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Office
of News and Information
June 2, 2003 |
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United States Attorney Matthew D. Orwig announced today that The University of Texas at Tyler has been awarded a Department of Justice grant in the amount of $149,987. UT Tyler has been awarded the grant to serve as the Research Partner/Crime Analyst for the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative. Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is a comprehensive strategic approach to reducing gun violence in America, which is a top domestic criminal justice initiative of President George W. Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft. Modeled after Texas Exile, PSN promotes partnerships among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to target violent criminals who use guns, and insures that when an armed criminal is arrested, that individual will face swift criminal prosecution, and upon conviction, stiff mandatory prison sentences. PSN commits substantial resources to address gun violence. The Department of Justice is seeking to provide more than $901 million over three years to hire new federal and state prosecutors, support investigators, provide training, and develop and promote community outreach efforts. A portion of those funds is designated for the Research Partner/Crime Analyst grant program. Dr. Peter Phillips, UT Tyler associate professor of criminal justice, and Dr. Barbara Hart, UT Tyler chair of social sciences and associate professor of criminal justice, will utilize their grant over the next three years to analyze crime patterns, and develop successful strategies for reducing gun violence across the Eastern District of Texas. “I am excited to be joining forces with the UT Tyler Criminal Justice Department. Dr. Phillips and Dr. Hart bring a wealth of experience and expertise in criminal justice matters. With their help, Project Safe Neighborhoods will be a successful initiative to reducing gun crime violence, and making our communities safer,” said US Attorney Orwig. “We are pleased to participate in this federal effort to reduce gun violence in our community. This participate between the university and federal agencies is a good example of the interactive role that universities play in community and professional situations,” said Dr. Hart. “It is a win-win arrangement for all involved, federal agencies, the community, the university and our students.” “We might note also that it works particularly well for our internship program as well as providing real-life research experience for our graduate students. This project is of particular value to us as faculty working directly with the agencies in order to bring the most contemporary issues into our classroom teaching, and, because so many of our students will be employed in the East Texas area, these are real, East Texas issues,” Dr. Phillips added.
Contact person: Emily Battle, (903) 565-5604
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