Charleston, WV – Today, U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced $623,276 from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) for the Justice and Community Services (JCS) section of the West Virginia Division of Administrative Services. The funding will support juvenile justice system improvements throughout the state, as well as educational and community-based projects to help prevent juvenile delinquency.
“I am pleased to announce this critical investment from the Department of Justice that will help improve West Virginia’s juvenile justice system and bolster efforts to prevent juvenile delinquency,” said Senator Manchin. “All West Virginians deserve to feel safe in their communities, and we must work together to protect our friends, neighbors and children. The funding announced today will help promote public safety across the entire state and, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue advocating for resources to strengthen public safety initiatives and protect our young people in the Mountain State.”
“Public safety is incredibly important,” Senator Capito said. “That’s why it’s important that we do all we can to make sure people feel safe and support efforts that help prevent crime in the first place. This funding does just that by focusing on building that trust by helping young West Virginians stay away from crime and to help their communities.”
The DOJ OJJDP Title II Formula Grants Program provides funding to support state and local efforts to establish effective education, training, research, prevention and rehabilitation programs in the area of juvenile delinquency, as well as juvenile justice system improvements. The funding announced today will support nine program areas within West Virginia’s juvenile justice system, including community-based programs; juvenile justice and delinquency prevention programs; educational programs for at-risk youth; programs for positive youth development; programs designed to prevent and reduce hate crimes committed by juveniles; projects designed to protect juvenile civil rights; programs designed to provide mental health services for incarcerated juveniles; programs that address the needs of girls in or at risk of entering the juvenile justice system; and programs to address the disproportionate number of youth members of minority groups who enter the juvenile justice system.