Officials at the SIUC administration of justice department say they hope to establish a network of Southern Illinois law enforcement agencies through a grant from the National Institute of Justice.

James Garofalo, director of the department of administration of justice, said he submitted a grant proposal toe the institute requesting $75,000 for the first phase of the project.

Garofalo said he was informed verbally that the institute wanted to provide the funding, but the department has not received official confirmation regarding the grant.

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We’re expecting confirmation by the end of October, Garofalo said. If not then, then definitely before the end of the year.

Garofalo said the project will have two phases. Garofalo is seeking funding for phase I, the development of a network of 20 to 30 police agencies in down state Illinois. Included in the project are such southern Illinois communities as Carbondale, Alton, Fairview Heights, Mascoutah and Sesser. He said the agencies will work together to define what research needs to be done and come up with research plans.

The project is called Downstate Illinois Law Enforcement Applied Research Network (DI-LEARN), Garofalo said. We will develop procedures for the network, define research needs and develop research designs on how to meet their needs.

Garofalo said that most research done in the area of law enforcement involves big cities, and the major goal of this grant is to help out small, rural departments.

This is a big step forward, because these communities don’t get research attention and have no resources to conduct research, Garofalo said. This project gives them the opportunity to do research that relates to community policing.

Garofalo, along with administration of justice professor Thomas Castellano, prepared the grant proposal and assembled the police departments.

Professor Castellano played a major role in the planning of the project, Garofalo said. But I had to assume the lead role in developing the idea.

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Garofalo said the first phase of the network will last until the end of 1996, at which time he will apply for funding of a second phase.

Hopefully, we will receive funding for a second phase, Garofalo said. This project has the potential for long-term benefits for these communities by helping them plug into the University’s resources.