2007 Western WA Anti-Gang Initiative

The Anti-Gang Initiative provides funds to support new or expanded anti-gang enforcement and prevention efforts under the existing Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Initiative. These new funds may be used by the PSN task force to combat gangs by leveraging current strategies and partnerships developed under PSN initiatives or may be used to develop new anti-gang initiatives. The Anti-Gang initiative will be led by the United States Attorney in each of the 94 federal judicial districts across America. Grant funds will be awarded to a single fiscal agent in each of the 94 districts. The fiscal agent, in coordination with the PSN task force, will allocate the funds throughout the community to support the anti-gang initiative in that community.

The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) will use Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 Anti-Gang Initiative funding to increase the effectiveness of gang investigations and community supervision in the Western District of Washington. Funds will be directed to support the suppression, intervention, and prevention of gang activity in the following four Weed and Seed sites located in the Eastern District: the Seattle metropolitan area, Southwest Washington, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. Additionally, WASPC will use funds to pay for the services of a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (SAUSA), a deputized state or local prosecutor, to work with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle. The SAUSA decides which cases should be charged in a particular jurisdiction, along with which cases should be charged federally. The SAUSA also prosecutes and tracks all charged cases as well as assists in law enforcement training and outreach. WASPC will also provide overtime funds for the Seattle Gang Task Forces in King, Snohomish, and Pierce Counties and for the continuous prosecutorial support for the program.

NCA/NCF