The city of bridgeport is seeking to establish a reginal innovative forensic technology laboratory to aid in reducing violent criminal activities

The Bureau of Justice Assistance has awarded the City of Bridgeport, Connecticut, a $963,000 Project Grant under the Congressionally Recommended Awards program (CFDA 16.753) to establish a Regional Innovative Forensic Technology Laboratory. The laboratory will have the capability to assist with cybercrimes, dark web investigations, mobile device forensics, and ballistic identification through specialized computing equipment, high-definition monitors, forensic lab tables, and critical software. This investment aims to enhance the city's capacity to process digital evidence more efficiently and reduce its reliance on state and federal facilities, thereby improving the timeliness of criminal investigations. The grant period runs from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2028, and the project will not only benefit the City of Bridgeport but also neighboring towns and cities in the state of Connecticut.

The laboratory will have the capability to assist with cybercrimes, incidents connected to the dark web, unlocking and extracting information from cellular phones, computers, and any other device. In addition, this lab will process the ballistic identification of shell casings and compare them to nibin. This technology is a combination of specialized computers, high-definition monitors, forensic lab tables, and critical software. The set objectives and ultimate achievements of this project will not only impact the members of the city of bridgeport community but will extend to reach citizens of neighboring towns/cities as well as the state of connecticut. The proposed digital forensics lab will alleviate the citys reliance on state and federal facilities to process digitalevidence, and allow for quicker, more efficient processing of time sensitive information.