U.P. agencies get crime-fighting grants

Upper Michigan agencies will receive more than $200,000 in grants to be used in the effort to fight drugs and crime.

• Michigan Department of State Police – U.P.S.E.T. has been awarded Byrne JAG funds in the amount of $193,364 for Multijurisdictional Task Forces.  The Upper Peninsula Substance Enforcement Team (U.P.S.E.T.)  is a multijurisdictional drug enforcement task force operating in 12 counties of the Upper Peninsula. The team’s efforts focus on narcotic awareness, education, and enforcement.

• City of Menominee – Menominee Police Department has been awarded Byrne JAG funds in the amount of $20,000 for School Safety.  The Menominee Police Department will partner with the Menominee Area Public Schools to enhance school security by purchasing access control door locks with intercoms and high definition video surveillance. This technology will secure entry doors, implement remote video monitoring, improve emergency response, and reduce the risk of school violence.

Governor Rick Snyder announced Monday that criminal justice agencies across Michigan will receive more than $6 million in federal grants to strengthen anti-drug and crime fighting efforts in our state.  The funding is made possible through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne JAG) Program and the Residential Substance Abuse Treatment for State Prisoners (RSAT) Program, both of which were applied for and awarded to the State of Michigan earlier this year.

“These grants will be used to enhance public safety in our state by combating drug abuse and violence,” Snyder said. “This funding will help build stronger communities through increased enforcement, prevention and treatment efforts throughout the criminal justice system.”

Byrne JAG funds support all aspects of the criminal justice system, and this year’s awards focus on school safety, multijurisdictional drug task forces, priority population drug courts, data-driven policing, juvenile-focused community policing, indigent defense and prosecutorial efforts.

RSAT funds support the development and implementation of residential substance abuse treatment programs in correctional facilities.

Agencies receiving funding have until Sept. 30, 2014, to spend their awards.  A complete list of awarded programs is available at www.michigan.gov/cjgrants .

Byrne grants are named in honor of New York City Police Department Officer Edward Byrne.  Byrne was fatally shot by drug traffickers in 1988, while on assignment protecting a witness in a drug case.