Every day, dedicated individuals, teams, organizations, and agencies are making extraordinary contributions to public safety and justice reform. As part of the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s (BJA’s) 40th anniversary, we are recognizing their impact with our Excellence in the Field of Criminal Justice Awards.  

These awards are an opportunity to honor the unsung heroes transforming our Nation’s criminal justice system across three categories:  

Reducing Violent Crime Award: This award recognizes an individual or team for their significant contributions to the development and implementation of a successful approach to reduce violent crime in a specific jurisdiction or nationwide.   

Co-Creating Safer Communities Award: This award recognizes an individual or team for their successful community engagement efforts in the co-creation of public safety within a jurisdiction. These efforts include outreach and connection to community residents and the establishment of partnerships with community stakeholders who are recognized and trusted by residents in information gathering, planning, and decision making.    

Reforming Our Nation’s Criminal Justice System Award: This award recognizes an individual or team for their accomplishments in transforming an aspect of the criminal justice system, such as law enforcement or forensic processes, prosecution or defense practices, the work of courts and judges, probation or supervision, corrections, crisis response, interactions with individuals with mental health or substance use disorders, or restorative justice practices. 

Help us recognize extraordinary efforts of individuals, teams, organizations, and agencies that have produced outstanding innovations and made significant contributions to our Nation’s criminal justice system. 

Nominations are open until 8:59 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 21, 2024.