U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

and California Office of Criminal Justice Planning

Grants Workshop

I am pleased to announce and cordially invite you and/or your staff to attend the 34th Congressional District U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (DOJ-COPS) and the California Office of Criminal Justice Planning (OCJP) Grants Workshop being held on Monday, November 25, 2002 at City of La Puente Community Center, 501 N. Glendora Avenue, La Puente from 8:00 am to 12:30 pm.

Representatives from the DOJ-COPS and OCJP will provide invaluable information on several community safety programs addressing child abuse, violence in welfare, crime suppression, domestic violence, drug enforcement, gang violence, school, juvenile justice, sexual assault and school safety plus answer questions.

Grant funding provided by the DOJ-COPS and OCJP is challenging and intense. Applicants must submit a timely and persuasive application, and possess an understanding of how the federal funding process works in order to achieve grant funding.

Please join with other local civic leaders, city planners, educators, law enforcement and non-profit representatives, and residents of South East Los Angeles County in a hands-on workshop with direct access to the U.S. DOJ-COPS and OCJP representatives, plus providing you with many networking opportunities.

Please do not hesitate to contact Senior Special Assistant Huma Ahmed (562-801-2134) in my Santa Fe Springs District Office or Daniel Chao in my Washington office (202-225-5256) if you have any additional comments or questions.

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U.S. Department of Justice Grants Workshop

Monday, November 25, 2002

City of La Puente Community Center

501 N. Glendora Avenue

La Puente, California 91744

8:00 - 9:00am - Registration

9:00 - 12:30pm - Presentations from U.S. Department of Justice and California Office of Criminal Justice Planning

1^st Presentation -- US Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)

COPS supports law enforcement in many ways. In addition to grants, COPS offers technical assistance, a wide variety of training in innovative community policing strategies, and numerous publications that help law enforcement agencies address specific crime problems. COPS delivers much of this training through the national network of COPS-funded Regional Community Policing Institutes (RCPIs).

Mr. Tim Harding from U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) will provide an overview of grant opportunities and other programs provided by the COPS office. Since 1995, COPS has invested $10 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to 12,900 state and local law enforcement agencies to develop new, community-conscious policies and practices regarding traffic stops, the use of force by officers, civilian review boards, community-representative recruitment and hiring, and other issues that affect public confidence in law enforcement. Tim Harding w/ COPS Federal office will speak about grants issued under COPS Program, and describe their application process, which is different from other DoJ grant applications. A question and answer session will immediately follow his presentation.

• COPS Programs include: Assistance to law enforcement entities with decision making when purchasing information technology systems to fight crime, and graffiti cleanup.
• COPS' Creating a Culture of Integrity initiative provides up to $125,000 to law enforcement agencies to develop new, community-conscious policies and practices regarding traffic stops, the use of force by officers, civilian review boards, community-representative recruitment and hiring, and other issues that affect public confidence in law enforcement.
• MORE (Making Officer Redeployment Effective) grants help state and local law enforcement agencies acquire and deploy crime-fighting technologies to enhance community policing.

For more information about COPS Programs and Office, please visit the website at http://www.usdoj.gov/cops/. 

2^nd Presentation -- California Office of Criminal Justice Planning (OCJP)

Mr. Don Sherman from the California Office of Criminal Justice Planning (OCJP) will provide an overview of U.S. Department of Justice block grants available through the CA (OCJP). CA OCJP provides grants to execute over 60 programs to address child abuse, violence and welfare, crime suppression, domestic violence, drug enforcement, gang violence, juvenile justice, and sexual assault.

For more information about the Governor's Office of Criminal Justice Planning, please visit the following website: http://www.ocjp.ca.gov/

PRESENTERS

Tim Harding works in the Congressional Relations Division of the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) as a Legislative Advisor. He started at COPS in 1996 as a Grant Program Specialist for the State of Ohio and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. In 1997 he became the Deputy Team Leader for the largest grant program at COPS, the Universal Hiring Program. In 1998 he became the Team Leader for the Small Communities Grant Program, and then the Team Leader for the COPS Technology Grant Program.

After working as a detailee to the Senate Appropriations committee in 1999, he returned to COPS to serve in the position he currently holds.

Mr. Harding graduated from Penn State University in 1995 with a B.S. in Administration of Justice and minor in Spanish. Prior to that, he served in the 42nd Bomb Wing and the 401st Tactical Fighter Wing of the United States Air Force as a survival equipment specialist.

Don Sherman has been with the Governor's Office of Criminal Justice Planning since 1999, and is presently the Chief of the Public Outreach/Quality Assurance Division. Prior to entering State service, Mr. Sherman was Chief Counselor and Program Administrator with the Victims of Crime Resource Center at McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento. Funded in part through a grant from the Governor's Office of Criminal Justice Planning, the Center operates the State's 1-800-VICTIMS number and serves over 5000 victims each year. Mr. Sherman was employed at the Center for seven years before accepting a position with the Governor's Office of Criminal Justice Planning. In addition to his career in Victim Services, Mr. Sherman also served as a firefighter in Colorado, and a sworn peace officer in San Joaquin County, prior to attending college and law school at the University of the Pacific. Mr. Sherman and his wife, Lei Ling, and infant son, Donald, reside in Elk Grove, California.

Representative Grace Napolitano, 34th District of California 1609 Longworth Building, Washington, DC 20515    Phone 202-225-5256       Fax 202-225-0027 This is an official Web site of the United States House of Representatives.