Building Capacity in Criminal Justice Training and Technical Assistance Project

This program is funded under both the Edward Byrne Memorial Competitive Grant Program (Byrne Competitive Program) and the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. Authorized by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2009 (Pub. L. 111-8), the Byrne Competitive Program helps local communities improve the capacity of state and local justice systems and provides for national support efforts including training and technical assistance programs strategically targeted to address local needs. The JAG Program (42 U.S.C. 3751(a)) is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions, and JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system. The JAG Program authorization also states that 'the Attorney General may reserve not more than 5 percent, to be granted to 1 or more States or units of local government, for 1 or more of the purposes specified in section 3751 of this title, pursuant to his determination that the same is necessary'(1) to combat, address, or otherwise respond to precipitous or extraordinary increases in crime, or in a type or types of crime' (42 U.S.C. 3756). This program is also funded in part by the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Assistance Program (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2009 PUB. L. 111-8), which provides funds to defray the cost of planning, designing, establishing, and operating locally based, proactive programs to protect and locate missing patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias and other missing elderly individuals.

The National Initiatives: Enhancing Law Enforcement Program, administered by the Office of Justice Programs' (OJP) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), helps improve criminal justice systems and provides national programs and national efforts such as training and technical assistance to strategically address the needs of state and local justice systems and communities.

The Drakontas LLC will assist law enforcement in identifying crime facilitated through technology and the Internet, explaining its capabilities, identifying potential threats, and learning how to use the technology to the advantage of law enforcement. Law enforcement today faces increasing challenges in preventing and responding to crime, particularly with regard to crime facilitated through technology and the internet. As virtual games increasingly involve real-world activities and virtual lives begin to crossover into real-world contexts, law enforcement must understand the technology, its capabilities, and how to be proactively involved and to prevent and respond to crimes related to this technology, which changes every day. The Drakontas LLC will support up to 10 BJA training events or workshop presentations and develop materials to be published by BJA in electronic or other forms to keep law enforcement informed about the project and the changing technology.

CA/NCF