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Proceeds from the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program grant can be used to "hire community policing officers, develop and test innovative policing strategies, and provide training and technical assistance to community members, local government leaders, and all levels of law enforcement," U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said.
A total of $98,495,397 in grants went to 179 law enforcement agencies across the nation, allowing them to hire 802 additional full-time law enforcement officers, he said.
“Cities and states that cooperate with federal law enforcement make all of us safer by helping remove dangerous criminals from our communities,” Sessions saud.
He also that 80% of this year’s COPS Hiring Program grantees have agreed to cooperate with federal immigration authorities in their detention facilities.
Since 1994, the COPS program has distributed more than $14 billion to help advance community policing.
Federal authorities in September modified the program so that applicants would receive additional points "by certifying their willingness to cooperate with federal immigration authorities within their detention facilities," Sessions said.
"Cooperation may include providing access to detention facilities for an interview of aliens in the jurisdiction’s custody and providing advance notice of an alien’s release from custody upon request," the attorney general said.
"I applaud their commitment to the rule of law and to ending violent crime, including violent crime stemming from illegal immigration," Sessions said. "I continue to encourage every jurisdiction in America to collaborate with federal law enforcement and help us make this country safer.”
CLICK HERE for a complete list of grantees: https://cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/2017AwardDocs/chp/Award_List.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery
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