TO: Public Safety Committee
FROM: William Evans, Chief of Police
SUBJECT:
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Resolution Requesting Authorization to enter into a Regular 2025 Justice Assistance Grant Intergovernmental Agreement between the City of Joliet and Will County
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BACKGROUND:
For the past seventeen years, the Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant has been made available to the City of Joliet and Will County. Awards are based on population and the number of Part I violent crimes each jurisdiction reports to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. These funds have been used for law enforcement purposes, generally for items that are not funded through the regular budget.
The requirements for this grant program indicate that the funds must be shared with Will County, which takes on the greatest burden of housing arrestees. In 2025, one Justice Assistance grant is available to the City of Joliet and Will County: the FY 2025 JAG. After discussing the award with Will County Representatives, the FY 2025 award of $96,673 will be split equally between the two agencies, each receiving $48,336.50.
The Joliet Police Department has elected to allocate funds to two projects: continuing to activate the law-enforcement-specific mental health app Cordico and submitting DNA evidence to private labs for cold case investigations. The department has made the mental health app available to all current and retired department members and their families for the past 4 years. Members have found the resources invaluable in mitigating the significant trauma they address as law enforcement employees. In addition, funds will be made available for private lab testing of evidence collected at cold cases. These labs specialize in extracting DNA profiles from old and degraded materials, something the Illinois State lab is unable to do.
Will County has elected to use their portion of the funds to equip half of the SWAT team with ballistic vests.
The City of Joliet Police Department will be responsible fo...
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