Eastern District Louisiana Project Safe Neighborhood Initiative

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 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 personnel for the COPS for Kids Program, Youth Empowerment Project (YEP), Village Program, Greater New Orleans Afterschool Partnership, and Crimestoppers in order to reduce gun crime in the area. 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. YEP will provide intensive mentoring, case management, and educational services to at-risk New Orleans youth in order to strengthen each young person's capacity to be a productive member of their community and to lay the foundation for a healthy transition to adulthood. The Village Program will provide wraparound education services to at-risk youth. The Greater New Orleans Afterschool Partnership seeks to plan the creation of the New Orleans Youth Council, a model of civic engagement and youth participation to address youth issues in the city of New Orleans. Crimestoppers will continue to support 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.

NCA/NCF