FY 2009 Justice Assistance Grant Program

The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (JAG) allows states and units of local governments, including tribes, to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime based on their own state and local needs and conditions. Grant funds can be used for state and local initiatives, technical assistance, training, personnel, equipment, supplies, contractual support, and information systems for criminal justice, including for any one or more of the following purpose areas: 1) law enforcement programs; 2) prosecution and court programs; 3) prevention and education programs; 4) corrections and community corrections programs; 5) drug treatment and enforcement programs; 6) planning, evaluation, and technology improvement programs; and 7) crime victim and witness programs (other than compensation).

The disparate jurisdictions consisting of the city of Savannah, Chatham County, and city of Garden City, Georgia, will use their Fiscal Year 2009 JAG funds to improve the operation of their respective police departments. The city of Savannah has agreed to serve as the fiscal agent for the joint funds. The City of Savannah and Chatham County will combine their funds for the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department to enhance the Communications Center as the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) for the Enhanced-911 call system. The funds will be used to purchase new dispatch consoles and to reconfigure the layout of the PSAP to include the relocation of data cables, electrical service, and phone lines. The goals of this initiative are to enhance the daily delivery of public safety services to the community, to reduce the time it takes to answer a citizen 911 call, and to increase the flow of information between the call-taker and the dispatcher. The Garden City Police Department is a full service police department located in southeastern Georgia in Chatham County. The funds will be used to purchase a four-wheel drive all-terrain vehicle capable of normal road speeds. The vehicle will be used to reach injured persons and transport them back to an ambulance or aircraft. It will also be used to transport needed supplies to an accident scene or to other police activity where a regular vehicle cannot go. The department will also use the funds to purchase equipment, to include the Universal Forensic Extraction Device, to extract call logs, photos, videos, text messages, and in some cases phone locations.

NCA/NCF