State to GIVE Suffolk More Than $1.3 Million to Combat Gun Violence

More funding to fight gun-related violence is on its way to Suffolk County, New York State Sen. Monica R. Martinez and Gov. Kathy Hochul confirmed this week.  During a visit to the Suffolk County Police Academy in Brentwood, the governor detailed a $36 million investment in local law enforcement agencies across the state through the nationally recognized Gun Involved Violence Elimination (GIVE) initiative.

Suffolk County law enforcement agencies will receive more than $1.3 million through this third round of GIVE funding, which supports equipment, personnel, overtime and training to help agencies proactively reduce gun violence. Between 2021 and 2024, shootings in GIVE recipient communities dropped 52 percent. In 2024, Long Island recorded its lowest number of shootings in recent history, and last year, shooting incidents with injury statewide reached their lowest level since tracking began in 2006.

The awarded funding will be allocated as follows:

• Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office: $564,291
• Suffolk County Police Department: $459,998
• Suffolk County Department of Probation: $176,256
• Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office: $133,398

Statewide, 28 police departments, district attorneys’ offices, probation departments and sheriffs’ offices in 21 counties participate in the GIVE initiative.  According to the governor’s office, these jurisdictions typically experience the highest volume of violent crime outside of New York City.

“When it comes to protecting our streets from gun violence, we must GIVE law enforcement agencies the funding they need to succeed,” said Sen. Martinez.  “These grants help make Suffolk County and other recipient communities safer, as proven by the double-digit declines in shooting-related incidents with injury and shooting deaths.  I thank Gov. Hochul and the Division of Criminal Justice Services for prioritizing this investment to create safer neighborhoods across New York.”

From Jan. 1 through June 30, 2025, GIVE jurisdictions reported 242 shooting incidents with injury, down from 281 during the same period in 2024.  The number of people shot declined from 354 to 275, and there were nine fewer gun violence-related deaths, with 49 reported compared to 58 the previous year.

Communities participating in GIVE also reported declines across all seven index crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft.  During the first quarter of 2025, preliminary data from the state Division of Criminal Justice Services showed an 18 percent reduction in total index crimes, a 19 percent decrease in violent crime and an 18 percent drop in property crime compared to the first quarter of 2024.  On Long Island, the Suffolk County and Nassau County police departments reported similar double-digit reductions in each category.

The current GIVE funding cycle runs from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026. An additional $380,000 is reserved to address emerging needs identified by participating law enforcement agencies.