Atlanta, Ga. — U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff is delivering new Federal resources to help fight violent crime in Metro Atlanta, West Georgia, and Northwest Georgia communities.
Sen. Ossoff is delivering $309,154 through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program to coordinate Federal, state, and local law enforcement efforts and help reduce violent crime.
With the funding, Georgia’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) and the Northern District of Georgia’s U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO) — whose district includes Metro Atlanta, West Georgia, and Northwest Georgia — will bring law enforcement officials together to address gang and repeated violent offender issues to keep the citizens of the Northern District of Georgia safe.
The Northern District’s U.S. Attorney’s Office is implementing a comprehensive prevention strategy to complement the coordinated enforcement efforts throughout the entire district.
“Violent crime is impacting Metro Atlanta and communities across Georgia,” Sen. Ossoff said. “Better coordination between law enforcement agencies at the Federal, state, and local levels can help us protect families from gun violence and gang activity.”
With the new resources, the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) will continue to implement a Credible Messenger initiative to intervene with high-risk juveniles. According to the DJJ, the Credible Messenger Model is an evidence-based prevention strategy that has rendered significant reductions in shootings and killings, re-arrests, and attitudes supporting violence.
The Northern District’s U.S. Attorney’s Office will also use a portion of grant funds for gang prevention and intervention efforts throughout the Northern District by supporting the expansion of the Georgia Chapter of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Gang Prevention Initiative, which will provide officer training on gang awareness and identification as well as gang prevention and intervention education to at-risk youth within the public school system.
Sen. Ossoff continues to advocate for public safety funding to combat violent crime in Georgia.
Last year, Sen. Ossoff pressed FBI Director Christopher Wray in a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing to address the violent crime crisis in Georgia and nationwide, calling on the FBI to ramp up their crime prevention and drug deterrence efforts in Georgia’s communities.
Sens. Ossoff and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) also introduced the bipartisan Justice for Murder Victims Act to help prosecute violent criminals and bring justice to homicide victims and their families.
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