Achilles Program and Project Uptown
Program Objective:
To combat armed violent gangs and armed narcotics traffickers.
Program Description:
The Achilles Program is a congressionally mandated and funded effort that focuses the resources of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), along with State and local law enforcement, on combating armed and violent gangs and armed narcotics traffickers in the 21 communities that have the most serious levels of firearms-related violence. The initiative's goal is to remove from society those active violent criminals who are responsible for a disproportionate percentage of crime. This program focuses on the enforcement of tough Federal firearms laws, which require minimum mandatory sentencing with no chance of parole for those convicted. The program works because it combines the best attributes of Federal, State, and local systems. It is effective at investigating and prosecuting gangs that lure juveniles into a life of crime. The program's name was chosen because firearms, unlike narcotics or other contraband, are not easily disposable. They can provide a history of the criminal, link the criminal to other crimes, and provide intelligence about an offender's criminal associates. For these reasons, firearms possession by gangs and violent criminals becomes an "Achilles' heel."
Project Uptown is a congressionally funded initiative that addresses the problem of armed gangs and armed narcotics trafficking in public housing. The goal of this initiative is to provide a safe, crime-free environment for public housing occupants. In New York City, Project Uptown involves the concentration of enforcement resources by ATF, the New York Housing Authority, the New York City Police Department, and the office of the U.S. Attorney in specific public housing communities to reduce gang-related violence. With experience gained through Project Uptown, ATF and the Department of Housing and Urban Development developed a successful strategy and guidebook, Addressing Violent Crime in Public Housing Developments.
Sites:
Achilles programs operate in 21 communities across the country. Project Uptown operates in New York City.
Agency Contact:
Dale L. Armstrong
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
U.S. Department of the Treasury
650 Massachusetts Avenue NW.
Washington, DC 20226
202-927-7770
Gang Resistance Education and Training Program
Program Objective:
To address the escalating youth gang problem.
Program Description:
The Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT) Program is a cooperative effort of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), the Phoenix, Arizona, Police Department, and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. It is a school-based gang prevention program that was developed in response to an escalating youth gang problem in metropolitan Phoenix. Developed by ATF representatives, area law enforcement agencies, and local educators, GREAT trains local uniformed police officers to help children set personal goals, make sound judgments, learn how to resolve conflict without violence, and understand how gangs and youth violence negatively affect the quality of their lives. The GREAT curriculum provides teenagers with the critical resistance skills and information to say "no" to gangs and drugs and to learn how to become responsible citizens. The program teaches students pride and the use of self-discipline in handling life without violence or drugs.
In addition to the core curriculum, GREAT also offers an optional curriculum for third and fourth graders, a curriculum for fifth and sixth graders, and a followup summer recreation program. Since the program's inception in 1992, more than 2 million children have received GREAT Program training.
Sites:
About 1,300 officers from more than 530 agencies, representing 45 States, the District of Columbia, and overseas military bases, have been trained to present the core curriculum in elementary, junior high, and middle school classrooms.
Agency Contact:
Frank Spizuoco
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
U.S. Department of the Treasury
650 Massachusetts Avenue NW.
Washington, DC 20226
202-682-4220
Juvenile Firearms Trace and Illegal Firearms Trafficking Initiative
Program Objective:
To address juvenile-related violent crime, including gang activity or shootings, on or near school property.
Program Description:
In late 1993, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) began a tracing program to determine the source of firearms recovered on school property and from juveniles who use them to commit violent crimes. This initiative grew from the increase in juvenile-related violent crime, including juvenile gang activity and shootings on or near school property, and from the number of instances in which juveniles brought firearms to school or committed acts of violence at school. To request a trace on a firearm recovered from a juvenile on school grounds, law enforcement agencies and school officials are encouraged to contact the local ATF office or the ATF National Tracing Center to obtain trace request forms or to submit a trace request.
In addition to the firearms trace initiative, ATF recently implemented its nationwide illegal firearms trafficking strategy, which will help reduce illegal access to firearms by juveniles and juvenile-related armed violent crime by investigating and prosecuting those individuals who illegally provide firearms to juveniles. ATF has encouraged its field personnel and other Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies to continue to trace firearms associated with violent juvenile crime and those possessed on or recovered from school property.
Sites:
Due to the scope of this effort, there are no individual project sites.
Agency Contact:
Jerry Nunziato
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
U.S. Department of the Treasury
2029 Stonewall Jackson Drive
Falling Waters, WV 25410
800-788-7133 or 304-274-4100
800-578-7223