MassLive - Springfield Police to Use $1 Million Justice Department Grant to Combat Crime in South End

News Article

By Peter Goonan

A $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice will be used by local law enforcement agencies to coordinate and concentrate anti-crime efforts in the Hollywood section of the South End, officials said Monday.

The Police Department will be working in partnership with the state police, the Hampden County Sheriff's Department, and with community partners in the South End to reduce crime, similar to a program in the North End, officials said during a press conference at City Hall.

The federal grant, announced last month, is from the Edward J. Byrne Criminal Justice Innovative Program.

"This is a terrific and significant award for the city of Springfield," Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said. "It's all about partnership and teamwork, facilitation, networking and making the community part of the solution."

The program is based on the Counter Criminal Continuum program used in recent years in the North End, and credited with reducing crime there.

The North End strategies included stepped up and targeted police patrols, partnerships with community groups, distribution of educational materials, and blight reduction efforts, according to a summary.

The response in the South End will include special details and overtime details, while the local police will receive training and support from the state police, Police Commissioner William Fitchet said.

By choosing a small area, such as Hollywood, law enforcement can attack the problem, and really make a significant change and "then hope that it blossoms out in the rest of the community and generally it does," Fitchet said.

U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, said the grant will help Springfield launch an integrated effort to root out crime that tends to prey on the vulnerable and the poor.

"Nothing in the lifetime of all of us that are standing here has done more to damage the reputation of urban living than street crime," Neal said.

The Sheriff's Department is receiving about $75,000 from the grant to provide services for former inmates, as part of the overall effort.

State Police Lt. Col. Edward Amodeo said the state police look forward to expanding the Counter Criminal Continuum effort with local police. The program is a modification of counterinsurgency methods used by U.S. Army special forces, and adapted for use by local law enforcement to reduce crime.

Under the program, there can be planned deployments of assigned, trained officers to work on a specific crime problem, such as narcotics, gang activity, violent crime or traffic infractions, police said.

The Byrne grant is designed to lead to comprehensive "community-oriented based initiatives that involve multiple sectors and disciplines, as well as community representatives from all types of organizations, to work together to reduce and prevent crime and to revitalize communities," according to a the Department of Justice grant announcement.

City Councilor Bud L. Williams joined in praising the grant.

"This is war, it's a battle," Williams said. "We can't let this be the wild, wild west."

Police Sgt. Brian Elliot, grants writer with the Police Department, worked with local and state officials including Springfield Housing Director Geraldine McCafferty, to help obtain the grant.

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