Public Safety-Community Development Project

This program is funded under both the Edward Byrne Memorial Competitive Grant Program (Byrne Competitive Program) and the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. Authorized by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2009 (Pub. L. 111-8), the Byrne Competitive Program helps local communities improve the capacity of state and local justice systems and provides for national support efforts including training and technical assistance programs strategically targeted to address local needs. The JAG Program (42 U.S.C. 3751(a)) is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions, and JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system. . The JAG Program authorization also states that 'the Attorney General may reserve not more than 5 percent, to be granted to 1 or more States or units of local government, for 1 or more of the purposes specified in section 3751 of this title, pursuant to his determination that the same is necessary'(1) to combat, address, or otherwise respond to precipitous or extraordinary increases in crime, or in a type or types of crime' (42 U.S.C. 3756).

The National Initiatives: Preventing Crime Competitive Grant Program, administered by the Office of Justice Programs' (OJP) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), helps improve criminal justice systems and provides national programs and efforts such as training and technical assistance to strategically address the needs of state and local justice systems and communities.

Geller & Associates will help law enforcement agencies and communities address one of the greatest generators of crime--the hotspot. Crime hotspots are almost always situated in neighborhoods that have deteriorated physically and socially to the extent that crime flourishes. They will support law enforcement partnerships with community development corporations to transform hotspots from neighborhood liabilities to assets. Geller & Associates will assist crime-plagued communities in building and maintaining high-impact public safety-community development partnerships; assist local communities in devising and adhering to new standard operating procedures that launch and support law enforcement-community development activities to reduce crime, increase quality of life, and attract private investment; and assist law enforcement in identifying and engaging community developers who are willing and able to physically transform properties that may contribute to pernicious and persistent crime problems.

CA/NCF