Grant to 'supercharge' local efforts to fight guns, gangs
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
Thursday, September 20, 2007
By Kim Crawford
kcrawford@flintjournal.com -- (810)766-6242

Can a crime-fighting program credited with reducing gun violence in a portion of Detroit be replicated in Flint and other cities plagued by gangs and illegal weapons?

Detroit-based U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Murphy, Flint Police Chief Gary Hagler and other local and federal law enforcement officials were scheduled today to announce a $1-million, three-year grant for Flint, Saginaw and Jackson, aimed at doing just that.

Murphy said the grant would "supercharge" local law enforcement efforts in the three cities by allowing them to combine with federal authorities in targeting and prosecuting illegal firearms crimes and gang offenders.

"This funding is crucial in helping to make the city of Flint a safe place by giving us additional resources we need to combat criminal street gangs and illegal guns that plague our community," Hagler said.

The grant was to be announced in a news conference late this morning at the U.S. attorney's office in the federal courthouse in Flint.

The "Three Cities Initiative" is being called an expansion of the U.S. Justice Department's Project Safe Neighborhoods. The grant money is divided among the cities by population and crime rates. Murphy noted that in recent rankings, Flint was called the fourth-most-violent city per capita in the U.S., while Saginaw was fifth.

The grant will pay overtime costs for police to work on and meet with federal agents and prosecutors for sharing information, planning and prosecuting what law enforcement officials described as "the worst of the worst" gang offenders; for community outreach and public awareness efforts, to encourage residents to share information; conducting sweeps or roundups of suspected offenders; and for evaluating the effort's effectiveness.

Plans call for the federal law enforcement agencies - including the Drug Enforcement Agency, the FBI and U.S. Marshals - to work closely with state and local departments.

Can it work?

The officials note that the Three Cities Initiative is modeled on a Project Safe Neighborhoods' program called Operation TIDE, with TIDE standing for Tactical Intelligence Driven Enforcement. That task force effort, going on in certain Detroit police districts, contributed to a 43 percent decrease in homicides and a 26 percent decrease in nonfatal shootings in the city's northwestern district, according to a statement issued by the feds.

The officials encouraged those who know of illegal guns and firearms trafficking or gang members who are carrying weapons to call an anonymous 24-hour tip line at (800) ATF-GUNS.

In addition to the new Three Cities Initiative and Operation TIDE, Justice Department grants have funded drug-testing kits for parents to determine if their children are using drugs; firearms safety and anti-gun violence programs aimed at middle-school students; and face-to-face meetings between prison parolees and authorities to warn ex-cons the tough prison penalties that they'll face if they're arrested with firearms.

Federal grant targets gun crime
THE SAGINAW NEWS
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
By Dean Bohn

Saginaw police will share a $1.1 million federal grant with Flint and Jackson over three years to combat gun violence.

U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Murphy and other law enforcement officials will offer details about the grant at an 11 a.m. Thursday press conference in Flint.

Saginaw Police Chief Gerald Cliff will attend along with other law enforcement officials from the three grant communities.

''Gangs and guns is what this boils down to,'' Cliff said. ''The ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) is predominantly behind this.

''We cannot hire more officers with this money,'' he said. ''There are guidelines, and most of the funds will go to targeted enforcement concentrated on gun crimes. The money will help pay for overtime so it doesn't come out of the general fund, and will allow us to bring in assistance from outside -- such as the county and the state -- for periodic enforcement efforts. This is not a

24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week thing.''

Cliff said Saginaw has five established gangs, with two more trying to establish their territory. He said it is difficult to know exactly how many gang members are active in the city.

''All I know is they are far too prolific in this city -- even one member of a gang would be,'' he said.

Cliff figures 75 to 80 percent of the shootings and homicides in the city are gang-related. ''But it's not always easy to establish if a crime can be locked in as a gang-related crime,'' he said.

The effort against gun and gang violence will follow the Project Safe Neighborhoods Operation TIDE (Tactical Intelligence Driven Enforcement) initiative under way in Detroit.

''We advocated for more resources for three major cities in the Eastern District of Michigan where gun violence is increasing and gangs are becoming more organized and detrimental to the quality of life in these communities,'' Murphy said.

Participating agencies in each city include the city police departments, county prosecutor's office, county sheriff, state police, ATF, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, the U.S. marshal's office and the FBI, with the U.S. attorney's office as the lead agency, he said.

War on gangs gets boost
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
By Steven Hepker
shepker@citpat.com -- 768-4923

Members of the Bloods gang surrounded a First Street home on Oct. 28, 2005, flushed out a rival and shot him in the head.

It was payback time for Devin McCain, who pummeled a Bloods member weeks earlier. Three alleged Bloods were convicted and are serving prison terms for the murder.

The killing and the gang's efforts to stymie the investigation prompted Jackson County's first grand jury in 40 years.

The court case also exposed gang activity as a factor in Jackson's illicit drug and gun crimes.

A $1 million grant, which officials will detail Thursday, will help law enforcement in Jackson, Flint and Saginaw fight gang and gun violence.

Jackson's share --$110,000 over three years -- is the smallest because the violent-crime rate and the city's size are the smallest in the trio, Jackson Police Lt. Aaron Kantor said.

Police and prosecutors will use the money to seek better monitoring and stiffer sentences for the most violent criminals, he said.

The $1 million federal grant also will create a network among investigators to share resources and intelligence based on the Project Safe Neighborhoods Operation under way in Detroit.

Jackson prosecutors for three years have worked with the U.S. Attorney's office to channel some violent firearms offenders into the federal system, where sentences can double.

"The grant will help us establish a more regimented review system," Kantor said.

State police, the county sheriff's office and prosecutor's office will share Jackson's grant.

There will be more collective sweeps and initiatives, and officials plan a team effort with parole and police officers making home visits to violent parolees, Kantor said.

Kantor and prosecutors said law enforcement might seek more grand jury investigations to combat gun crimes and gangs.

FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Law enforcement officials say a $1 million federal grant will help fight gun violence and gangs in Flint, Saginaw, and Jackson.

The "Three Cities Initiative" program will follow the model of the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative in Detroit.

TIDE stands for Tactical Intelligence Driven Enforcement. The grant is from the U.S. Department of Justice.

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