Department of Justice Awards More than $15 Million for De-Escalation and Crisis Response Training for Law Enforcement

WASHINGTON - The Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) today announced that it has awarded more than $15 million in grant funding for law enforcement agencies and stakeholders across the country through its Safer Outcomes: De-Escalation and Crisis Response Training for Law Enforcement grant program. There were 42 awards made to agencies in 23 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico that will use these funds to promote training on de-escalation and crisis response for law enforcement officers, civilian staff, and mental health professionals working with officers on crisis intervention teams.

These funds will go to support areas including de-escalation tactics and alternatives to use of force; safely responding to an individual experiencing a mental or behavioral health or suicidal crisis; safe encounters with individuals with disabilities; successfully participating on a crisis intervention team; and making referrals to community-based services and support.

"Local law enforcement agencies know that de-escalation and crisis response training is critical to ensuring that the community is provided with officers who are skilled in these areas and are always receiving the most up-to-date and cutting-edge training available," said Hugh T. Clements, Jr., Director of the COPS Office. "Both the community and law enforcement are the beneficiaries of this type of training."

The full list of all Safer Outcomes award recipients, including funding amounts, can be found here.

The COPS Office is the federal component of the Department of Justice responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Department of Justice agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation's crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to organization for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. The COPS Office has been appropriated more than $20 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, territorial, and Tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 138,000 officers.