The New Haven Gun Project, a program designed to reduce gun violence and remove dangerous offenders from city streets, has received an award from the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
At their annual conference in Toronto Monday, the IACP presented one of three Webber Seavey Awards for Quality in Law Enforcement to the New Haven Police Department and to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut.
“The Webber Seavey Award exemplifies law enforcement’s most innovative, successful contributions to the quality of life in our communities,” IACP spokeswoman Sara Johnson said.
The gun project brings together several state and federal agencies and focuses on strategies for reducing gun violence, including the identification and removal of dangerous gun offenders from the community, rehabilitation for convicted felons and a map system that integrates criminal activity data with logistical information.
Participating groups include the U.S. Attorney’s Office; the NHPD; the office of the New Haven state’s attorney; the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; and the Connecticut State Police.
“Rather than only focusing on prosecuting offenders, we have joined with those who can offer these individuals assistance with job training, employment counseling or drug rehabilitation,” U.S. Attorney John A. Danaher said in a written statement. “We want them to know that help is available if they want to live their lives without returning to crime.”
New Haven Police Chief Melvin H. Wearing cited a 17 percent drop in violent gun crimes over the last three years as evidence of the project’s success.
“The department has greatly benefited from the opportunity to map gun-related crime for the purpose of detecting emerging patterns as well as manage information on weapon purchases and permits through geographical analysis,” he said.
–Yale Daily News