New Law Enforcement Human Trafficking Protocol Effective January 1, 2024 See the notice from the Attorney General's Office and the revised protocol at this link.
Stephen A. Cyrus Named Special Agent in Charge of the Kansas City Field Office FBI Press Release 7/7/23 Director Christopher Wray has named Stephen A. Cyrus as the special agent in charge of the Kansas City Field Office in Missouri. Mr. Cyrus most recently served as the FBI’s legal attaché in London. Mr. Cyrus joined the FBI as a special agent in 1997 and has worked in several FBI field offices throughout the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Throughout his career, Mr. Cyrus has worked international counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and cyber programs related to China and North Korea. Mr. Cyrus also served on the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team and has deployed in response to numerous terrorist attacks, hostage takings, and other critical incidents around the world. In 2021, Mr. Cyrus was named to head the FBI’s legal attaché office in London. Prior to joining the FBI, Mr. Cyrus served in the U.S. Army. He earned a bachelor’s in history from Bowling Green State University in Ohio and a master’s in national security studies from the Naval Postgraduate School.
DOJ/COPS Announces New Nationwide Public Safety Commitments US DOJ 11/2/23 This year, we prioritized funding for projects and initiatives at the core of our Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime, including building legitimacy and trust, community-based approaches to gun violence, and responses to individuals in crisis. To take one example, Mendota, California, will use COPS Hiring funds in its comprehensive approach to residents experiencing mental health crisis, addiction, and homelessness, by hiring additional officers to work alongside trained behavioral health professionals responding to such incidents. We are also announcing almost $74 million through the COPS School Violence Prevention Program. This year our funding will reach 3,974 schools and more than 1.5 million students across the country. For example, the Safford (Arizona) Unified School District is located in a rural area with persistent poverty, and will use funds to improve communications systems, primarily through integrating phones and Public Address systems to ensure consistency and reliability, including for dialing 9-1-1. And we are issuing another $43.6 million through the Community Policing Development Program, which aims to develop and study promising practices and creative approaches to preventing crime and keeping communities safe. This year’s awards include 47 awards across 26 states to support accreditation, which is a particular challenge for small, rural, and Tribal law enforcement agencies, and 51 awards for de-escalation training, including 27 awards for small agencies. For example, in Leon County, Florida, we are supporting the Sheriff’s Office in a research partnership to analyze data on successful uses of de-escalation techniques.
NOTICE OF AVAILABLE GRANT FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL S.T.O.P. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN GRANT PROGRAM Governor's Grants Office 11/2/23
Grant funds are available from the Federal S.T.O.P. (Services*Training*Officers*Prosecutors) Violence Against Women Grant Program for calendar year 2024 to award approximately $3 million to support communities in their efforts to develop and strengthen effective law enforcement and prosecution strategies to combat violent crimes against women; develop and strengthen victim services in cases involving crimes against women; and promote a coordinated community response to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault/rape, and stalking. Eligible applicants include units of state and local government; Native American Tribes; and nonprofit, community, or faith-based organizations, including underserved and culturally specific populations.
NOTICE OF AVAILABLE GRANT FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL SEXUAL ASSAULT SERVICES GRANT PROGRAM Governor's Grants Office 11/1/23
Grant funds are available from the Federal Sexual Assault Services Grant Program (SASP) for calendar year 2024. This grant program recognizes the need to place increased focus on sexual assault, rape, sex trafficking, and other severe forms of trafficking in persons who have also experienced sexual assault in order to address the lack of available direct intervention and related assistance services and the unique aspects of sexual assault trauma. Women and men of all ages, as well as children, can be victims of sexual assault. There is approximately $865,000 available for grant awards. Available grant funds may be awarded to rape crisis centers and other nonprofit, nongovernmental organizations who are accredited by the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence or tribal programs for activities that provide rape and sexual assault services for the defined grant project purposes.
Recruitment and Retention for the Modern Law Enforcement Agency OJA/COPS Office Posted 10/18/23 More than 35 participants met in Washington, D.C. to review the current state of law enforcement recruitment and retention and explore ways they can be modernized to meet the needs of today’s agencies, communities, and workforce. The group pinpointed practices that may be contributing to hiring and retention difficulties in several areas: eligibility, benefits and incentives, work/life balance and officer wellness, diversity, image and public relations, and pipeline programs. In each of these areas, leaders from various agencies and community groups proposed solutions that can be implemented at the agency level and also action steps that can be taken by local and state governments as well as the Federal Government to support and institutionalize these changes. This publication summarizes the convening and presents the group’s recommendations. Download PDF
This Summit will bring together safety stakeholders from across the Midwest with the goal of sharing perspectives, ongoing efforts in crash reduction, current trends and opportunities for collaboration.
The Summit agenda will feature a diverse group of topics and speakers to include:
NTSB - Hon. Michael Graham
Safety at Truck Plaza / Truck Stops - National Association of Truck Stop Operators
Training, Research and Education for Driving Safety - University of California San Diego
Gender Diversity in the Supply Chain - Women in Trucking Association, Inc.
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Implementation and Milestones - FMCSA, FHWA and NHTSA
Truck Parking Research - Iowa State University & Purdue University
Distracted Driving and University / State Partnerships - Responsibility.org and the University of Alabama
Issues affecting truckers – Road Dog Trucking Sirius XM
University research - University of Missouri, University of Wisconsin – TOPS Lab, Kansas State University, The University of Kansas Medical Center & University of Minnesota
Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety in Work Zones - Michigan Department of Transportation & Ohio Department of Public Safety
Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Advocacy - Truck Safety Coalition, Traffic Crash Reconstruction, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
Educating/Influencing Behaviors with Digital Media – Australian National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, National Carriers & Kansas Highway Patrol
I will be in attendance along with my staff. I hope to see you there so that we can continue our work together to reduce crashes on our roads.
Captain Wes Ludolph Kansas Highway Patrol Troop I / MCSAP 700 SW Jackson, Suite 704 Topeka, KS 66603
National Common Operation Picture (NCOP) – SWATTING: National Swatting Data Sharing Virtual Overview of Program Due to continued demand, the FBI’s Office of Partner Engagement (OPE), along with the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division, will conduct four 1-hour overviews on the Virtual Command Center (VCC) known as the National Common Operation Picture (NCOP) – SWATTING. The purpose of the overview is to show participants how to navigate the incident entry process and access other reporting functions.
WHEN: Sept. 25, 2023 TIME: 4–5 p.m. ET WHERE: Microsoft Teams (Virtual)
WHEN: Oct. 10, 2023 TIME: 1–2 p.m. ET WHERE: Microsoft Teams (Virtual)
WHEN: Oct. 19, 2023 TIME: 11 a.m.–12 p.m. ET WHERE: Microsoft Teams (Virtual)
To sign up, please email OPE-EEU@fbi.gov and request to be added to the VCC-Overview event. Please be sure to include the selected date.
The National Common Operation Picture (NCOP) – SWATTING, has been activated to share swatting incidents. All agencies may enter their own swatting incidents that have occurred, as well as those that are occurring so a national common picture can emerge. While the owning agency may be the preferred method of entry, we defer to each agency to decide how their swatting information is entered into the VCC-NCOP.
Kansas Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Posted 8/8/23 Notice of Available Grant Funding Federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG)
The Kansas Criminal Justice Coordinating oversees Federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG). The JAG program guidelines establish eligibility criteria for all organizations receiving JAG funds. Eligible applicants for JAG funding include units of state and local government; Native American Tribes; and nonprofit, community, and faith-based organizations, including underserved and culturally specific populations.
Priority will be given to applications clearly supporting the objectives of the current Kansas Statewide Strategic Plan and submitting a complete application. A copy of the Strategic Plan, as well as a copy of the JAG solicitation, may be downloaded at JAG Strategic Plan and Solicitation. The solicitation is also available on the Kansas Governor’s Grant Portal at https://www.kansas.gov/grants/index.do.
All grant applications must be submitted via the Kansas Governor’s Grant Portal by 11:59 p.m. September 14, 2023. To quickly locate the solicitation in the grant portal, use ‘‘JAG’’ for the keyword in your search. For more information, contact the Kansas Governor’s Grants Program at (785) 291-3205 or at kggp@ks.gov.
Information from Kansas Division of Vehicles 5/22/23 The Kansas Division of Vehicles has advised they have resumed producing Kansas Driver's licenses with the ability to show both CDL and regular DL status on the same license. They advise these are not produced in great numbers and will more likely be seen in rural areas of the state.
NICS Denial Notification Act: Notifications to state and local law enforcement begin on September 26, 2022, via your NCIC connection. Posted 9/23/22.
The notification will include details related to the subject and the attempted purchase.
The NICS Denial Notification Act (NDNA) was passed in March 2022 and requires the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) to report denied attempts to purchase a firearm within 24 hours to local authorities based on where the firearm dealer is located and, if different, where the subject resides. Each state and/or agency will establish its own protocol, policy, and/or procedure as it relates to the receipt of this information. The notification also includes other agencies that have been notified of the denial to help facilitate collaboration and to ensure deconfliction.
Cold Case Playing Cards Project; Kansas Cold Case Playing Cards
The Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI), in partnership with the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police (KACP), the Kansas Sheriff’s Association (KSA) and the Kansas Peace Officers Association (KPOA) are asking for your help with an innovative initiative - the creation of a deck of Kansas Cold Case Playing Cards.
Other states have solved multiple cold case homicides, missing person cases or suspicious deaths through the use of specially created playing cards. Distributed to residents of state correctional facilities and county jails, these cards highlight case information in hope that persons familiar with a case will come forward with a fruitful tip. As an example, Connecticut has produced multiple decks and has solved 20 cases with their program. For more information about Connecticut’s program, visit their website by clicking here.
Your agency is asked to submit suitable cold cases that could possibly be featured on a playing card. Direct questions about case submission or this project by email to KDOC_Cold_Case_Cards@ks.gov.
Adult Abuse and Neglect Investigation Assistance Available from the Kansas Office of Attorney General and Reporting Requirements 11/7/21 The Office of Attorney General has requested distribution of information about Adult Abuse and Neglect Investigations. See the information at this link.
KBI Releases Use of Force Reporting Briefing Packet 10/11/21 The KBI has released a briefing packet for Kansas LE Agencies on the new state Use of Force Reporting System. The packet document document is available on the KCJIS Website. See the KBI Director's letter at this link with more information on accessing the packet. See the proposed form at this link.
This episode will not be a detailed account of any line of duty deaths, but rather the focus will be on the survivors: the family members and co-workers and their stories of loss. Listen to Teresa and Dustin explain what their experience was like and how it impacted them.
Secure E-mail Available from the FBI Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal Posted 11/15/20 Any criminal justice agency employee is eligible to have a secure email account through the FBI Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal (LEEP). This is no cost and will also provide access to the Virtual Command Center, a secure platform providing seamless, real-time, situational awareness and critical information awareness. This is available at no cost to criminal justice agency employees with and without a secure token. For more information see the November 2020 KCJIS Newsletter, or contact the KBI Help Desk at (785) 296-8245.
New Law Ensures PSOB Benefits for Officers Who Die From COVID-19 8/18/20 President Trump has signed legislation that includes extending the benefits of the Public Safety Officers Benefits to officers who die or become disabled from COVID-19. The new law establishes a statutory presumption that law enforcement officers and other first responders who die or become disabled from COVID-19 or complications related to COVID-19 did so because they sustained a personal injury in the line of duty, provided that the officers engaged in the line-of-duty actions between Jan. 1, 2001 and Dec. 31, 2021.