USAO Western District of Michigan

In the United Attorney’s Office (USAO) Western District of Michigan the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) strategy focuses on the seven communities that have the highest rates of violent crime are: Battle Creek, Benton Harbor, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Muskegon, and Muskegon Heights. According to 2019 Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) statistics, Michigan has a violent crime rate of 437.4 per 100,000, which is 1.15 times the national average. FBI data also indicates that the men between the ages of 20 and 29 are most likely to be both the perpetrators and victims of violence in each of the seven PSN focus communities. The drivers of crime in these communities are a complex myriad of economic, social, and criminal justice factors. At the same time, gang or group violence, the proliferation of firearms, and illegal drug trafficking remain key challenges for law enforcement. 
 
With previous support from PSN, local and federal law enforcement have implemented data-driven models, concentrating on the individuals or groups driving much of the crime in geographic hot spots. In FY 2024, the Western District of Michigan will use this PSN funding to support local partner law enforcement agencies efforts to prevent and deter violent crime, particularly group violence, through community-driven practices, concentrating on the seven communities mentioned above. Grant activities will be implemented through collaboration with the current Western District of Michigan PSN task force, comprised of law enforcement leaders and representatives from the prosecutors' offices of the seven target communities. The Department of Michigan State Police is the fiscal agent and Public Sector Consultants will conduct monitoring and evaluation. 
 
The PSN task force will fund projects that help foster trust between law enforcement and community, prevent and deter violent crime, and measure the results of the PSN-funded projects. To effectively disburse PSN grant funds in the seven focused communities, the PSN task force will administer a competitive sub-grant award process. Successful sub-grantees will implement programs that focus on evidence-based intelligence; community-based violence intervention and prevention programs; educational and mentoring opportunities for those involved in violence or at risk of becoming involved in violence; targeted community outreach and group violence interruption; and crime prevention social programs and youth outreach. Sub-grants will be awarded in the early part of the PSN 2024 grant period of performance, to ensure adequate time to implement and evaluate projects.