By Melinda Arora, Thomson Reuters

The Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program is now accepting applications for funding under the Edward Bryne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program.  According to their website, this program furthers the Department’s mission by assisting state, local, and tribal efforts to prevent or reduce crime and violence.  They stated that JAG funds may be used for state and local initiatives, technical assistance, strategic planning, research and evaluation (including forensics), data collection, training, personnel, equipment, forensic laboratories, supplies, contractual support, and criminal justice information systems that will improve or enhance such areas as:

• Law enforcement programs
• Prosecution and court programs
• Prevention and education programs
• Corrections and community corrections programs
• Drug treatment and enforcement programs
• Planning, evaluation, and technology improvement programs
• Crime victim and witness programs (other than compensation)

Application deadline: May 30, 2013.  Learn more and apply to this grant.

By Daniel DeSimone, Thomson Reuters

As a 23-year veteran of the FBI, I am honored to serve as lead representative to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF) on behalf of Thomson Reuters and its Fraud Prevention & Investigation business. The organization was created in 1984 to honor and remember the service and sacrifice of law enforcement officers in the United States.

For the second year, Thomson Reuters salutes the work of individuals and organizations that use our public records products and solutions in extraordinary ways with our Everyday Heroes Awards. A charitable donation is then made on behalf of the honoree to an organization of their choice. Among this year’s honorees were the Warren Police Department (Michigan) and the Pasadena Police Department (California), who donated $2,500 and $1,000, respectively, to the NLEOMF.

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Webinar date and time: Thursday, May 30, 2013, 2:00-3:00pm ET

 

REGISTER HERE for this complimentary session. 

Description
Could social media really have discovered the Boston bomber suspects? Ever since Boston, the idea of crowdsourcing has surged to mainstream levels. This webinar will observe the positives and negatives of crowdsourcing using Boston as an example. We will look at other popular crowdsourcing use cases, such as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Red Balloon Challenge and Alternate Reality Games (ARGs). We will also uncover the most masterful creators and participants of crowdsourced ideas. 

About the Presenter
Katherine Sagona-Stophel will lead this discussion. Katherine is employed by Thomson Reuters Special Services as a government analyst. Focused on open source collection, Katherine specializes in understanding the power of crowd sourcing through social media applications, gaming, and mobile technologies in order to solve intelligence problems.

REGISTER HERE for this complimentary session.

By Matt Angelicola, Thomson Reuters

I think that you can most appropriately define a folk-hero as someone who is more or less a hero celebrated by the common people.  Our heroes are generally flawed men or women who found in them the ability to perform deeds with the most noble of intentions.  Consider men like John Brown – who reviled the institution of slavery so much that he led an armed attack against the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia) in 1859.  Although his motives were honorable many historians view him as America’s first domestic terrorist.   

This leads me to consider a potential modern-day folk-hero:  “The Hacktivist”.  Depending on your viewpoint, you may see him or her as sitting at the forefront of the fight for transparency or leading the charge against the “1 percent”.  On the other hand, you might see them as a 20 year old wearing a tin-foil hat living in mom and dad’s basement with nothing else to do other than cause trouble.  Regardless of perspective, we’ve taken quite an interest in these folks.  We may praise them for such activities as pursuing cyber-attacks on foes of the United States and for hacking into the Twitter accounts of child molesters.  This behavior is easy to rally around because it fits our sense of justice – the bad guy is getting their due.  However, when we look at other instances where their considerable talents have been pointed against American banking institutions, we have to decide if making a point is more important than the public’s access to its bank.  In this case it may be more difficult for some folks to utilize the same principles when determine right and wrong. 

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By Rob Russell, Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters is a long-time supporter of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), the nation’s most prominent nonprofit dedicated to finding missing children, reducing child sexual exploitation, and preventing child victimization. We provide in-kind donations of services, including our CLEAR online public record platform, which NCMEC uses to locate abductors and other people who might have information about the whereabouts of missing and exploited children. Several members of the Thomson Reuters Legal Government and Global Account Management teams were in attendance at NCMEC’s annual Hope Awards banquet, which recognizes individuals and organizations who make significant contributions to protecting our children. 

Always an emotional and inspiring event, this year’s Hope Awards were made all the more so by this week’s news of the rescue of three young women from more than a decade in captivity in Cleveland. NCMEC’s staff works tirelessly as an advocate for missing and exploited children and their families, and they too rarely have opportunities to celebrate successes like this week’s. 

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By Daniel DeSimone, Thomson Reuters 

The Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies (ASCIA) was founded in 1978 as a professional association consisting of senior executives from the statewide criminal investigative agencies in the United States.  At its inception, ASCIA included 11 state criminal investigative agencies.  Today, the number of active member agencies covers almost every state in the United States.  The mission of ASCIA includes, among other things, open sharing of ideas and innovative approaches to improving public safety.

Thomson Reuters’ Fraud Prevention & Investigation (FP&I) group co-sponsored the 2013 ASCIA Spring meeting, which was held May 5-8, 2013 in Nashville, Tennessee.  FP&I ‘s Sr. Director of Investigative Resources, Daniel DeSimone represented Thomson Reuters.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) served as the host law enforcement agency.  TBI Director Mark Gwyn provided all ASCIA attendees with a tour of TBI headquarters.  ASCIA Executive Director Bob McConnell and President Ron Sloan of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation provided a varied agenda of criminal investigative and national security topics.

By Melinda Arora, Thomson Reuters

When it comes to helping family and friends it comes naturally for most.  But what about giving a fighting chance at life to a complete stranger?  A stranger that believes in another stranger, despite their past.  The story below shared on Minnesota’s local news FOX9, takes a look at how a detective from Edina, MN helped a young lady turn her life around and gave her a fighting chance at life.  Today, she not only changed her life around, but is making a difference by talking to others about her experiences.  

Law enforcement professionals risk their lives every day to help protect our communities and ultimately our families.  Today, let’s take a moment and give thanks to those that protect us and make a difference in our life.  Everyone deserves a fighting chance at life.  After all, you never know when you will need a chance or be the one to provide a chance. 

>> Full Story

New enrollment policy changes to help fight healthcare fraud 

For healthcare providers, the enrollment process is the gateway to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) routinely evaluates its provider enrollment policies, and has recently implemented new safeguards as a result of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In the February 2011 final screening rule (72 FR 5862), CMS identified additional changes in enrollment policy that would increase the integrity of the Medicare program. Now, CMS is proposing to include the following provisions:

“…We Deny enrollment or revoke the billing privileges of a provider or supplier if a managing employee has been convicted of certain felony offenses. This provision ensures that CMS can block or remove bad actors from the Medicare program to protect beneficiaries and safeguard the Medicare Trust Fund…”

What does this mean for Program Integrity Directors and staff?

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Finding grant funding during budget deficient times

We understand the budget environment that our government partners are facing. Resource limits are distracting and don’t change the level of work that needs to be done.  Below are several federal funding resources available to many of you:

Policing grant opportunities with pending deadlines in late April
Community-Based Violence Prevention Demonstration Program –
Seeking applications for funding under its Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 Community-Based Violence Prevention Demonstration Program. This program furthers DOJ’s mission by reducing violence involving youth in targeted communities.
Application deadline: April 22, 2013

Applied Technology Research and Development to Optimize Criminal Justice Use of Social Media in the Web 3.0 Environment –
Seeking applications for applied technology research and development to optimize sanctioned criminal justice agencies’ use of social media in the “Web 3.0” environment. This includes technology for law enforcement, courts, and corrections agencies. This program furthers the Department‘s mission by sponsoring research to provide objective, independent, evidence-based knowledge and tools to meet the challenges of crime and justice, particularly at the State and local levels.
Application deadline: April 25, 2013

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By Daniel DeSimone, Thomson Reuters

Since 1937, the Miami-Dade County Association of Chiefs of Police (MDCACP) has been committed to serving and protecting the community by encouraging its agency members to collaborate toward reaching agency objectives and solving issues facing law enforcement today.  Thomson Reuters is proud to support the cause and maintains its longtime partnership with MDCACP.  

Thomson Reuters’ Fraud Prevention & Investigation group co-sponsored the MDCACP General Membership dinner meeting held on April 11, 2013 in Miami Lakes, Florida.  The highlight of the evening was the presentation of the Police Officer of the Month award.  The recipient was Officer José Maya of the Sunny Isles Beach Florida Police Department.  

Pictured left to right are J.D. Patterson, Miami-Dade Police Director; Mary McCaffrey, Thomson Reuters’ Fraud Prevention & Investigation Product Specialist; and Daniel DeSimone, Thomson Reuters’ Sr. Director of Investigative Resources.