News

Published by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the “2020 Data on Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA)” shows a total of 60,105 law enforcement officers assaulted while performing their duties, an increase of 4,071 from the 56,034 assaults reported in 2019. Of the 60,105 officers who were assaulted in 2020, 18,568 (30.9 percent) sustained injuries.44,421 officers were assaulted with personal weapons (e.g., hands, fists, or feet); 25.8 percent of these officers were injured.2,744 officers were assaulted with firearms;…

Published by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), this report discusses the grant awarded for a study of police/community relations. This study used college students to help drive the discussion on diversity and inclusion and how best to transform recruitment strategies for law enforcement agencies in the 21st century. Data for this study were collected through two methods: focus groups and convenings between college students and law enforcement managers and supervisors. The focus groups were conducted in four…

Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced ten new National Public Safety Partnership (PSP) sites which will work with the DOJ, local agencies and community organizations to reduce violence in areas with elevated crime rates. PSP serves as a DOJ-wide initiative which enables communities to receive coordinated training and technical assistance and an array of resources from DOJ’s programmatic and law enforcement components. The ten new cities are Antioch, California; Aurora, Colorado; Charleston/North Charleston, South Carolina; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Gary,…

Published by the White House, this key strategy document, “American Pandemic Preparedness: Transforming Our Capabilities,” outlines critical action needed to transform the United States’ “capabilities to respond rapidly and effectively to any future pandemic of high consequence biological threat.” The preparedness and response plan identifies the following five pillars as key areas requiring urgent attention in the effort to protect the country against future biological threats: Transforming our medical defenses, including dramatically improving and expanding our arsenal of vaccines, therapeutics…

Published by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Cyber Security Alliance, this toolkit is useful for government agencies and private industries alike. The toolkit provides a variety of resources to ensure that every American can stay safe and secure online, while increasing the resilience of the nation against cyber threats. Specifically, the toolkit provides the following and more: Four Weekly Key Messages – Week 1: Be Cyber Smart; Week 2: Fight the Phish!; Week 3: Explore. Experience. Share.;…

Behind every sexual assault case is a person whose life has been irrevocably altered. The first responders, law enforcement investigators, forensic nurse examiners, laboratory analysts, victim advocates, and attorneys who support and interact with victims in different ways can work together to positively impact a victim’s post-assault experience and improve healing and recovery. The Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Reporting (SAFER) Act is focused on the accurate, timely and effective collection and processing of DNA evidence in sexual assault investigations. In…

Funded by the Office for Violence Against Women (OVW), the National Violence Against Women Law Enforcement Training and Technical Assistance Consortium (LETTAC) Resource Center was developed for criminal justice colleagues in the field. LETTAC is a streamlined, comprehensive program for OVW grantees (and potential grantees) to request law enforcement related technical assistance tailored to their communities and priorities; access online materials and training 24/7; and stay up to date on the latest funding and other opportunities from OVW, stakeholders, and…

Published by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), this guidebook provides the law enforcement field with information about existing resources for promoting workforce diversity through a variety of staffing mechanisms. It is not meant to be exhaustive, but rather to promote awareness of research and professional publications which may not have been visible or accessible to practitioners. Though limited, the number of resources on this issue is growing and…

Through the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the US government launched a new Web site to help public and private organizations defend against the rise in ransomware cases. This Web site is a whole government approach which gives one central location for ransomware resources and alerts. Organizations are encouraged to use this new Web site to understand the threat of ransomware; mitigate risk; and, in the event of an attack, know what steps to take next. Visit the Web…

Published by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and in partnership with the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Office of Community Oriented Policing, and the Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative, Law Enforcement Intelligence – A Guide for State, Local and Tribal Law Enforcement Agencies, Third Edition builds on the first two editions which primarily focused on terrorism in illustration and application.  With changes in intelligence practices and threats to the community, a deliberate effort has been made in this edition…