Courts & Police

SANDAG provides research and analysis to support the courts and various police agencies in their efforts to increase the effectiveness and accessibility of their services. 

Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN)

SANDAG is the fiscal agent for FY 2021 Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN) funding for several California districts. PSN is a federal Department of Justice program that provides an essential source of grant funding for federal, state, local, tribal, and other territorial law enforcement agencies to develop innovative, multidisciplinary, multiagency approaches to address violent crime in our communities. For questions regarding PSN projects, please contact Ruben Casillas, SANDAG Research Analyst, at 619.837.6501 or ruben.casillas@sandag.org. 

Chula Vista Smart Policing

In 2015, California passed Assembly Bill (AB) 953, the Racial and Identity Profiling Act (RIPA), that aimed to prevent racial profiling and disparity. AB 953 required each law enforcement agency that employs peace officers to annually report to the Attorney General with data on all stops. With rising violent crime rates and an increased call for greater policy transparency, the Chula Vista Police Department (CVPD) and SANDAG partnered on a grant request to the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). The grant supports partners in effectively and efficiently tracking required RIPA data, utilizing data to inform areas for improvement, and documenting when desired outcomes were achieved. The primary goals of this three-year project include:

  • Utilizing new data sources and technology as part of a SARA (Scan, Analyze, Response, Assess) model to understand who the CVPD stops and interacts with
  • Identifying possible disparities and regularly sharing this information with the community
  • Addressing risk factors that could contribute to disparity through targeted interventions
  • Documenting the effectiveness of interventions and creating a practitioner toolkit for other jurisdictions.

Resident Survey

The City of Chula Vista is conducting a survey to learn about residents' attitudes and opinions about the police department, equity, transparency, and opportunities for greater trust. Read the summary results for the 2023 resident survey and the findings for the Drone as a First Responder addendum.

Please complete the survey by January 13, 2025. Contact Victor Mora at victor.mora@sandag.org with any questions.

RIPA Dashboard

The Chula Vista RIPA Dashboard (January 2022 through June 2023), developed by SANDAG with data provided by the Chula Vista Police Department, offers valuable insights into officer-community interactions. It will help the department identify and address potential disparities or biases, fostering more informed decision-making. Visit the Chula Vista Police Department website and the California Department of Justice website for more information. (Note: This data does not include information on the behavior of individuals stopped by law enforcement. When analyzing racial disparities in police encounters, understanding citizen behavior—such as compliance during stops or responses to commands—offers essential context, ensuring that outcomes are not attributed solely to police bias.)

PSN Grants

Grant applications are due to SANDAG by June 24, 2024, at 5 p.m. Up to $173,609 in competitive grant funding is available. Please click on the Notice of Funding Availability link for more information about the grant and the application process.

Budget Detail Worksheet

Notice of Funding Availability  

Applicant Disclosure of Pending Applications

Certification of De Minimis Indirect Cost Rate

Privacy Certification

High Risk Status Disclosure

Call for Projects Addendum

Certified Assurances

Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

Certification Form 

Grant applications are due to SANDAG by June 24, 2024, at 5 p.m. Up to $525,992 in competitive grant funding is available for the identified task-force areas and $100,000 for micro-grants outside the task-force areas. Read the Notice of Funding Availability for more information about the grant and the application process.

Budget Detail Worksheet 

Applicant Disclosure of Pending Applications

Certification of De Minimis Indirect Cost Rate

Privacy Certification

High Risk Status Disclosure 

Certified Assurances

Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

Certification Form

Map - 77th Street

Map - Southeast

Map - City of San Bernardino

NFA Presentation

PSN Virtual Information Session

Additional information regarding grant funding availability is forthcoming.

Additional information regarding grant funding availability is forthcoming.

Recent Courts & Police Projects

In 2019, SANDAG conducted a survey of random Chula Vista residents regarding their perception of safety, current concerns, and satisfaction with police services. This was the sixth time SANDAG had conducted this survey, with the previous survey being implemented in 2007.

2019 Chula Vista Police Department Resident Opinion Survey 

Since 2003, the local U.S. Attorney's Office has coordinated a national effort to target gun- and gang-related violence. This effort, called Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), involves a comprehensive strategy that includes coordinated regional response by law enforcement, the involvement of community partners, a media campaign, as well as the analysis of gun-crime statistics. As the research partner for the Southern District of California, SANDAG analyzed statistics related to gun-crime, arrests for weapons-related offenses, ballistic tests, and confiscated firearms. These statistics were shared with project partners to inform strategies and measure effectiveness.

SANDAG evaluated efforts by the Department of Child Support services to combine parenting time visitation and child support orders.

An Evaluation of the San Diego County Parenting Time Opportunities for Children (PTOC) Project: Final Report 

The San Diego Superior Court received a grant from the State Justice Institute (SJI) to interview over 3,000 court users. The overall objective was to develop and administer a survey that would determine court users' opinions of the accessibility to facilities and services. SANDAG contracted with the Court to collaborate in the survey design, train interviewers, analyze the results of the survey, and prepare a report. The Court was successful in obtaining interviews with court users at ten different facilities in the San Diego Region and was able to learn their opinions about the capacity of the Court to facilitate access and provide appropriate services. Survey questions identified respondent's reasons for coming to the court, including type of matter and stakeholder category; how easy or difficult it was to find the facility, courtroom, or office; the respondent's opinion of court personnel; and the adequacy of services received.