FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | BJA | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1997 | 202/307-0703 |
BJA PROVIDES $3.7 MILLION TO 37 JURISDICTIONS
TO TEST INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO LOCAL PROBLEMS
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded grants totaling $3.7 million to test approaches to reducing crime and encouraging collaboration in the criminal justice system. BJA made these grants to 37 local communities under its first-ever open solicitation for innovative concepts to respond to problems BJA identified in four key areas. BJA received over 1,700 proposals from virtually every state.
For example, the Maryland State's Attorney's Office in Baltimore will develop a witness security system program in response to hundreds of incidents of witness intimidation in recent years, which have interfered with the swift prosecution of chronic offenders. In San Francisco, the Judicial Council of the Courts will help truant and runaway children by linking courts, families and volunteers through a Family Assessment and Intervention Resource Center. The center will be a judicially supervised, non-adversarial program that will offer prompt, community-based prevention, intervention and treatment services in a neighborhood setting.
"We asked the field for new, innovative ideas and they responded in force," said BJA Director Nancy Gist. "We received concept papers from police, the courts, prosecutors, pre-trial services, defenders, and other criminal justice officials representing virtually every segment of the criminal justice system. While limited funding will permit BJA to fund only 37 of these proposed programs, the ideas received from those applicants that did not receive awards will also be valuable because we will use the information gathered from the proposals to help form our discretionary funding policies in Fiscal Year 1998, and to provide this information to other components of the criminal justice system."
Jurisdictions were invited to submit concept papers under four categories: issues in law enforcement, issues in the adjudication process, issues in rural communities, and issues in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Each category included three or four topic areas the proposed initiatives could address. Each topic area addressed specific problems identified within the four categories.
BJA made 11 awards to American Indiana or Alaska Native communities Many of the programs combine tribal justice approaches with traditional law enforcement techniques to better serve the communities and make them safer.
"We're glad that we are able to work with American Indians and Alaska Native communities through this innovative program," added Gist. "These communities face very challenging law enforcement and criminal justice problems that sometimes require unique responses. This program provides us with an excellent opportunity to work closely with American Indian and Alaska Native grantees to develop creative initiatives that can be replicated in tribal jurisdictions nationwide."
To ensure objective evaluation of the proposals, BJA enlisted the help of almost 200 criminal justice practitioners from across the country, who reviewed the proposals and made recommendations to BJA officials regarding which proposals should receive funding.
For additional information about the Open Solicitation or BJA, visit its website at: https://ojp.gov/bja
For additional information about OJP or its other bureaus and programs, visit the OJP website at: https://ojp.gov
Individual project summaries are available for each grant award. To obtain a copy of a summary or summaries, please contact Doug Johnson or James Phillips at 202/307-0703.
# # #
BJA 97-112
After hours page Doug Johnson at 1-888/582-6753
FY 1997 BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE OPEN SOLICITATION AWARDS
STATE | GRANTEE | AMOUNT | PROGRAM PURPOSE | CONTACT | PHONE |
AK | Yupiit of Andreafski | $ 50,000 | Substance Abuse Prevention for Minors | Gail Alstrom | 907/438-2312 |
AK | Alaska Court System | $108,934 | Witness Intimiddation/Participation | Stephanie J. Cole | 907/264-0547 |
AZ | Pascua Yaqui Tribe | $ 50,000 | Juveniles Charged As Adults | Steve August | 520/883-5190 |
AZ | Pima County Superior Court | $150,000 | Gang Prevention | Kim M. Holloway | 520/740-3310 |
AZ | West Ends Residents Org. | $ 50,000 | Witness Intimidation/Participation | Joyce Lopez | 520/550-2883 |
CA | Fresno Co. District Attorney | $150,000 | Witness Intimidation/Participation | Steve Polack | 209/488-3141 |
CA | Judicial Council of the Courts | $150,000 | Strengthening Court/Community Relationship | Dianne Nunn | 415/396-9284 |
CA | Vacaville Police Dept. | $137,830 | Witness Intimidation/Participation | Lt. Ed Goldberg | 707/449-5277 |
FL | Orange County | $150,000 | Substance Abusers with Mental Health Problems | Robert Spivey | 407/836-7370 |
FL | Leon Co. Circuit Court | $150,000 | Improving Case Processing and Court Administration | John Stott | 904/921-4328 |
GA | Chatham Co. District Attorney | $ 62,848 | Witness Intimidation/Participation | Spencer Lawton, Jr. | 912/652-7308 |
GA | Randolph Co. Commission | $ 73,000 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | Larry J. Kearley | 706/596-5525 |
IA | 5th Judicial District | $ 30,045 | Community-Based Partnerships to Prevent Crime and Violences | Beth Lenstra | 515/242-6585 |
IA | 5th Judicial District Dept. Of Correctional Services | $ 74,806 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | James Hancock | 515/242-6582 |
STATE | GRANTEE | AMOUNT | PROGRAM PURPOSE | CONTACT | PHONE |
LA | Vidalia District Attorney | $ 75,000 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | Madaline C. Gibbs | 318/336-5526 |
ME | Maine Judicial Department | $146,639 | Improving Case Processing and Court Administration | James T. Glessner | 207/822-0792 |
MD | Baltimore State's Attorney's Office | $150,000 | Witness Intimidation/Participation | Haven Kodeck | 410/396-4646 |
MI | Little River Band of Ottawa Indians | $150,000 | Strengthening Court/Community Relationship | William J. Brooks | 616/723-8761 |
MN | Mille Lacs Band | $ 50,000 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | James Genia | 320/532-4181 |
MN | Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians | $ 49,995 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | Wanda L. Lyons | 218/679-3303 |
MO | St. Louis Police Department | $150,000 | Law Enforcement/Prosecution Coordination | Larry Pattison | 314/444-5771 |
MT | Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes | $ 75,000 | Community-Based Partnerships to Prevent Crime and Violences | Jacque A. Morigeau | 406/675-2700 |
MT | Chippewa Cree Tribe | $ 50,000 | Preventing Substance Abuse by Minors | Robert Gopher | 406/395-4207 |
NM | Pueblo of Jemez | $ 50,000 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | Vincent Toya | 505/834-7539 |
NM | Sante Fe Police Department | $150,000 | Meeting the Special Needs of Certain Individuals Involved in the Criminal Justice System | Lt. Kim Koomoa | 505/473-5053 |
NM | New Mexico Office of Indian Affairs | $150,000 | Juveniles Charged As Adults | David R. Schmidt | 505/242-2726 |
NV | Clark Co. Public Defenders Office | $ 74,952 | Addressing Regional Problems Through Technology or Resource Sharing | Robert D. Larsen | 702/455-4685 |
STATE | GRANTEE | AMOUNT | PROGRAM PURPOSE | CONTACT | PHONE |
NY | Niagara Co. Sheriff's Dept. | $137,236 | Law Enforcement/Prosecution Coordination | James A. Wesolowski | 716/438-3331 |
NY | New York City Office of the Mayor | $150,000 | Juveniles Charged As Adults | Jennifer Schultz | 212/788-6822 |
NC | Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians | $ 50,000 | Gang Prevention | Gene Crowe, Jr. | 704/497-9208 |
OH | Howland Township | $ 68,026 | Improving Case Processing and Court Administration | John D. Emmanuel | 330/856-2340 |
OR | Portland Police Bureau | $149,997 | Meeting the Special Needs of Certain Individuals Involved in the Criminal Justice System | Sheryl Lahey | 503/823-0259 |
TX | Boerne Independent School District | $ 75,000 | Community-Based Partnerships to Prevent Crime and Violence | Mellie Bergman | 210/537-4750 |
WA | Longview Police Department | $104,500 | Law Enforcement/Prosecution Coordination | Robert Burgreen | 360/425-0249 |
WV | State of West Virginia | $150,000 | Juveniles Charged As Adults | Tammy Collins | 304/558-8814 |
WV | Glenville State College | $ 75,000 | Addressing Regional Problems Through Technology or Resource Sharing | Wilard M. Oliver | 304/462-7361 |
WI | HoChunk Nation | $ 50,000 | Cost-Effective Alternatives to Incarceration | Georgia Lonetree | 715/284-7548 |
Total: $3,718,808