The Trump administration's Justice Department awarded Jacksonville, Florida, more than $73 million on Friday through its Model Cities Initiative, after the city was selected from nearly 50 applicants for the flagship federal programme to reduce violent crime and restore law and order.
Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the award in Jacksonville, saying: "The Model Cities Initiative reflects the Trump Administration's commitment to reducing crime across the country and ensuring the safety of every American." He said the chosen cities "are setting an example of proactive law enforcement that will strengthen the rule of law and improve public safety in their jurisdictions."
The Justice Department said Jacksonville was picked for its strong interagency partnerships, its proven commitment to reducing violent crime and its comprehensive public safety strategy, led by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. From 2023 through 2025, the city reduced murders by 38%, robberies by 25% and aggravated assaults by 21%, while non-domestic shootings fell from 1,340 to 1,029.
The work is not finished. Blanche noted that Jacksonville residents are still enduring a murder rate three times the national average — "It's our mission to change that" — and the federal money is spread over the next three years to expand the sheriff's investigative and prosecutorial capacity, modernise crime-fighting technology and strengthen forensic capabilities. Under the sheriff's office plan, the funding supports hiring more officers and personnel, including, under its proposal, 40 additional police officers and four more assistant state attorneys.
"We are deeply grateful to the Department of Justice for this generational investment in our community's safety," said Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters. "Through the Model Cities Initiative, we will, together, make strides to keep our children and grandchildren safe for many years into the future." Congressman John Rutherford, himself a former sheriff, said the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office "is leading the nation in innovative approaches to public safety and delivering real results."
The Model Cities Initiative, announced in June 2026, directs nearly $300 million in federal resources toward comprehensive public safety strategies, building on early results in Memphis, Tennessee, and Washington, D.C. Four jurisdictions have now been selected — Baton Rouge in Louisiana, Jacksonville, Jackson in Mississippi and St. Louis in Missouri — each funded to hire officers, adopt new technology, buy equipment, expand forensic capacity and address the factors that drive crime and repeat offending.
For Jacksonville families, the award is a federal bet on a city that has already shown it can drive violent crime down: more officers on the street, faster forensic work and better technology aimed at the shootings that still claim lives at three times the national rate.
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