The Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance today awarded $4 million in funding to provide training and technical assistance to support the Byrne State Crisis Intervention Program. The three training and technical assistance providers will support grantees selected through a companion solicitation which provides funding to states and subrecipients for the creation or implementation of state crisis intervention court proceedings, extreme risk protection order programs and related gun violence reduction programs and initiatives.

“To reduce violence and protect the safety and health of our communities, we must invest in solutions that help us better respond to people in crisis and keep guns out of the hands of those who may harm themselves or others,” said OJP Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon. “These awards will support states and communities across the country as they put in place commonsense and effective measures that address the devastating impact of firearm violence and get those most at risk the help they need.”

The funding is authorized by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which was signed into law by President Biden in June 2022. The act is the first meaningful piece of federal gun safety legislation in almost three decades and comes as a response to recent mass shootings and to the far more common, but no less tragic, incidents of community gun violence.

Three recipients were awarded $4 million in grants under three sperate categories:

• Johns Hopkins University received $2 million under Category 1: Developing and Supporting Extreme Risk Protection Order Programs to assist Byrne SCIP state grantees and their subrecipients in implementing extreme risk protection order programs.

• The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges received $1 million under Category 2: Supporting State, Local, and Tribal Courts Implementing Safer Communities to assist state, local, and tribal courts in assessing and responding to court-involved individuals who may pose a risk to themselves or others with a firearm. The funding will also support the development of trainings for court staff and judicial officers regarding firearms laws and best-practices, as well as tools and resources designed to deepen courts’ capacities to identify and respond to court-involved individuals in crisis.
• The National Criminal Justice Association received $1 million under Category 3: Implementing Safer Communities Training and Technical Assistance to support both Byrne SCIP and Justice Assistance Grant recipients in building capacity to collect and report data related to the implementation of crisis intervention programs. NCJA will also help grantees prepare for potential participation in an evaluation of the effectiveness of the crisis intervention programs in preventing violence and suicide.

“The Byrne State Crisis Intervention Program is a major step forward in institutionalizing our nation’s response to gun violence,” said BJA Director Karhlton F. Moore. “These investments in capacity building and data collection will equip our state, local and tribal partners with the expertise and resources to tackle one of the most intractable, and unacceptable, public safety challenges of our time.”

For more information on BJA’s Byrne SCIP program, please visit: https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/o-bja-2023-171458.

The Office of Justice Programs

The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation's capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance racial equity in the administration of justice, assist victims and enhance the rule of law.

More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

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