Millions being poured into Washington state to fight gun violence

The U.S. Justice Department is pouring more money into Washington communities to help combat gun and other forms of violence.

U.S Attorney Nick Brown announced Tuesday that more than $3 million in grants is being funneled to organizations in Washington state.

“These federal dollars help each department meet its local priorities,” Brown said. “Western Washington organizations also obtained funding for innovative programs aimed at youth violence intervention. I’m pleased to see the Peacemaking Academy, the Children and Youth Justice Center, Burien’s Enhanced Youth Services, and the Washington Partnership on Juvenile Justice all obtained substantial federal dollars to support their work.”

The Peacemaking Academy will receive $300,000 (a program from Alliance for Gun Responsibility Foundation). Seattle's Children and Youth Justice Center will get $2 million for leadership and intervention programs.

Also, Burien’s Enhanced Youth Services will get $300,000, and the Washington Partnership on Juvenile Justice will get $1 million — both are focused on preventing youth violence through intervention.

On top of the youth programs, 10 cities, three counties, and the state of Washington will get a combined $3.7 million to help with law enforcement needs.

The funding comes from a larger pool of grant money — a total of 19 federal grants adding up to nearly $10 million aimed at public safety and law enforcement. A large portion comes from the Byrne Grant, named in honor of a New York police officer killed in the line of duty.

The City of Seattle will also get $1 million for its officer body camera program. The funds will specifically help pay for the cost of migrating digital files from worn body cameras into cloud storage, so they can be readily available to the City Attorney and the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

Last week, the DOJ announced it was going to spend nearly $300,000 to help people in Snohomish, Pierce, and Clark counties address gun violence.