BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Days after East Baton Rouge Parish was named one of only four jurisdictions nationwide selected for a massive federal crime grant, questions are growing over the controversial conditions and strings attached to the money.
U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche is scheduled to visit Baton Rouge on Wednesday to reveal the exact dollar amount the capital city will receive from the Department of Justice’s nearly $300 million Model Cities Initiative.
While parish leaders celebrated the selection on Friday, public records and community advocates are now putting the spotlight on the fine print behind the parish’s initial $125 million request.
The $125 Million Pitch
Back in August, the East Baton Rouge Metropolitan Council held an emergency meeting to authorize the application. Chris Csonka, executive director of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC), told council members the funding was critical to confronting a sobering reality…