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Capacity enhancement

Strengthening Our Nation's Crime Laboratories

April 2018

As technology improves, demand for analysis of DNA and other forensic evidence to help solve crimes grows. This video describes some of the challenges crime laboratories face in meeting this demand and how National Institute of Justice (NIJ) funding has strengthened crime labs and encouraged innovation in forensic techniques.

The Evaluation of NIJ by the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences: NIJ's Response

June 2011

The National Academies conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the National Institute of Justice. This panel provides an overview of the evaluation and NIJ's response to it. NIJ has accepted many of the recommendations in the NRC report, and you will learn what the agency is doing to implement them. A few of the recommendations were challenging and created considerable debate within NIJ. Plans to address these thorny issues also are discussed.

Backlogs and Their Impact on the Criminal Justice System

June 2010

Evidence backlogs have been known to be an issue in crime laboratories. A recent study published by NIJ has shown that backlogs of untested evidence are also an issue in law enforcement evidence storage. This panel will discuss the issues and present preliminary findings from a study of the Los Angeles Police Department's and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's experience with clearing out a large backlog of unanalyzed rape kits.

Chicago Ceasefire

June 2009

CeaseFire is an evidence-based, data-driven intervention designed to stop shootings and killings in high-incidence neighborhoods by directly intervening with those who are most likely to be involved in a shooting and by building support for alternatives to violence in those neighborhoods. Panel members will share their experiences “on the ground” mediating conflicts and working one-on-one with high-risk individuals.

Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program- FORMULA, FY 2019

Closing Date

Notice

In fiscal 2020, all state and local forensic capacity enhancement programs previously managed by NIJ moved to the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The awards made under this solicitation now are being managed by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. To see the complete list of awards, visit the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

This program seeks to improve forensic science and medical examiner/coroner services, including...

Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program- COMPETITIVE, FY 2019

Closing Date

Notice

In fiscal 2020, all state and local forensic capacity enhancement programs previously managed by NIJ moved to the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The awards made under this solicitation now are being managed by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. To see the complete list of awards, visit the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

This program seeks to improve forensic science and medical examiner/coroner services, including...

Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence - Inventory, Tracking, and Reporting, FY 2019

Closing Date

Notice

In fiscal 2020, all state and local forensic capacity enhancement programs previously managed by NIJ moved to the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The awards made under this solicitation now are being managed by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. To see the complete list of awards, visit the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

NIJ seeks applications from eligible States and units of local government that...

Tribal-Researcher Capacity Building Grants Solicitation, FY 2019

Closing Date

Through this solicitation, NIJ will provide small planning grants to develop proposals for new and innovative criminal justice research projects involving federally recognized tribes (or tribally based organizations) and which represent a new tribal-researcher investigator partnership. The following research topics are of particular interest to the U.S. Department of Justice: (1) The impact of concurrent criminal jurisdiction on the administration of justice in Indian country...

DNA Capacity Enhancement and Backlog Reduction (CEBR) Program (Formula), FY 2019

Closing Date

Notice

In fiscal 2020, all state and local forensic capacity enhancement programs previously managed by NIJ moved to the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The awards made under this solicitation now are being managed by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. To see the complete list of awards, visit the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The goal of NIJ's FY 2019 DNA Capacity Enhancement and Backlog Reduction...

Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence, FY 2019

Closing Date

Notice

In fiscal 2020, all state and local forensic capacity enhancement programs previously managed by NIJ moved to the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The awards made under this solicitation now are being managed by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. To see the complete list of awards, visit the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

NIJ seeks proposals for funding to assist in defraying the costs associated...