FY 2008 New Orleans Project Safe Neighborhoods

Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a nationwide commitment to reducing gun crime, links existing local programs together and provides them with necessary tools. PSN takes a hard line against gun criminals, using every available means to create safer neighborhoods; seeks to achieve heightened coordination among federal, state, and local law enforcement; and 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 New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation, Inc. (NOPJF), serving as the fiscal agent for the Eastern District of Louisiana, will use the grant to fund the Crimestoppers and COPS for Kids programs in order to reduce gun crime. Crimestoppers sponsors the Safe School Hotline, which provides students with a mechanism to report crime anonymously by telephone, with an added incentive of cash rewards for information resulting in the arrest and charging of a suspect for a crime committed or planned for commission on a school campus, school bus, or at a school event. Students are also encouraged to provide information on crimes in their neighborhoods because many of these incidents begin in the neighborhood and are carried onto school grounds. COPS for Kids will target youth who commit violent crimes against other juveniles involving handguns or drug use, and will provide a safe and nurturing summer camp designed to improve the quality of life for poverty stricken children ages 6-16 who reside in New Orleans. The program is operated by NOPJF in partnership with the New Orleans Police Department, New Orleans Public Schools, Louisiana Department of Health and Welfare, and New Orleans Recreation Department.

NOPJF will accomplish the following goals with the grant funds: provide behavioral development training for 350 New Orleans' children, who live among repeated occurrences of violent crime in the most economically depressed areas of the city; sponsor three six-week summer enrichment camp for youth ages 6-16; educate junior and senior high school students, parents, and community and faith-based organizations on the negative effects of illegal firearm possession; and provide a safe and secure means of reporting illegal firearms on and off school campuses.

NCA/NCF