WARWICK, RI – The Warwick Police Department will get four more officers to help patrol the streets thanks to a $500,000 grant from the federal government and the town of West Warwick will receive $125,000 to help hire one additional officer and pay for police services.

Administered by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office, the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) grants will help provide about 75% funding for salaries and benefits for three years for newly-hired, full-time officers, including filling existing unfunded vacancies, or for rehired police officers who were laid off as a result of local budget cuts.

The federal funds require that all new officers must be military veterans with at least 180 days of active service on or after September 11, 2001.

“Our police officers do an outstanding job and I am committed to ensuring they have the resources and manpower they need to keep our communities safe.  This federal investment will help fill vacancies with new officers and hire experienced veterans in order to continue the progress the department’s community policing programs have made,” said U.S. Senator Jack Reed, who helped create the COPS program in the 1990s and serves on the Appropriations subcommittee which oversees COPS funding.

“This federal funding will help Warwick and West Warwick better protect local neighborhoods from crime, and will put military veterans to work after they complete their service.  It’s a true win-win for our state,” said U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse.

The Warwick and West Warwick Police Departments were among more than 220 cities and counties across the country to receive COPS funding.  Grantees for the 2012 program were selected based on financial need and local crime rates.