Multi-Jurisdictional Gang Task Force

The Edward Byrne Memorial Discretionary Grants Program, administered by the Office of Justice Programs' (OJP's) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), furthers the Department's mission by assisting state and local jurisdictions in improving the criminal justice system and assisting communities in preventing drug abuse and crime. In fiscal year 2007, the Edward Byrne Memorial Discretionary Grants Program will focus on funding local, regional, and national efforts within six major categories: 1) targeting violent crime; 2) preventing crime and drug abuse; 3) enhancing local law enforcement; 4) enhancing local courts; 5) enhancing local corrections and offender reentry; and 6) facilitating justice information sharing. All categories combat, address, or otherwise respond to precipitous or extraordinary increases in crime, or in a type or types of crime.

The City of Phoenix Police Department will use the 2007 Targeting Violent Crime Initiative award to fund a multijurisdictional task force. The task force will focus its efforts on gangs that pose the biggest threat to the metropolitan Phoenix area based on data regarding violence, drug activity, size, and command and control. Armed with this information, the task force will develop investigative strategies to target, disrupt, and dismantle the top five aggressive gang threats by proactively and efficiently utilizing all available resources. Additionally, the task force will seek to dismantle these criminal street gangs from the top down, by targeting both the high ranking gang members as well as their support structure that often do their 'dirty' work such as committing aggravated assaults, trafficking in dangerous and narcotic drugs, and laundering money. Additional funding will be used to finance overtime to permit the maximum utilization of limited existing personnel to accomplish the program objectives.

CA/CF