Department of Justice names Philadelphia as one of ten new Public Safety Partnership Cities
PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia Police Department has been selected to participate in the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) National Public Safety Partnership (PSP). As part of this partnership, PPD will receive intensive training and technical assistance (TTA) from DOJ in the areas of gun violence, criminal justice collaboration, investigations, constitutional policing, community engagement, federal partnerships, crime analysis, and technology to identify, assess, and implement collaborative strategies and a lasting coordination structure to prevent and combat violent crime, especially related to gun, drug, and gang violence. PSP supports DOJ’s commitment to advancing work that promotes civil rights, increases access to justice, supports crime victims, protects the public from crime and evolving threats, and builds trust between law enforcement and the community.
Over the next three years, the PPD will develop a collaborative network consisting of local, state, and federal partners to develop comprehensive solutions to violent crime reduction. Our vision for this work is to gain better insight into the unique violent crime challenges in Philadelphia, and determine system-wide approaches to implement crime reduction strategies and enhance public safety.
“We are pleased to announce that the Philadelphia Police Department has been selected to participate in the Department of Justice’s Public Safety Partnership. Public Safety is the responsibility of everyone—not just law enforcement. The PSP will not only assist the PPD in ensuring that implementing the latest best practices, but it will also aid with collaboration between the department and other stakeholders,” said Mayor Jim Kenney. “This is a big win for our city, and it comes at no cost to our taxpayers.”
“I’m encouraged that Philadelphia was chosen to take part in the DOJ’s Public Safety Partnership—a program that will ensure the Philadelphia Police Department’s remains a leader in modern policing and will help protect our city,” said Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw. “As a learning organization, our department strives for best practices and equitable policing. PSP will help us improve our current practices, policies, and procedures so that our organization is in a better position to serve the community not just today, but far into the future.”
“I am grateful to the Department of Justice for selecting Philadelphia to participate in the PSP program,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams. “PSP emphasizes the importance of law enforcement and community partnerships, essential factors to achieving comprehensive and sustainable approaches to Philadelphia’s violent crime epidemic and a theme we have repeated again and again this year. PSP, with its vast support and resources, joins a growing list of initiatives through which the federal government seeks to assist the Philadelphia Police Department in its mission to reduce and combat violent crime, including the ‘All Hands On Deck’ effort and the ATF’s NIBIN Mobile Unit. Please take heart, Philadelphia; we are continuing to fight and will turn the tide of violence.”
“Violence—gun violence in particular—has taken a heavy toll on communities across the country, and its impact has been felt most deeply in neighborhoods where resources have always been scarce and justice has historically been elusive,” said Amy L. Solomon, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs, whose Bureau of Justice Assistance administers the PSP initiative. “We are proud to join local leaders and our partners from across the Department of Justice as we work together to stem the tide of violent crime in these hard-hit communities.”
“From five to now 50 jurisdictions in seven years, PSP has taught the Department a new way to work with communities. We have learned that it is only by leveraging the power of community and using all our collective resources and dedicating all our efforts that we will reduce crime,” said BJA Acting Director Kristen Mahoney. “We look forward to partnering with the ten new sites to achieve what we are all working toward—safe places to live and work.”
About the National Public Safety Partnership:
The PSP team supports local law enforcement and other key stakeholders in developing each site’s capacity to address its unique violent crime challenges to enhance public safety. Through a collaborative approach and data-driven decision-making, the PSP approach ensures that local resources are maximized and federal assets are leveraged where they are needed most. Implemented in 2014 as a pilot program, PSP has served more than 40 sites nationwide. The PSP team’s work is driven by local needs and priorities focused on increasing capacities to reduce violent crime and increase community engagement.
The National Public Safety Partnership (PSP) supports local jurisdictions in the prevention and reduction of violent crime through customized training and technical assistance (TTA) and coordinated access to a wide array of U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) law enforcement and programmatic resources.
PSP will help sites refine and implement violence reduction strategies and a lasting coordination structure among federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies, prosecutors’ offices, and other community stakeholders to enhance public safety. All of these services are provided to the Philadelphia Police Department and area stakeholders without cost to taxpayers or the City of Philadelphia.
Philadelphia was selected to participate in PSP through a process that considers both quantitative and qualitative measures, and in consultation with United States Attorneys and DOJ law enforcement partners.
In order to be considered for selection, sites must apply and have levels of violence that exceed the national average.
The Philadelphia Police Department looks forward to working with the PSP team to enhance our capacity to reduce violent crime while making Philadelphia a safer city in which to live, work and play.