Aurora Beacon-News: Aurora looks to accept federal public safety grants

The Aurora City Council is considering acceptance of two federal grants designed to improve the city’s public safety.

Aldermen Tuesday will vote on accepting two items from the U.S. Department of Justice – one a $79,550 grant from the De-Escalation Grant Program, and the other $2.28 million previously awarded to the city with the help of U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-Naperville.

Accepting the money is somewhat of a formality; Aurora publicly supported accepting the $2.28 million back in February when Foster came to a City Council meeting with news of the award through the Consolidated Appropriations Act.

The money was part of more than $26 million in funding for 15 projects in the 11th Congressional District, more than half of those projects in Aurora. The city received about $13 million of the money.

The $2.28 million is going toward an upgrade of the 911 emergency dispatch center. Lt. Bill Rowley, of the Aurora Police Administrative Services Department, said the money also will go toward new public safety laptops for both the fire and police departments, enhancement of the digital forensic investigator software and better license plate reader technology.

The digital forensic investigation upgrade will enhance work already being done that Rowley called “actually incredible” for Aurora and the surrounding area to better investigative techniques. The expansion will particularly help investigations into trafficking and sexual abuse cases.

“The city of Aurora is really in a great spot to use that funding,” he said.

The license plate reader technology would enhance work that has already led to better locating stolen cars, carjackings and felony retail theft, Rowley said.

The $79,550 from the De-Escalation Grant Program would help with the Aurora Police Department’s ongoing de-escalation training. That specifically trains officers in situations where they are legally justified, and sometimes state-mandated, to respond. It shows ways to respond with lesser uses of force, Rowley said.

“It shows places where just because it’s legal, it still could be avoided,” he said.

The training includes Taser training, which is the “flagship” of less lethal response, but also times when police could use bean bags instead of bullets, or use batons, Rowley said.