Part 1 of this three-part webinar series, sponsored by the National Criminal Justice Training Center, provides insight and strategies to effectively rethink how police agencies operate and connect with the community. Three distinct areas will be considered for developing an inclusive and engaged community police department. This webinar series is designed for police executives and officers, government leaders, community members, and those who are committed to supporting effective policing strategies for their communities. The webinar details the fragile history that has existed between law enforcement and communities of color, as well as major historical events and how they have impacted police-community trust.

When: Thursday, October 8, 2020
Time: 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m., ET

This report, published by BJS, highlights the number of persons who were victims of violent crime in 2019. BJS announced that after rising from 1.1 million in 2015 to 1.4 million in 2018, the number of persons who were victims of violent crime excluding simple assault dropped to 1.2 million in 2019. BJS announced that statistics on crimes that have occurred in 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, are being collected now and will be reported next year.

Funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance and hosted by the State and Local Anti-Terrorism Training (SLATT) program, this webinar provides a follow-up question-and-answer session to the SLATT Chat Podcast, “Seconds Matter.” Upon registering for the webinar, you will receive an exclusive sneak peek at the SLATT Chat Podcast in preparation for the webinar. After listening to the podcast, join Lieutenants Brian Murphy and Mike Madden to discuss and participate in the follow-up live Q&A session. This webinar is open to sworn law enforcement; law enforcement agency personnel, such as analysts with intelligence responsibilities; fusion center personnel; and those with a homeland security-related mission.

When: Tuesday, September 29, 2020
Time: 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon., ET 

This webinar, hosted by the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s National Training and Technical Assistance Center, will discuss the importance of using data to identify problematic patterns that need correction as well as best practices that could be replicated for the criminal justice system. Webinar attendees will learn about the essential aspects of turning data into action, including:

• Developing performance indicators to track goals.
• Identifying the type of data needed to populate performance indicators. 
• Addressing issues of data access and quality. 
• Best practices for data processing. 
• Communicating complex data in ways that are easy to understand

When: Tuesday, September 29, 2020
Time:  1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m., ET

The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) announced nearly $50 million in school safety funding through its School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP). The Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing School Violence Act of 2018 (STOP School Violence Act of 2018) gave the COPS Office authority to provide awards directly to states, units of local government, Indian tribes, and public agencies (such as school districts and law enforcement agencies) to improve security at schools and on school grounds in the jurisdictions of the grantees through evidence-based school safety programs.  The 160 awards announced can be used for coordination with law enforcement; training for local law enforcement officers to prevent student violence; and metal detectors, locks, lighting, and other deterrent measures to improve security.