EDVA Announces Availability of Half a Million Dollars in Grant Funding for Project Safe Neighborhood Initiatives

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia (EDVA), announced today the availability of over $500,000 in grant funding for Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN) initiatives.

"Addressing violence requires an all-hands effort," said U.S. Attorney Aber. "Communities that work closely together are more successful in driving down violent crime rates. Prevention, intervention, and enforcement go hand in hand to tackle the root causes of violent crime. PSN grant funding is an important resource in a strategy that assists communities and neighborhoods to work together."

Since 2022, local organizations in EDVA have received over $750,000 in PSN grant funding. The last two years of PSN recipients include the following:

• Project Safe Alive and Free (SAF) supports a Group Violence Intervention effort in Hopewell and the surrounding Tri-Cities area that pairs community violence intervention methods and intense life coaching with a trauma-based violence intervention program. This program also works collaboratively with Assistant United States Attorneys from EDVA's Richmond Division.
• Parents Against Bullying Virginia (PABVA) facilitates anti-bullying programs in the Newport News public school system including "Girl & Gent Talk" group sessions with at-risk youth and the STAR Bright Kidz Puppet program.

• The City of Richmond RVA League for Safer Streets, focuses on prevention and intervention for young individuals who may be susceptible to or involved in gangs by facilitating a Midnight Basketball League where youth are engaged in workshops on topics such as conflict resolution.
• Ballistic IQ technology for the police departments of the cities of Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, and Hampton.
• A three-year research grant on the impact of effectiveness of Group Violence Intervention by the George Mason Center for Evidence Based Policy.

• Real Life Group Violence Intervention and services for individuals making re-entry into the community from correctional facilities.

EDVA's PSN violence reduction strategy, which is supported by these initiatives, sets the following goals to reduce violent crime:

• Engage, collaborate, and invite community stakeholders to share responsibility in efforts to reduce violent crime. The Group Violence Intervention (GVI) strategy is an example of this.
• Build trust between law enforcement and the community through effective communication, regular interaction, and the support and protection of crime victims.
• Reduce accessibility and possession of handguns among minors.
• Reduce re-offending and break the cycle of re-victimization.
• Disrupt and dismantle the region's most organized and violent gangs.
• Identify chronic violent offenders responsible for a disproportionate level of violent crime.
• Work with citizens in neighborhoods most impacted by violent crime on harm reduction strategies.

The U.S. Attorney and the PSN Grant Committee encourage organizations and local and state agencies whose programs support our PSN goals within the district to apply for the remaining grant assistance by visiting the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) website at https://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/grants/programs/fy-2024-project-safe-neighborhoods-grant-program-eastern. Applications must be submitted in the DCJS Online Grants Management System (OGMS) no later than 5:00 p.m. on May 29, 2024.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice's violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime. The PSN Grant Committee is currently prioritizing three regions impacted most by violent crime - Richmond, Newport News, and Norfolk - but will evaluate grant applications from across the Eastern District. Applicants submitting a grant may apply for funds between $25,000 and $200,000.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.