Public Safety committee approves police subawards and grant applications supporting community policing and forensics

The Charleston City Committee on Public Safety on March 18 approved a series of subaward agreements and grant applications for the police department, including $18,364 in reimbursements for contract services under a FY24 COPS Community Policing Development microgrant and a $81,446.60 application to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety for a Paul Coverdell forensic science grant.

The approvals, taken at the committee's 4 p.m. meeting, also included authorization to apply for a FY26 supplemental allocation for victim services of $9,140.14 to fund training and supplies for CPD elder advocates, plus two additional grant applications that staff described as requiring no city match.

Why it matters: The package channels modest outside funding into community policing programs and forensic capacity. The forensic grant would pay for a ballistic analysis system to triage cartridge cases, a capability the police department said would speed evidence processing. The victim-services award would support training and supplies for elder-advocate work the department says it currently provides.

Details and votes: The committee moved and passed approval for a subaward with 10 8 Communications that will be reimbursed up to $18,364 for services under the FY24 COPS microgrant. A separate subaward with Fair and Impartial Policing LLC was approved for services under the same COPS grant (amount not specified in the meeting). The committee also approved submitting an application for the SC DPS Paul Coverdell forensic science grant for $81,446.60 and authorized submission of the FY26 supplemental allocation for victim services for $9,140.14. Two additional grants (listed on the agenda as items 8 and 9) were approved together; the committee record states there is no city match required for either but provides no further detail in the discussion.

The committee also approved minutes from the Feb. 18, 2020 meeting and noted that item 11 on the agenda had been deferred by staff.

Statements from the meeting: The committee clerk read the agenda items and motions; members voted by voice. No roll-call tallies with individual yes/no votes were recorded in the committee discussion on the transcript.

Context and next steps: Several of the items are applications rather than awarded grants; if awarded they would bring outside funds to the Charleston Police Department for training, community engagement and forensic equipment. The committee did not attach conditions or amendments to the approvals during the meeting. Award decisions on the grant applications will depend on the respective grant-making agencies' review and are not decided by the committee.

Votes at a glance: - Approval of minutes, Feb. 18, 2020 — outcome: approved (voice vote). - Subaward agreement with 10 8 Communications (FY24 COPS microgrant) — outcome: approved; reimbursed up to $18,364; notes: funds from FY24 COPS microgrant. - Subaward agreement with Fair and Impartial Policing LLC (FY24 COPS microgrant) — outcome: approved; amount: not specified. - Approval to submit application: SC DPS Paul Coverdell forensic science grant ($81,446.60) — outcome: approved. - Approval to submit application: FY26 supplemental allocation for victim services ($9,140.14) — outcome: approved. - Items 8 and 9 (grant applications; no city match) — outcome: approved; further details not specified in the committee discussion.

No formal conditions, amendments or recorded dissent were entered on these items in the committee record.

Ending: The committee completed the package of police funding items and moved on to the fire department update and later agenda items; any awarded grants will be subject to further administrative steps outside of the committee meeting.