The Porter County sheriff's office was awarded a $400,000 federal grant.
A component of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services office awards grants for community policing projects. Porter County received the grant through the COPS Technology and Equipment Program.
The office will use the grant money to purchase laptops for all patrol officers, docking stations for personnel and a network storage device for the detective bureau. The money will also be used to upgrade network infrastructure and to purchase a Flock Safety camera subscription.
U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan and Porter County Sheriff Jeff Balon spoke at a grant announcement event Dec. 18. The event took place at the Porter County sheriff’s office in Valparaiso.
The COPS program was founded in 1994 with the passage of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. The act authorized an $8.8 billion expenditure over six years. The COPS office was created to distribute and monitor the funds.
Porter County is the 9th largest of Indiana’s 92 counties. The county extends from Lake Michigan to the Kankakee River. The sheriff’s office has over 170 employees.
