DOJ Awards Washington State Tribes $8.5M for Justice Programs
From developing youth programs to upgrading court programs and drug treatment programs, the eight tribes in western Washington will use the funds to build stronger communities, advocates say.
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The Department of Justice is awarding eight Western Washington Tribes $8.5 million in funding to go towards improvements in their criminal justice systems and youth development programs, the News Tribune reports. Of the awards being given, the funds are going to be used for specifically targeted needs identified by each Tribal community. As a few examples of what the tribes will do with the funding, the Tulalip Tribes note they will use their $1.3 million to expand and improve their Healing Lodge for drug treatment and expand services. Similarly, the Skokomish Indian Tribe will receive $1.2 million to assist with the construction of a public safety building that provides police and court services.
Using the $600,000 the Quinault Indian Nation will receive, leaders are going to create a juvenile healing and wellness court program. In their application for the funding, they detailed that “establishing these courts will promote the restorative justice model and be better suited to reduced recidivism, lessen the burden on community policing, reduce jail capacity, and build stronger communities.”
