Bill > SB911

This bill establishes the Violent Incident Clearance and Technological Investigative Methods (VICTIM) Program, administered by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, to provide grants to law enforcement agencies to improve clearance rates for homicides and other violent crimes. The program allows agencies to use grants for purposes such as hiring and training personnel, acquiring investigative technology and equipment, upgrading record management systems, supporting witnesses, and analyzing crime trends. Importantly, the grants are meant to supplement, not replace, existing funding. The bill requires grant recipients to submit annual reports detailing case clearance rates, personnel assignments, training, technology purchases, and grant utilization. The Commission must also conduct annual evaluations of the program, assessing its performance metrics, successful practices, and areas for improvement, with detailed reports submitted to key legislative committees. The bill ensures geographic diversity by reserving at least 10% of grants for rural communities and allows for multijurisdictional applications. Grant recipients must track and report on case clearance methods, including cases cleared by arrest or by exceptional means (where an offender is identified but cannot be immediately arrested). The bill defines key terms like "homicide," "violent crime," and "cleared by arrest," and limits administrative expenses to 3% of the program's appropriated funds. The legislation will take effect 60 days after its passage.

Justice

https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2025&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=911