Minnesota Project Safe Neighborhoods 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 Minnesota Department of Public Safety, serving as the fiscal agent for the District of Minnesota, will use the grant to continue to focus on reducing gun crime on major Indian reservations in the state, paying particular attention to Red Lake, a federal jurisdiction reservation. The PSN task force will continue to use a multi-disciplinary approach in addressing gun crime by employing enforcement and prevention components. The PSN initiative will include support for the coordinator of the Headwaters Safe Trails Task Force (HSTTF), a Department of Corrections investigator, and the Red Lake Reservation community organizer. The HSTTF is an umbrella organization with an array of local, state, and federal investigators that work on Indian Country cases. The PSN-funded coordinator will ensure cooperation and information sharing among task force members. The Department of Corrections investigator will monitor, evaluate, and provide field investigators with information about confirmed or suspected gang members with a special emphasis on American Indian members. The PSN-funded crime prevention/community organizer on the Red Lake Reservation will be critical to building the community's resistance to gun, drug, and gang crime. The organizer will continue to convene regular community meetings, participate in meetings with local public safety groups, and educate the community on safety issues.

NCA/NCF