New Jersey § 52:17b-242

§ 52:17b-242.

a. The Office of the Attorney General shall award funds from the New Jersey Violence

Intervention Program on a competitive basis to municipalities, not-for-profit health

agencies, law enforcement agencies, and non-profit organizations that serve communities

with disproportionately high rates and numbers of homicides and other incidents involving

the use of firearms, as determined by the Office of the Attorney General. The grants shall be used to: (1) implement, expand, or enhance coordination between evidence-based violence reduction

initiatives, such as hospital-based violence intervention programs, street outreach

programs, and focused deterrence strategies, which have demonstrated effectiveness

at reducing rates of homicides and other incidents involving the use of firearms via

the provision of targeted services to victims affected by crime or violence; (2) support the development and delivery of intervention-based strategies by entities

that provide targeted services to individuals who are victims affected by crime or

violence and are at risk of being victimized by or engaging in violence, in order

to interrupt cycles of violence, reinjury, and retaliation; (3) support initiatives that primarily target a reduction of violence among individuals

who are victims affected by crime or violence and have been identified as having the

highest risk of perpetrating or being victimized again by violence in the near future; (4) ensure that a sufficient portion of the available grant funding is provided to

support programs directed at providing public awareness, outreach, assistance or intervention

services to victims of firearm violence offered at community locations such as hospitals

where individuals may be encountered in the immediate aftermath of a violent incident;

and (5) conduct annual assessments of the needs of communities demonstrably affected by

firearm violence to ensure program funds are used effectively. b. In awarding grants, the Office of the Attorney General shall prioritize the following

applicants: (1) a not-for-profit hospital or a not-for-profit entity operating within, on behalf

of, or in partnership with a hospital which operates or is applying to operate a hospital-based

or hospital-linked violence intervention program, which provides services in a municipality

that has a disproportionately high rate of firearm violence or homicide and is designated

as a Level One or Level Two trauma center, under the provisions of P.L.2013, c. 233 ( C.26:2KK-1 et seq. ) and the regulations adopted pursuant thereto, as defined in subsection e. of this

section; or (2) applicants operating in areas disproportionately affected by firearm violence,

and whose proposals demonstrate the greatest likelihood of reducing, through targeted

services, the rate and number of homicides and other incidents involving the use of

firearms in the community served by the applicant without contributing to mass incarceration. Applicants may apply either independently or jointly. c. The amount of funds awarded to an applicant shall not be limited to a specific

amount and shall be commensurate with: (1) levels of firearm violence in the community served by the applicant; (2) the scope of the applicant's proposal; and (3) the applicant's demonstrated need for additional resources to effectively reduce

the rate and numbers of homicides and other incidents involving the use of firearms

in the community served by the applicant. d. A grantee may use the grant awarded to supplement, but not replace, funding that

would otherwise be made available to address firearm, group, and community violence

in the grantee's community. e. As used in this section: “ Hospital-based or hospital-linked violence intervention program ” means a program that is operated by a not-for-profit hospital, or by a person or

entity who is contracted to operate a program within, on behalf of, or in partnership

with a hospital, and which works to end cycles of violence through the provision of

intensive counseling, case management, and social services to patients who are recovering

from gunshot wounds and other injuries resulting from violence.