On the solemn occasion of the 20th anniversary of September 11, 2001, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the Preventing Violence Against Law Enforcement and Ensuring Officer Resilience and Survivability (VALOR) and State and Local Anti-Terrorism Training (SLATT) Programs remember the lives lost that tragic day. In partnership with BJA, SLATT, and VALOR, this video honors the brave men and women who served so heroically as first responders on September 11, 2001, and the many others who provided investigative and other invaluable support during its long aftermath. That day marked the deadliest in American history for law enforcement line-of-duty deaths: on this anniversary, we remember those lost and the countless other law enforcement, fire, and EMS personnel who have since succumbed to illnesses directly related to their service at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the Flight 93 crash site in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Their names are forever inscribed in the testimony of American sacrifice.

As we pay tribute to the heroes of September 11, let us always remember—and never forget.

Published by the National Police Foundation (NPF), this report discusses the significant concerns surrounding ghost guns. The term “ghost gun” encompasses a variety of firearms produced from components that are not currently regulated by federal firearm laws. Most commonly, ghost guns are produced from components purchased from businesses and individuals that most often include nearly finished aluminum, polymer frames, or receivers. Advances in ghost gun parts manufacturing facilitate homemade production of firearms by nontechnical users. Public safety and gun violence prevention advocates cite the growing representation of ghost guns in crime as well as the ease of production, lack of background checks, and poor traceability as reasons that ghost gun components and kits should be regulated like all other firearms. In response to this issue, NPF conducted a study of 24 diverse law enforcement agencies (LEAs), which addressed current knowledge gaps by exploring law enforcement’s experience with ghost guns to provide a national overview of current perceptions, practices, and recommendations for improving public policy.

Hosted by the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C) and funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, this webinar will highlight how law enforcement teams can connect with schools, communities, and organizations to create a culture of prevention and harness the power of innovative and disruptive solutions to disrupt status quo processes and save more lives. These strategies empower your school, organization, and community teams to collect and connect the dots and eliminate common and costly gaps, silos, and disconnects to more effectively prevent suicides and other and tragedies so you can start saving lives, reputations, and bottom lines every day. Participants will learn how a culture of prevention helps communitywide teams to eliminate soaring fears, liabilities, lawsuits, and costly long-term consequences. 

When: Tuesday, September 14, 2021
Time: 1:00 p.m. – 2:15 p.m., ET

Hosted by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center, this webinar discusses community responder programs (CRPs). CRPs have been implemented in some localities to address concerns with appeals from residents to institutionalize public safety and crisis response systems without further reliance on incarceration. This virtual discussion will focus on data collection and utilization strategies in CRPs and will feature speakers from the CSG Justice Center, Portland Street Response (PSR), and Integral Care. This discussion is a precursor to “Taking the Call,” a virtual national conference exploring innovative community responder models that will be held on October 20–21, 2021. Sessions will explore the opportunities and challenges in rethinking responses to emergency calls through strategies such as CRPs.

When: Thursday, September 16, 2021
Time: 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m., ET

Published by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, this blog discusses the importance of resiliency in law enforcement. The effects of a deadly global pandemic, coupled with national outrage in response to shocking police actions, have left many officers evaluating their careers and attempting to forecast the unpredictable nature of their work conditions given this current reality. We are now seeing the toll that this radically changed policing environment is having on our officers. COVID-19 has become the leading cause of all duty-related deaths, followed by suicide.