The City of Gastonia will be submitting an application for the 2017 Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant requesting $61,326 in Federal funds on September 5, 2017. The funds will be distributed as follows: Gastonia Police Department $36,082, Gaston County Police Department $9,913, and the Gaston County Sheriff’s Office $15,331. The funds will be utilized for enhancing law enforcement, corrections, jail operations and community policing. Please feel free to contact Amanda Neese at 704-869-1990 with any questions and/or concerns.
City of Gastonia Police Department: $36,082
The Gastonia Police Department (GPD) moved into their current facility in 1996. At that time, a community room was established that provided police personnel, city staff, city council and the public a meeting place for various events, trainings, and meetings. At the time it was built, the room was state-of-the-art. However, the department has not been able to upgrade the technology nor the appearance, and therefore a majority of the facility is either out of date, or simply not working. The Gastonia Police Department will utilize the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant funds to upgrade the community/training room. The GPD will focus on upgrading technology and replacing worn furniture to provide a more contemporary space for the community, police personnel, city staff, and council members to utilize each day.
Gaston County Police Department: $9,913
The Gaston County Police Department proposes to use 2017 Justice Assistance Grant funds to purchase 22 E-Citation printers for patrol vehicles. E-Citation is an electronic ticketing software. Printers are needed to issue citations from the patrol vehicles.
Gaston County Sheriff’s Office: $15,331
The Gaston County Sheriff’s Office is in the process of expanding the K9 program by purchasing additional Detention/ Narcotic as well as Detention/ Explosive K9. The Sheriff’s Office will utilize budgeted County funds for the purchase of these specialized canines. The canine(s) will be assigned to the Gaston County Sheriff’s Office and will perform various activities to include: Daily sweeps of the Jail/ Annex Facilities, Escorting inmates to and from court, Sweeps of the Court House, Utilized by other Law Enforcement Agencies for Special Assignments, Narcotic detection in Jail/ Annex Facilities, Narcotic detection at various school (when requested), Bomb detection at various school (when requested, Bomb detection, Special Assignments, and K9 Presentations. The Gaston County Sheriff’s Office will utilize the 2017 JAG funding to purchase equipment associated with the handler and canine(s).
