In 2001 the Bush Administration made the reduction of gun crime one of the two major priorities of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), along with defeating terrorism and enhancing homeland security. The vehicle for translating this goal into action is Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN represents a commitment to gun crime reduction through a network of local partnerships coordinated through the nation’s 94 United States Attorneys’ Offices. These local partnerships are supported by a strategy to provide them with the resources that they need to be successful.

The PSN initiative integrates five essential elements from successful gun crime reduction programs such as Richmond’s Project Exile, the Boston Ceasefire Program, and DOJ’s Strategic Approaches to Community Safety Initiative (SACS!). Those elements are partnerships, strategic problem-solving, outreach, training, and accountability.