WASHINGTON, DC – US Attorney General Eric Holder said Friday, September 27, that the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) will provide $150,000 in 2013 fiscal year funding to Newtown to pay for two police positions to ensure school safety, such as school resource officers.

 “This grant funding will help to offer critical support for law enforcement and essential services to the community as Newtown comes back from a heartbreaking tragedy,” Mr Holder said in a statement.

“Just over nine months after the senseless mass shooting at Sandy Hook, we remain committed to providing every resource we can to ensure that the children of Newtown can feel safe and secure at school and elsewhere.  And as we hold lost loved ones in our thoughts and prayers, we resolve to continue to support and protect this community – and to help them heal together,” he said.

The $150,000 grant is the latest assistance that the Justice Department has provided.

In August, the BJA provided an overall $2.5 million in funding to the Connecticut State Police, the Newtown Police Department, and various municipal police agencies which provided Newtown police assistance in response to the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.  That money compensated the agencies and jurisdictions for costs related to overtime, forensics, and security in the aftermath of the crime.