A program of the Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance, Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation (BCJI) seeks to reduce crime and improve community safety as part of a comprehensive strategy to advance neighborhood revitalization.

December 2015

As BCJI enters its fourth year, this is quite a time for the local leaders around the country who are working to reduce crime in persistent hot spots while building community engagement and partnerships for lasting safety. Many of the inaugural BCJI sites are in the final months of their efforts, while second year sites are deep in program implementation and third year sites are wrapping up their planning. Read on for news from the network.

Rural BCJI Sites Seek Economic Development Models

Recognizing that crime is often linked to challenges of poverty and social isolation, BCJI sites around the country are bringing law enforcement leaders together with community and economic development partners to examine problems and pursue comprehensive solutions. This work looks different in rural and tribal communities as compared to urban areas, where much of the research on place-based crime prevention strategies has been conducted. BCJI leaders in Highland County, Ohio – about sixty miles east of Cincinnati – are charting the course for their rural crime reduction strategy with input from other practitioners in their region. In August, LISC joined thirteen members of the Highland County BCJI Team on a bus tour to three similar lake communities in rural Ohio. Each stop included meetings with local law enforcement, community development corporations, and agencies like the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to discuss challenges and successes in crime reduction, economic development and social services. LISC’s Rural program, which supports community development in 1,400 counties across 43 states, is partnering with LISC’s Community Safety Initiative to help translate the lessons from Highland County and other rural sites to the national network. 

BCJI Sites Tap Each Other’s Expertise

We’ve said it often but it bears repeating: Many of the best resources for BCJI sites are the partners involved in other place-based crime reduction and revitalization efforts, including those supported by the White House Revitalization Initiative and Promise Zones. To facilitate cross-site learning, LISC has deployed dozens of small grants to help local BCJI leaders visit sister sites and attend trainings or conferences with peers from other cities.  The pilot trip last spring saw residents and community partners from Baltimore’s McElderry Park visit leaders in Philadelphia’s Mantua neighborhood. They exchanged ideas on community engagement and learned how Mantua had built a network of more than 30 trained block captains as part of their BCJI strategy. Soon after, BCJI leaders from Austin and Dayton attended the Reclaiming Vacant Properties conference in Detroit sponsored by the Center for Community Progress. Austin Police attendees were among few law enforcement representatives at the conference, bringing an important perspective to the dialogue about problem property reclamation, along with other BCJI leaders from Baltimore, Flint and Tampa.

Youth Involved in BCJI

As school resumed this fall, many BCJI sites reflected on youth engagement work pursued over the summer and opportunities to work with young people during the school year.  Capturing the trust of young people and securing their consistent participation is one of the hardest elements of a comprehensive place-based approach to crime reduction.  One BCJI site that is leading the way in making youth active partners is the Brownsville Community Justice Center in Brooklyn.  Most recently, their Be On Belmont initiative - a “placemaking” project designed to turn the Belmont Avenue commercial street into a center of community activity – has empowered young people to select and spearhead arts and other space activation projects.  Learn more about the revitalization of Belmont Avenue.  

Webinars

In July, LISC led Building Community Leadership for Sustainable Crime Reduction, a webinar featuring Deron Johnston of Brownsville, Brooklyn and Barb Biondo of Seattle. They walked participants through the fundamentals of meaningful community engagement and approaches to involving residents in decision-making about crime reduction strategies, as well as broader efforts to improve neighborhoods.  If you missed this webinar you can find it archived here.

In September, a webinar entitled Strategic Communications for Public Safety Initiatives featured tips from Mershon and McDonald, LLC, a communications consulting firm, to help BCJI sites and others develop a communications plan that includes building a public profile, developing effective messages and using media as a tool to change the narrative in neighborhoods with disproportionate levels of crime and social disorder.  Access the archived recording here.

In November, a webinar Conversations in Sustainability featured speakers from the National Criminal Justice Association who demystified the work of State Administering Agencies and highlighted partnerships at the state and local level that can enhance program longevity.  Download slides from the webinar here. 

We wrapped up this year's webinars this month with Research Partnerships in BCJI featuring Alissa Huntoon of BJA to discuss BCJI's place in the "Smart Suite" and commentary from Drs. Dawn Irlbeck and Rebecca Murray of Omaha. They shared reflections from BCJI researchers around the country and tips for successful partnerships. Listen here.

BCJI On the Road

BCJI staff and partners have been active on the recent conference and meetings circuit.  

• 25th Annual Problem Oriented Policing Conference, October 19-21 in Portland, OR.  Finalists for the Herman Goldstein Award for excellence in POP included the Milwaukee and Portland BCJI sites. Other BCJI attendees included officers working with the Omaha and Providence sites and members of the LISC technical assistance team.
• 122nd IACP Annual Conference and Exposition, October 24-27, Chicago, IL. BCJI leaders from Lowell, MA and other sites participated in this conference for federal, state, county, local and tribal law enforcement agencies. 
• PolicyLink’s Equity Summit 2015, October 27-29 in Los Angeles, CA. As part of this conference, the Youth Policy Institute hosted a mobile tour of their Promise Zone, focusing on the Promise Neighborhood work in East Hollywood which overlaps with their BCJI target area.
• Solutions for Restoring Neighborhoods, November 5-6 in New Orleans, LA.  LISC and the Baton Rouge BCJI site presented on how BCJI and developer-law enforcement partnerships can contribute to neighborhood revitalization and safety efforts at this forum sponsored by National Housing Conference.
• Code Enforcement Academy, November 16-17 in Dallas, TX. Thanks to our national partner, the Center for Community Progress, BCJI had a large showing at this forum that examined how to move code enforcement from the “traditional to the transformative”. Participants included LISC and BCJI leaders from Erie, Highland County, Milwaukee, Omaha, Phillipsburg, Rockdale County and Worcester.
• Annual Meeting of the American Society of Criminology, November 18-21 in Washington, DC.  Participants included BCJI research partners and members of our technical assistance team from LISC, Vera Institute of Justice, the Police Foundation and the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy at George Mason University.
• Second Chance Act National Conference, December 16-18 in Washington, DC. LISC will be sharing BCJI lessons in a panel focused on reentry housing strategies.

For more information about BCJI work around the country, visit www.lisc.org/bcji or contact the LISC safety technical assistance team at csi@lisc.org

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