WASHINGTON, DC ? Today, the Department of Justice?s Office of Justice Programs (OJP) announced that San Diego County, California will receive funds totaling over $500,000 to implement their Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) strategy, which is part of a national program to target gun violence and violent crime in neighborhoods and communities across the country.

     As part of the Administration?s commitment of $901 million over three years, 94 Project Safe Neighborhoods task forces are working to implement the coordinated strategy to reduce gun violence. Administered by OJP?s Bureau of Justice Assistance and led by the U.S. Attorney in each of the federal judicial districts, each local program is tailored to fit the unique gun crime problem in that district in five essential areas:

• Promoting partnerships among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to review and prepare gun cases for prosecution;
• Supporting strategic planning within all U.S. Attorney Offices for attacking gun crime and violence;
• Providing more expansive and comprehensive training for law enforcement officers and prosecutors;
• Developing community outreach and public awareness campaigns;
• Evaluating effectiveness of plans and emerging trends in bi-annual reports to the United States Attorney General.

     ?Project Safe Neighborhoods supports law enforcement efforts at every level to protect our citizens and hold criminals accountable, ? said Assistant Attorney General Deborah J. Daniels. ?With these resources, San Diego County will work to target gun crimes with more aggressive prosecutions, and promote community outreach. Efforts such as these will help to protect communities and neighborhoods all across the country.?

     The San Diego County PSN program will use funds to support several initiatives. A Youth Gun Violence Reduction Project will serve 10 local schools with a gun safety campaign to reduce youth access to firearms, and to educate parents and educators on gun safety issues. Other initiatives include: a Gun Violence Reduction Program that will provide overtime, equipment and training to support increased law enforcement activity relating to gang-related gun crime; a Handgun Violence Prevention Curriculum that will provide handgun violence prevention information to middle school students in 8 San Diego after-school programs; and a Gun Confiscation Program that will enforce laws and seize firearms from persons prohibited from possessing firearms. For more information contact Vaughn Jeffery with the San Diego County at 619-615-6366.

     Detailed information about the PSN federal partnership, training and outreach opportunities is available on the PSN Web site at www.psn.gov.

     The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership in developing the nation?s capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice and assist victims. OJP is headed by an Assistant Attorney General and comprises 5 component bureaus and 2 offices: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; and the Office for Victims of Crime, as well as the Executive Office for Weed and Seed, and the Office of Police Corps and Law Enforcement Education. Information about OJP programs, publications and conferences is available on the OJP Website, www.ojp.usdoj.gov.

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