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GARY, Ind. (AP) — The city of Gary has become one of six sites around the nation chosen for a federally-funded pilot program aimed at improving trust between law enforcement and the public.
The national program is being funded by a $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The (Munster) Times reports Gary officials say the program grew out of the fatal 2012 shooting of unarmed Florida teenager Trayvon Martin.
Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson says she hopes the three-year initiative will help residents in her struggling city to feel closer to the police force, "and not view them as kind of a separate entity that imposes on them."
Police Chief Larry McKinley says Gary residents will see more transparency when it comes to the department and surrounding law enforcement agencies.
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