomes and public safety is a key indicator of population wellbeing.  The Office of the Tribal Prosecutor currently battles a heavy caseload, lack of sufficient access to suitable information technology, and insufficient access to data and data-driven strategies.  By taking a fresh look at the process for prosecuting crimes and applying RBA methodologies, Prosecution staff will be enabled to focus more on violent crimes and a systematic response to substance abuse.  

The EBCI has been building integrated software systems that support appropriate sharing of information among agencies and the analysis of large-scale trends to create data-driven tribal policies. The EBCI Office of the Tribal Prosecutor is a crucial component of the Tribe’s criminal justice system. Improving Prosecution’s processes and building information technology will both improve Prosecution’s performance with regards to individual cases and allow for data driven improvements to the system at large. 

A small portion of the funds requested under this grant will be used to bring in a consultant to analyze Prosecution’s process and make long-term policy changes incorporating results-based accountability into their work. 

The bulk of grant funds requested will be used to hire a software development company to design case management software tailored to increase efficiency in Prosecution to allow greater focus on violent crimes and taking proactive measures to combat the opioid epidemic. 
 

If you are requesting funding in multiple purpose areas, is the receipt of funding in a particular purpose area required for the implementation of any other purpose area being requested? If so, explain.

No, each of the projects submitted under the different purpose areas can operate independently, although the projects will support each other if granted.