Award Information
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2009, $258,498)
The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) solicits applications for initiatives which assist law enforcement in rural states and rural areas. The program helps rural states and rural areas to prevent and combat crime, especially drug-related crime, and provides for national support efforts, including training and technical assistance programs strategically targeted to address rural needs.
The Assistance to Rural Law Enforcement to Combat Crime and Drugs Program, administered by BJA, helps rural states and rural areas prevent and combat crime, especially drug-related crime, and provides for national support efforts, including training and technical assistance programs strategically targeted to address rural needs. In addition, priority consideration will be given to local law enforcement agencies in rural areas where the unit of local government is not eligible to receive a direct allocation from the Recovery Act Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program or received a direct allocation that was $50,000 or less. Applicants were invited to submit a proposal under any one of the following categories to: (1) combat rural crime; (2) improve rural law enforcement investigations; (3) enhance rural detention and jail operations; (4) facilitate rural justice information sharing; or (5) develop a national training and technical assistance program.
Under Category 4, Navajo County will use its award to hire a Criminal Analyst/Investigator for the Navajo County Attorney's Office. Navajo County does not have a central depository for criminal case information to be collected, stored, analyzed, and shared. The Criminal Analyst/Investigator will work to address this. This position will collect and analyze data on a county-wide basis, provide education regarding intelligence-led policing, help guide the use of confidential informants, coordinate the investigative activities of the various law enforcement agencies within the county, and provide hands-on investigative assistance.
This grant will also be used to purchase computer hardware and software for the county's two Criminal Analysts/Investigators. Two laptops will be purchased and will be outfitted with software that will build a regional intelligence-led policing analytical program. I-Base software will create a relational database that will allow secure multi-user capabilities. It will work in conjunction with the Analyst Notebook to be purchased, which allows mapping for spatial analyses and can build timelines. This award will also be used to purchase communications software, the Lincoln Collection System, which can conduct surveillance of audio, text messages, and e-mails. Other software purchases include software that converts PDF files into searchable text, software that maps where crimes have occurred and will produce a view of where future crimes are most likely to occur, and data-mining software that can search and index e-mail, web pages, and case file reports.
CA/CF