PHILADELPHIA – The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office has been awarded a $250,000 federal grant to aggressively communicate the “Gun Crime IS Jail Time” initiative, a coordinated effort between the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the D.A.’s Office, the Memphis Police Department and other law enforcement offices across Shelby County to combat gun violence. A portion of the grant money will also be used to promote the D.A.’s “No Deals” policy on violent crimes, many of which are gun-related.
Attorney General John Ashcroft made the announcement at the second annual Project Safe Neighborhoods National Conference in Philadelphia. District Attorney Bill Gibbons is a presenter at the conference.
The U.S. Department of Justice awarded this type of grant to 41 jurisdictions across the country, including Shelby County, to fund innovative, local projects to reduce gun violence. More than 500 agencies or offices applied for the grant.
Through the “Gun Crime IS Jail Time” initiative, an assertive effort is being made to get illegal guns off the streets of Memphis and to put those in possession of illegal firearms behind bars. Since the joint federal-state coordination began last February, a total of 453 illegal gun cases have been handled. Defendants have been offered state time in prison in approximately 30 percent of these cases, while the others are being handled solely through federal prosecution.
The “Gun Crime IS Jail Time” media campaign will focus on informing criminals, as well as law-abiding citizens, of the consequences of illegally possessing a gun. A convicted felon caught with a gun—or even just a bullet—can go to federal prison for ten years. If one is caught carrying a stolen gun—whether or not he is a convicted felon—he can go to federal prison for up to ten years. And felon or not, if one caught with a gun is addicted to drugs, an alien, has a domestic restraining order, has a prior misdemeanor domestic violence conviction, was dishonorably discharged from the military, or is a fugitive from justice, he could get up to 10 years in federal prison.
In 1997 and 1998, approximately $350,000 in grants and contributions was spent in marketing the “No Deals” policy. Local media matched purchased television and radio time and newspaper and billboard space creating approximately a $1 million marketing effort.
“When we first promoted the “No Deals” policy, the private sector stepped forward with significant contributions. The business community and private foundations clearly realized their stake in combating violent crime,” said District Attorney Gibbons. Reported violent crimes dropped in Memphis between 1997-99, but then began to slightly increase.
“We hope this federal grant will serve as an incentive for the private sector to once again step forward. Gun violence is a community problem, and we want to saturate the market with the message that if you commit gun crime, you will get jail time,” said Gibbons. “We need to reinforce the message on the streets of Memphis that we will not tolerate violent crime – especially gun violence,” Gibbons added.