Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG)
FY 2024 Local Solicitation
DRAFT APPLICATION
Harrisburg Bureau of Police – Victim/Witness Assistance Program
The Dauphin County Victim/Witness Assistance Program (V/WAP) began in 1983 as a community project developed by the Young Lawyer’s Section of the Dauphin County Bar Association. The program received 501c (3) tax-exempt status by 1984 and began serving crime victims. In 1985, V/WAP received its first grant from the PA Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) through Act 96—the Bill of Rights for Crime Victims. Historically, V/WAP was largely operated by volunteers and interns from local colleges, with only a small paid staff. As Pennsylvania has increased the amount of funding available for victim services, V/WAP has expanded its staff and the number of services they are able to provide. Today, the program serves more than 8,000 victims each year and employs 18 full-time staff members.
With the FY24 JAG funding, V/WAP will retain one (1) full-time crime victim advocate, who will maintain an office at the Harrisburg Bureau of Police. This particular position helps reduce response times to individuals requiring V/WAP’s services, but also offsets existing costs associated with overtime that would be required of other employees. The crime victim advocate will provide the following services: crisis intervention, translation services for non-English speaking victims, support and accompaniment during court proceedings, arrangement of transportation services and daycare, notification of prisoner release or escape, assistance applying for victim compensation, and any other services the victims and/or families may need.
This position has been supported by previous JAG funds and would not be maintained without the support of this funding year after year. This is because V/WAP faced a 62% reduction in state and federal funding support in 2013. The program’s primary funding sources, the Victims of Juvenile Offenders (VOJO), Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), and the Pennsylvania Rights and Services Act (RASA), continue to be reduced or level-funded from years when significant reductions were handed down. As such, the program only receives partial support for this position from these other funding streams and V/WAP must work diligently to identify and secure all potential sources of available funding. Otherwise, they would not be able to continue their critical work in the community.
V/WAP works closely with all County arresting agencies, the judiciary, and both public and private attorneys. In addition, the executive director sits on the Dauphin County Criminal Justice Advisory Board (CJAB). This board includes members of the judiciary, county commissioners, adult and juvenile probation, the District Attorney (chairman), the warden of the county jail, and the Dauphin County police chiefs, among others. The CJAB allows a forum for accomplishing county-wide initiatives through discussion and prevents duplication of efforts or wastes of resources by agencies involved. The current CJAB strategic plan calls for continued efforts to address violence and the impact of violence in the city and surrounding areas, thus the use of these funds for the purposes specified are supported via a cross-collaborative criminal justice planning process.
Harrisburg Bureau of Police
The Municipalities Financial Recovery Act, commonly known as Act 47, allows the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) to declare municipalities as financially distressed. Municipalities that receive an Act 47 designation are then eligible to receive special loans and grant funds, as well as technical assistance, to formulate financial recovery plans. A 2014 amendment to the act provides these municipalities up to eight (8) years to exit receivership, despite criticisms from policymakers that this amount of time is insufficient to recover from financial distress. Harrisburg City adopted a five-year Strong Plan in 2013; however, in 2018 it was determined Harrisburg was not ready to exit Act 47 status. A new three-year exit plan was developed. Though the City is required to have exited Act 47 by 2021, no order of termination has been issued by the DCED.
In addition to Harrisburg’s city-wide financial distress, the Bureau of Police experiences a budget shortfall each year, making it difficult for the Bureau to fund much needed services and equipment. Since 2006, the Bureau has realized an increase in expenditures for salaries/wages and benefits, legal services, and auto deductibles due to an on-going increased need for police services. A high daytime population increase (as much as 65% of the resident population) and a popular downtown entertainment district (drawing crowds as large as 5,000 people each night) contribute to this need. Furthermore, FBI crime data indicates that Harrisburg’s violent crime rate is 6.18 per 1000 residents, over two times higher than the state’s 2.8 violent crimes per 1000 residents and the national rate of 2.68. The chances of becoming a victim of a violent crime in Harrisburg is 1 in 162, compared to 1 in 357 in the state overall. The property crime rate in Harrisburg is 16.32 per 1000 residents, while the state’s is 14.83 and the nation’s is 2.83.
In order to compensate for city and department budget constraints, the Bureau must work to secure additional funding to support its mission: to protect and serve the public with honor, integrity, and professionalism… [and] work in partnership with our citizens to keep Harrisburg a safe place in which to live, work, and play. Therefore, the Harrisburg Bureau of Police respectfully submits this application for grant funding through the FY2024 Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program to maintain the following items: NIBRS compliance, Crimewatch, PowerTime PlanIt, and CODY COBRA. Please refer to the budget narrative for additional details on the need for these items, which have been funded by previous JAG grants (15PBJA-21-GG-01773-JAGX, 15PBJA-22-GG-02257-JAGX, and 15PBJA-23-GG-03726-JAGX). Their purchase would not be possible without the continued support of this grant funding.
Other initiatives Harrisburg City and the Bureau of Police oversee include the City’s group violence intervention (GVI) initiative, which is funded by a PCCD grant. The city is using a three-legged approach that includes law enforcement, the community, and providers, similar to what York City has done. In 2023, York reported a 75% reduction in homicides, a 63% reduction in firearm-related injuries, and a 50% decrease in shots fired incidents. Harrisburg’s strategy predominantly involves street and school outreach, performed by a trusted community member, to connect at-risk individuals to various community providers and resources. Beyond the GVI initiative, the City also received a local law enforcement (LLE) grant and a gun violence investigation and prosecution (GVIP) grant from PCCD. The LLE grant is utilized to purchase, update, and enhance the Bureau’s technology, as well as hire additional civilian staff and retain existing sworn police officers to reduce violent crime and increase clearance rates in Harrisburg. The GVIP grant funds gun violence reduction initiatives and improves gun violence investigation and prosecution in the City.
The Bureau of Police also participates in the CJAB-led crisis intervention team (CIT) training program. The CIT program provides training for law enforcement officers on supporting individuals with mental health needs. Participants learn skills on de-escalation, as well as how to interact with those with mental illness, a co-occurring disorder, intellectual or developmental disability, and those in crisis. In the field, CIT-trained officers are paired with mental health co-responders (social workers) to promote public safety and divert individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) and/or co-occurring disorders out of the criminal justice system and into treatment. To date, 406 personnel have been trained, with 230 of those personnel are police officers spread across 15 Dauphin County police departments. Over 20% of the officers at Harrisburg Bureau of Police and Lower Paxton Township Police Department are CIT trained.
In addition, the Bureau operates a Community Services Division (CSD) as one of their primary divisions. The CSD is responsible for building trust between law enforcement officers and the community through positive police contacts, programs, and services. Examples of activities CSD hosts include monthly community barbeques, summer youth basketball camps, National Night Out, and various other festivals and events. The CSD is the division primarily responsible for the execution of activities related to GVI.
Lower Paxton Township Police Department
Lower Paxton Township is a Township of the second class, located in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. The Township encompasses approximately 28.1 square miles with a 2020 US Census population of 53,501 and is the 17th largest of the 2,600 municipalities in the state of Pennsylvania. 98% of the population is considered urban and 2% is considered rural. The area is predominantly residential in nature and is home to the largest commercial/shopping corridor in the Harrisburg Metropolitan area. It is also home to the Central Dauphin School District, which serves 12,000 students from five different municipalities. The Lower Paxton Township Police Department (LPD) was officially created in 1958 and has attained full accreditation status with the Pennsylvania Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission.
In 2009, the Department had an authorized compliment of 63 sworn full-time police officers. Due to the Great Recession, the Department experienced budget reductions in practically all budget categories, including personnel. These budget cuts resulted in staff reductions among sworn and civilian staff positions. Nine sworn full-time police officer positions (a 14% reduction in sworn full-time positions) were eliminated; the complement of sworn officers remains at 57 today. Luckily, police officer staff reductions did not involve layoffs; rather, existing vacancies were not filled. On average, the Department handles 32,000 calls for service each year, 400 reported traffic crashes, and approximately 2,400 criminal offenses per year.
As a result of these budget cuts, LPD relies heavily on grant funds to maintain daily operations and on-going improvements. Previous JAG grants (15PBJA-22-GG-02257-JAGX and 15PBJA-23-GG-03726-JAGX) have enabled the Department to install license plate readers at vital intersections. In this application, the Lower Paxton Police Department requests funding to purchase 2 years of social media subject suggestive identification (facial recognition) software from Clearview AI. The purchase of this software will assist police officers with suspect identification. Please refer to the budget narrative for additional details.
Other initiatives the Department is engaged in include the CIT/co-responder program. As previously mentioned, over 20% of the officers at LPD are CIT trained. LPD currently employs one mental health co-responder and was recently awarded a PCCD grant to hire a second. The addition of the second co-responder will further enhance the Department’s efforts to divert individuals with SMI and/or co-occurring disorders out of the criminal justice system. LPD also received the LLE grant from PCCD to fund retention, recruitment, and training efforts, as well as IT enhancements.
SF-424 Budget Categories – Summary:
PERSONNEL (FEDERAL) $23,348
PERSONNEL (NON-FEDERAL) $0
FRINGE BENEFITS (FEDERAL) $2,826
FRINGE BENEFITS (NON-FEDERAL) $0
TRAVEL (FEDERAL) $0
TRAVEL (NON-FEDERAL) $0
EQUIPMENT (FEDERAL) $0
EQUIPMENT (NON-FEDERAL) $0
SUPPLIES (FEDERAL) $36,296
SUPPLIES (NON-FEDERAL) $0
CONSTRUCTION (FEDERAL) $0
CONSTRUCTION (NON-FEDERAL) $0
SUBAWARDS (SUBGRANTS) $0
PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS (FEDERAL) $0
PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS (NON-FEDERAL) $0
CONSULTANT (FEDERAL) $0
CONSULTANT (NON-FEDERAL) $0
OTHER COSTS (FEDERAL) $0
OTHER COSTS (NON-FEDERAL) $0
INDIRECT COSTS (FEDERAL) N/A ($0)
INDIRECT COSTS (NON-FEDERAL) N/A ($0)
TOTAL: $62,470
Victim/Witness Assistance Program (V/WAP) – Harrisburg City Budget for Advocate
Salary and benefits for one (1) full-time victim advocate located in the Harrisburg City Bureau of Police and serving the Harrisburg City Bureau of Police only. The crime victim advocate works together with police to ensure all victims and witnesses of crime have all the services, notifications, and information as required by law.
Total allocated funds - $26,173 to V/WAP
2024 (for 2025) PERSONNEL AND FRINGE BENEFITS
Title Computation Cost
Harrisburg City Victim Advocate 50% of salary @ $46,696/annual $23,348
Total Personnel Costs $23,348
FICA $23,348 x 7.65% $1,786
Health Insurance $10,200 x 10.18% $1,039
Total Benefits $2,825
TOTAL Personnel & Benefits costs $26,173
TOTAL 2024 (for 2025) V/WAP JAG Allocation Portion $26,173
The remaining funding for this position comes via federal and state grants. The monies indicated below and in the financial disclosures section are used to support the salaries and benefits associated with the work of the advocate in addition to the federal JAG money. This combination of funding sources ensures the position is sustainable. Without the leveraging of resources, this position would not be maintained.
| Federal or State Funding Agency | Position Supported & Percentage of Support | Solicitation Name/Project Name | Name/Phone/E-mail for Point of Contact at Funding Agency |
|---|
| PA Commission on Crime & Delinquency (PCCD) – Federal Funding | Harrisburg City Advocate – 25% | Rights-and-Services-Act (RASA) grant, Dauphin County VWAP | Ms. Victoria L. McCloskey
(717) 265-8746 |
| PA Commission on Crime & Delinquency (PCCD) – Federal Funding | Harrisburg City Advocate – 25% | Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grant, Dauphin County VWAP | Ms. Victoria L. McCloskey
(717) 265-8746 |
Harrisburg City Bureau of Police Budget:
All quoted pricing is COSTARS or valid Pennsylvania government pricing and will be approved by the purchasing office at the County and reviewed by the City before initiating purchases under this grant.
SUMMARY:
(Supplies) NIBRS – Computer-related purchase to ensure maintenance of computer software with NIBRS data exchange = $8,602
(Supplies) Crimewatch Web Portal subscription
Harrisburg Police Department annual subscription fee = $5,500
(Supplies) PowerTime (PlanIt) – Web-based scheduling software system for managing police tracking of time and property = $8,521
(Supplies) CODY COBRA subscription
Harrisburg Police Department connection fee (PORTION ONLY based on availability of grant dollars) = $3,550
Total Harrisburg City Bureau of Police JAG 2024 = $26,173
Additional Narrative:
Considering the Bureau’s financial situation, the purchase of new and upgraded equipment is needed for the daily operations within the City. Therefore, the Bureau of Police respectfully submits this application for grant funding through the FY 2024 Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program for the following items:
NIBRS Compliance:
A portion of the 2023 JAG grant application, though not required to be, will be set aside to ensure the continued support and maintenance of NIBRS for the City of Harrisburg. Based on prior technical needs and on-going conversations about this requirement, it is expected that a maintenance fee will be required to ensure the upkeep of the NIBRS communications established by the City records management software (RMS) vendor, CODY. Money from previous JAG grant was used entirely to support the funding of the City in becoming compliant with NIBRS.
Crimewatch – Subscription fee:
The CRIMEWATCH™ Network is a front-end, web based, content management network designed to create inter-agency sharing at local, state, and national levels. Agencies who participate can easily organize and share information in a controlled manner with other agencies, the press and the public. Customized websites, built on a predesigned platform within the framework of the Crimewatch (CW) Network, provide law enforcement agencies with a simple vehicle to manage, organize, and control fugitive and offender information. The CW Portal is a control point for disseminating information to the public. The forum encourages public interaction by offering dynamic, hyper‐personal information that is easily shared across social media networks and other forms of electronic communication. The funds requested through this grant will be used to support the subscription of Harrisburg PD to the Crimewatch Portal. This leverages information from the public and provides crime-mapping for the entire county for the first time. The current subscription for the police department was paid via Federal Grant Funding (15PBJA-21-GG-01773-JAGX, 15PBJA-22-GG-02257-JAGX, and 15PBJA-23-GG-03726-JAGX), and funding is again required to support the department’s subscription.
The site was officially live as of July 8, 2013, and continues to be updated by police administrators. Metrics are being captured include the “reach” of the site to the public. Crime mapping analysis can be completed using this information (this is not part of the public-facing platform). We consider the Crimewatch web portal to be a promising method of communicating with the public and ensuring outreach on unified multi-media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. Please use the following links to view the current Dauphin County Crimewatch portal and the Harrisburg Police iteration of the site: https://dauphin.crimewatchpa.com/ and https://dauphin.crimewatchpa.com/hbgpd
POWERTIME (PLANIT)
PowerTime is a web-based personnel scheduling system built specifically for law enforcement. PowerTime can manage scheduling, time off, open shifts, court appearances, and equipment tracking. This system will provide a way for staff to track court appearances, for the City Police Bureau property to be tracked among other features, all utilizing one system. PowerTime is compatible with Power DMS and Tyler Technologies. PowerDMS is a software utilized by most police departments in Pennsylvania, to assist with maintaining accreditation policies and procedures, and ensure a secure workflow and precise pathway to completed documentation.
CODY COBRA System
The last item which will be included in this application includes monies for Harrisburg City Police Bureau to connect to the countywide CODY COBRA system. The COBRA system is a framework by which multiple Police Records Management Systems (police RMS) can share information. One county police department can have vendor “X” provides its RMS as that vendor meets their data needs, and one police department can have vendor “Y” because that vendor and produce better suits that agency’s data needs; this disparate system approach disrupts the ability to share investigative information in a timely manner. The COBRA system acts as a data warehouse where, if interfaces are built and available and appropriate releases are signed by the departments, data from the disparate police RMS can be shared to the COBRA hub and then analyzed by agencies with access. It is CJIS compliant.
Currently there are more than 20 Dauphin County, Cumberland County, and Lancaster County police departments that share information on this network. COBRA is live as of June 2019. Dauphin County has been able to pay for the first few years of funding under the current contract for all participating agencies, and police departments are expected to pay a significant portion of the cost of their access to that data moving forward after July 2023. Harrisburg City does not have funding available to cover these expenses and needs to—due to its rates of crime and importance of criminal data—use JAG dollars to cover this expense. The contract Dauphin County has with COBRA runs on a Pennsylvania state fiscal year (July 1 – June 30) and is renewable annually. Police use the data in the system for investigations and to see if there are connections among cases from county to county. Though relatively new, the promise of adding data feeds from a variety of systems to this hub, and growing the information network within, is boundless.
Lower Paxton Township Police Department (SUMMARY):
All quoted pricing is COSTARS or valid Pennsylvania government pricing and will be approved by the purchasing office at the county and reviewed by the Township before initiating purchases under this grant.
SUMMARY:
(Supplies) Clearview AI Basic Package – 5 licenses
Social media subject suggestive identification (facial recognition) software – year 1 = $5,495
Social media subjective identification (facial recognition) software – year 2 (PORTION ONLY based on availability of grant dollars) =$4,628
Total Lower Paxton Township Police Dept JAG 2024 = $10,124
Clearview AI
Clearview AI is a privately-owned, US-based company that provides cutting-edge technology to law enforcement, government agencies, and the military to investigate crimes, enhance public safety, and secure their communities. The web-based intelligence platform is powered by facial recognition technology and includes the largest known database of 50+ billion facial images sourced from public-only web sources, including news media, mugshot websites, and public social media, among others. Some notable contracts Clearview AI holds include the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, FBI, and Department of Justice.
Benefits of facial recognition software include:
- The rapid identification of individuals, helping reduce the amount of time and resources required to pinpoint suspects and/or persons of interest in investigations;
- Significant time savings as the technology can process and compare thousands of faces per second, which can aid in the quick apprehension of suspects;
- Cold case resolution by comparing old photographs to contemporary databases, allowing investigators to make breakthrough identifications that were previously unattainable.
Facial recognition software can also serve as a crime prevention measure. The presence of security cameras and facial recognition systems can act as a deterrent and discourage individuals from committing crimes where they know they may be identified.
