Award Information
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2008, $174,115)
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a nationwide commitment to reducing gun crime, links existing local programs together and provides them with necessary tools. PSN 1) takes a hard line against gun criminals, using every available means to create safer neighborhoods; 2) seeks to achieve heightened coordination among federal, state, and local law enforcement; and 3) emphasizes tactical intelligence gathering, more aggressive prosecutions, and enhanced accountability through performance measures. The United States Attorney in each federal judicial district will lead the offensive. The fiscal agent, in coordination with the PSN Task Force, will allocate funds throughout the community.
The District of Oregon will use the grant funds to support: a local Deputy District Attorney (DDA), who will work on juvenile firearms offenses in Multnomah County; an outreach and education component; the El Programa Hispano; the six police agencies involved in the Metro Gang Task Force; and the district's local parole and probation office.
The Multnomah County District Attorney's Office, serving as the district's fiscal agent, will fund one PSN DDA, who will partner with the El Programa Hispano to prosecute gun and gang crimes, increase the communication and effectiveness of these prosecutions, and expand crime prevention efforts to educate the community. Emphasis will be placed on reaching out to parents to raise awareness of gun and gang-related issues and empower them to deter this behavior among their children. The El Programa will hold a support group for parents of gang associated youth. This program will run for six weeks at a time with a new class starting every two months. The PSN DDA will actively partner with El Programa by educating program participants on gun and gang-related issues. The DDA will also implementation two special projects aimed at identifying and prosecuting adults who give guns to youth.
The Beaverton Police Department will implement the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) program in the Beaverton School District. School Resource Officers will expand firearms education in the schools and the community. The police department will purchase equipment and resources to gather intelligence to reduce gang-related crime.
The Milwaukie Police Department will use grant funds to pay overtime for graffiti operations, mentor at-risk youth after school, educate families on the dangers of criminal gang activity, and conduct surveillance of outlaw motorcycle gang operations.
The city of Vancouver and the Vancouver Police Department will use funds towards graffiti abatement and educating the community through brochures about reporting vandalism, forming neighborhood association groups, and attending citizen-police forums.
The Gresham Police Department will fund overtime for members of the East Metro Gang Enforcement Team, a multi-agency gang enforcement effort consisting of members of the Gresham Police Department, Troutdale Police Department, Fairview Police Department, and Multnomah County Sheriff's Office.
The Hillsboro Police Department will fund four selected and trained patrol officers in four high schools to continue providing specific youth-oriented policing services with an emphasis on gang behavior.
The Portland Police Bureau will support community outreach to provide information to parents of delinquent youth and utilize culturally appropriate services to facilitate community meetings to discuss gang awareness, prevention, alcohol/drug services, mental health services, and educational advocacy.
NCA/NCF