The Oglala Sioux Tribe will be able to keep its police officers on duty until March 2006 under an extension through the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program.

The tribe's $4.5 million grant was set to expire at the end of August. Without additional money, the Public Safety Department would have lost 57 officers, about 67 percent of its police force, The Rapid City Journal reported.

The COPS grant has enabled the tribe to upgrade technology, create a 911 system, train its police force and expand dispatch services to cover 97 percent of the reservation, the paper said.

Get the Story:
Tribe escapes COPS deadline (The Rapid City Journal 8/3)

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