Office of the Phone: (651) 438-4700

DAKOTA COUNTY SHERIFF Emergency Dial 911

Fax: (651) 438-4709
Tim Leslie, Sheriff Commanders
Joe Leko, Chief Deputy
Daniel Scheuermann
1580 Highway 55 Detention Services
Post Office Box 247 John Grant
Hastings, Minnesota 55033 Operations

MEDIA RELEASE
FROM: Sheriff Tim Leslie
Office: (651) 438-4710
Cell: (651) 324-0866

DATE: October 2, 2017

RE: Federal Grant Award Received

Sheriff Tim Leslie is pleased to announce that Dakota County has been awarded a grant from the United States
Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women. This grant is a three-year project which will enhance
the efforts of the Dakota County Electronic Crime Task Force solely for the protection of women from crimes of
violence and to investigate and prosecute offenders. The grant award is for $150,000 per year, totaling
$450,000 during the three-year grant period.

Monies received under grant funding will be spent to gather evidence of domestic and sexual violence, as well as
stalking-related electronic crimes. One full-time examiner who is schooled in computer forensic examinations
will be funded by the grant, as well as a part-time coordinator who will work to improve the judicial process
from a cases inception through prosecution for the victims.

Under a previous grant which has since expired, the Electronic Crime Task Force worked with victims to
successfully and safely recover evidence and prosecute offenders. During that time, the task force also
partnered with both 360 Communities and the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women (MCBW). This
cooperative effort provided for a victim-centered approach during the judicial process. The task force is happy
that, with the new grant funding received, an investigator can continue to be assigned to investigate these
offenses as his/her primary duty.

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