Award Information
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2009, $163,545)
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 Crime Commission of Delaware Valley, serving as the fiscal agent for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (EDPA), will use the grant to obtain specific resources necessary to build on present successes in Philadelphia and to refine and enhance current practices to address gun crime in the district. Funds will be used to hire a research and intelligence analyst to collect and analyze data from multiple sources, including the following: (1) intelligence information obtained from PSN Working Group meetings; (2) debriefings of witnesses, informants, targets, and defendants; (3) debriefings of patrol officers and other investigators; and (4) crime statistics. The analyst will input the data into an appropriate computer program designed to facilitate providing charts, graphs, summary reports, and other analytical documents. As a result of the analyst's work, the EDPA expects to be able to substantially enhance their ability to identify appropriate individual and organizational targets for federal prosecution of federal violations, including firearms, narcotics, Hobbs Act robbery, money laundering, and RICO.
NCA/NCF