Improving the Effectiveness of Human Trafficking Enforcement

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 Upper Midwest Community Policing Institute will implement this project funded under Category 3: Enhancing Local Law Enforcement. They will develop and implement training focused on improving prosecution of human traffickers and the rescue and protection of trafficking victims. The initiative will include collaboration among geographically widespread regional community policing institutes in order to reach areas that lack existing human trafficking task forces, have identified a need based on incidents of trafficking, and/or are highly susceptible to trafficking by virtue of location.

CA/NCF