East Baton Rouge Parish is one of four places picked for federal money to hire officers, upgrade equipment and fund treatment programs. The amount is not yet public.
BATON ROUGE, La. East Baton Rouge Parish is one of four jurisdictions chosen to share nearly $300 million in federal public safety money, the Justice Department announced Friday.
The others are Jacksonville, Florida (through the Sheriff’s Office), Jackson, Mississippi, and St. Louis, Missouri (through the Police Department). The department did not say how much each place will receive.
Baton Rouge’s application asked for up to $125 million over three years. The parish’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council filed it Sept. 1 after an emergency Metro Council meeting. Whether the award will match that request is not known.
The money comes from the Model Cities Initiative, which the Justice Department launched June 3. Only local governments serving at least 100,000 people could apply, and city leaders such as the mayor, sheriff and county prosecutor had to submit a single joint proposal.
The department said the funds can pay for sworn and civilian officers, prosecutors and other public safety staff, new technology, equipment, stronger forensic capabilities, and mental health and substance use services meant to reduce repeat offenses.
“The Model Cities Initiative reflects the Trump Administration’s commitment to reducing crime across the country,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the announcement. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. said nonfatal violent crime fell 25 percent from 2024 to 2025. The release did not cite a source for that figure.
Christopher Csonka, the coordinating council’s executive director, helped lead the local application. He called the opportunity “unprecedented in my history of being in criminal justice” when the parish applied. He said the proposal grew out of work with more than a dozen law enforcement agencies, elected officials, and nonprofits. Baker, Central, Zachary and St. George joined Baton Rouge in the application.
“Crime isn’t solved just by policing,” Csonka said at the time. The parish’s plan lists behavioral health programs, substance abuse services and youth crime diversion alongside funding for law enforcement agencies and the District Attorney’s Office.
Police Chief TJ Morse said the money would reach beyond his department. It would help pay for overtime and equipment, he said, “but resources overall to help lower crime.”
Csonka said Baton Rouge and Louisiana have run about three times the national average on crime since data collection began in the 1960s. Baton Rouge police data showed 49 homicides as of Aug. 25, slightly below the same point last year.
The Justice Department said it will work with each jurisdiction to finalize its public safety plan. Blanche plans to visit the four places in November to present the awards. Until then, how much Baton Rouge will get and how it will be spent remain open questions.
Sources
• U.S. Department of Justice, Justice Department Announces Nearly $300 Million in Awards to Four Model Cities to Combat Violent Crime (Oct. 30, 2026)
• U.S. Department of Justice, Making America Safe Again: DOJ to Award $300 Million to Model Cities (June 3, 2026)
• WAFB, East Baton Rouge Parish seeks $125 million federal grant to fight crime (Sept. 1, 2026)
• WBRZ, East Baton Rouge seeks $125 million federal grant to fight crime (Sept. 1, 2026)
• Baton Rouge Police Department, crime data dashboard
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