Faith Bannister | WVOW News
CHARLESTON West Virginia Governor Jim Justice recently announced the allocation of more than $1.2 million in Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program resources to assist state agencies, local governments, and private, non-profit organizations in carrying out programs that have a high likelihood of improving the functioning of the criminal justice system.
In order to develop and maintain jobs in West Virginia's criminal justice system, a special emphasis was placed on statewide and multi-jurisdictional projects.
“These grant funds will open up more possibilities for the incredible men and women working in our justice system,” Gov. Justice said. "I'm incredibly proud to award this funding. I’ve always said we always need to do everything in our power to help make our criminal justice system better and better, and that's exactly what this funding does."
The Logan County Commission received two awards totaling $90,750.
The first grant is to provide the funding for one or more uniformed officers to act as a mentor, role model, and advocate for students at Logan County high schools. The officer will provide course instruction on topics such as drug and alcohol awareness, social skills, and conflict resolution.
The second award will be utilized to support the U.S. 119 Drug and Violent Crime Task Force.
City councils and county commissions in Kanawha, Cabell, Wyoming, and many other counties received funding for similar crime prevention and reduction programs and task forces.
Statewide, the West Virginia State Police will receive almost $220,000 to provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force. The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia is to receive $45,000 to support a video conferencing project with the state department of corrections and rehabilitation.
More information can be found on the Governor’s website here.