As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to support communities seeking to implement or expand community violence intervention efforts, the Bureau of Justice Assistance, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Education, and the White House Domestic Policy Council, has hosted a webinar series on Community Violence Intervention (CVI).
The recently published third edition of Law Enforcement Intelligence – A Guide for State, Local, and Tribal Law Enforcement Agencies (Law Enforcement Intelligence Guide) aims to spark a policy-oriented discussion of current initiatives, national standards, and best practices for law enforcement agencies aiming to enhance intelligence capabilities. The guide builds upon the previous two editions by describing changes in intelligence practices in the context emerging threats and criminal extremism beyond international terrorism.
On July 212021, the Bureau of Justice Assistance, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Education, and the White House Domestic Policy Council, hosted the second webinar in the Community Violence Intervention (CVI) Webinar Series. During the webinar, titled “CVI Webinar Series Part 2: Place-based Approaches to CVI”, presenters discussed CVI efforts in the context of a place-based approach.
On July 20th, 2021, the Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) partnered with the Bureau of Justice Assistance to host a pre-application webinar for the National Service Line for Incarcerated Victims of Sexual Abuse Initiative. The National Service Line for Incarcerated Victims of Sexual Abuse Initiative aims to identify if a National Sexual Abuse Service Line will effectively assist correctional facilities and agencies with complying with and achieving Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) Standards.
Correctional authorities use risk and need assessment (RNA) tools to determine how likely a person who has been convicted and sentenced for a crime is to commit another crime or violate the rules of a previous sentencing. These tools help correctional authorities make decisions that maximize public safety in the most resource-efficient manner possible.
The Regional Information Sharing Systems (RISS) Program, with support from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, supports local, state, federal, and tribal criminal justice entities by offering various resources to enhance law enforcement efforts. For example, RISS helps facilitate cross-agency collaboration through the RISSLeads Investigative website. Through this platform, law enforcement officers can interact with one another across jurisdictions to share investigative leads, information, or other issues.
The National Center for School Safety (NCSS) is a Bureau of Justice Assistance Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing (STOP) School Violence Program national training and technical assistance provider focused on improving school safety and preventing violence. NCSS aims to support STOP grantees and the nationwide school safety community as they work to address school safety challenges.
Prosecutors play an integral role to regularly collaborate with community organizations and members to protect the community and develop best practices to reduce victimization. To further support prosecutors in the pivotal role they play within communities across the nation, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) offers various grant funding, training and technical assistance, and other resources to ensure that prosecutors are well equipped to serve their respective communities. These resources are outlined in BJA’s “Programs That Support Prosecutors” fact sheet.
The National Police Foundation, in partnership with the Bureau of Justice Assistance, recently published a guidebook on Staying Healthy in the Fray: The Impact of Crowd Management on Officers in the Context of Civil Unrest. The guidebook aims to provide law enforcement personnel—frontline officers, mid-level supervisors, and law enforcement executives—a resource to use as law enforcement officers respond to mass demonstrations.
The Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center, with support from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, recently released the report “A Matter of Public Health and Safety: How States Can Support Local Crisis Systems.” The report discusses five actions state policymakers can take to fund and sustain local crisis systems, which relieve the burden on law enforcement, hospitals, and jails while providing individuals with much-needed resources to address and prevent mental health crises.