Pictured are Ohio Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), a Toledo Democrat whose ninth congressional district extends from Toledo to Cleveland and the longest serving woman in Congress, and Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams

CLEVELANDURBANNEWS.COM, WASHINGTON, D.C. –Ohio Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), a Toledo Democrat whose ninth congressional district extends from Toledo to Cleveland and the longest serving woman in Congress,  announced Tuesday that $7,968,944 in federal funding has been awarded to the Cleveland Division of Police by the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) through its COPS Hiring Program (CHP) and Operation Relentless Pursuit.

“These funds will allow the Cleveland Division of Police to deploy experienced, veteran officers to combat violent crime and strengthen public safety, while recruiting new officers to back-fill those positions,” said Rep. Kaptur.

Kaptur said that the initiative is also an attempt to bridge the gap between local and federal law enforcement authorities.

“Today’s announcement represents a key partnership between federal and local officials to keep our communities safe," the congresswoman said."At a time of great uncertainty in our country and around the world, resources like those announced today are more important than ever."

The funding will enable the Cleveland Division of Police, which is led by Police Chief Calvin Williams, who is Black,  to deploy sworn veteran officers to important task force duties and use the CHP funding to hire new recruits to back-fill those positions.

Kaptur said that the objective of Operation Relentless Pursuit (ORP) is to combat violent crime by building federal cases against violent actors and their organizations.

Officers deployed to Operation Relentless Pursuit (ORP) task forces as a result of CHP funding must be sworn, career law enforcement officers of the awarded agency, and their work on the task force must benefit their jurisdiction.

In addition, they are required to work with their respective U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO) and relevant federal agencies to investigate and prosecute suspects involved in gangs, drug trafficking, and other violent crime-related issues.

Violent crime is an issue for the largely Black major American city like other major cities nationwide.

Cleveland is  led by four-term mayor Frank Jackson, the city's third Black mayor, and whose fourth term is up in 2021.

In 2018, 120 people were murdered in Cleveland, a slight drop in comparison to 2018 where 118 people were killed.

And in spite of a stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Mike DeWine, homicides in Cleveland are rising in 2020, data show.

Cleveland has recorded at least 15 homicides to date this year, some 10 of them occurring in April alone, and after the governor's stay-at-home order was announced on March 22.

A majority of the murder victims are Black, public records reveal.

Kaptur said that she will "continue to work hand-in-glove with Cleveland’s finest to ensure they have the support and resources they need to protect and serve our community.”

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, Ohio's most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog, both also top in Black digital news in the Midwest.Tel: (216) 659-0473 and Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former president Barack Obama one-on-one when he was campaigning for president. As to the Obama interview, CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM, OHIO'S LEADER IN BLACK DIGITAL NEWS.