U.S. ATTORNEY RECOGNIZES SOUTH CORINTH NEIGHBORHOOD PROJECT

CORINTH - A one-square-mile area in the heart of Corinth stands apart as
one of about 40 sites selected nationwide by the U.S. Justice Department as
a "Weed and Seed" site.

The recognition also makes the project eligible to apply for a $175,000
grant to help improve the safety and well-being of the neighborhood, which
is home to about 1,500 residents.

If successful, the South Corinth Neighborhood Project will be eligible for
an additional $900,000 over the next four years for a total of $1.075 million.

About half of that amount will be used to increase law enforcement efforts
to create a safer neighborhood and the remainder will be used for improving
quality of life and neighborhood restoration programs as well as drug
prevention, intervention and treatment programs.

U.S. Attorney Jim Greenlee of the Northern District U.S. Court was in
Corinth Friday to present South Corinth Neighborhood Project leaders with
an official Weed and Seed certificate of recognition.

The planning process began in 2001 for the project aimed at improving
safety, quality of life, education and economic opportunities for the South
Corinth Neighborhood residents, said Greenlee.

"The South Corinth Neighborhood Project's community policing strategy is
modeled on the proven concept of residents taking responsibility for their
neighborhood,"=14 said Barbara Bennett, grant writer and project director.
"The strategy incorporates good working relationships between concerned law
enforcement officials and concerned citizens with the training and tools to
accomplish the goal of reducing crime in their community."=14

While about five percent of Alcorn County's population resides in the South
Corinth neighborhood, Bennett said more than 60 percent of all county drug
cases originate there. Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics statistics indicate
the area ranks fifth in the state for the origination of drug cases.

More than one third of the neighborhood's residents are children and youth
under age 20 and about 70 percent of the population is black. The median
household income is $11,360.

The law enforcement strategy involves a multi-agency partnership between
the Corinth Police Department, the Alcorn County Sheriff's Department, the
Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the
U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and the U.S. Justice Department.