BIDDEFORD — The Biddeford Police Department is one of the recipients of grant funding by funding to enhance state, local and tribal law enforcement operations and reinforce public safety efforts in jurisdictions across the United States. The DOJ awarded more than $376 million in grant funding. Over $1.2 million will support public safety activities in the District of Maine. The awards were made by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs, or OJP.

Biddeford is being awarded a portion a $59,006 grant, BPD Deputy Chief JoAnne Fisk said.

“That grant is split between us, Sanford and Saco,” she said. “Our portion will be used to finish updating the locker rooms” at the BPD.

“Crime and violence hold families, friends and neighborhoods hostage, and they rip communities apart,” said OJP Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan. “These programs help restore the health and safety of crime-ravaged communities by supporting prevention activities, aiding in the apprehension and prosecution of perpetrators, facilitating appropriate sentencing and adjudication, and providing communities and their residents the means for recovery and healing.”

The awards will support an array of crime-fighting initiatives, according to a DOJ press release, including the quarter-billion dollar Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grants Program, which funds public safety efforts in 929 state, local and tribal jurisdictions. Funding also supports sex offender registration and notification, law enforcement-based victim services, the testing of sexual assault kits, and programs designed to address youth with sexual behavioral problems. Other awards will focus on wrongful convictions, intellectual property enforcement, innovative prosecution strategies and the safety and effectiveness of corrections systems.

“I’m proud of the long-standing partnerships the Department of Justice has with state and local law enforcement agencies in Maine,” U.S. Attorney Halsey B. Frank said. “The grants announced today will help keep the people of Maine safe and ensure that those who commit crimes in our state are brought to justice.”

Addition awards were made to jurisdictions in Maine include: State of Maine, $977,989; City of Portland, $96,898; City of Lewiston, $38,577; City of Augusta, $36,865; and Lincoln County, $10,728.

For more information about the programs and awards announced today, visit the OJP Awards Data webpage.

OJP, directed by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan, provides federal leadership, grants, training and technical assistance, and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, assist victims and enhance the rule of law by strengthening the criminal and juvenile justice systems. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.