About the JFA Grant

Last updated March 26, 2024

About the Justice for All Program

The Justice for All Act of 2004 (JFAA) was enacted to protect crime victims' rights, eliminate the substantial backlog of DNA samples in crime laboratories, and expand DNA testing capacity. In 2016, the JFAA was reauthorized as the Justice For All Reauthorization Act (JFARA), expanding its role to support state, tribal, and local efforts to protect the rights guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The Sixth Amendment to the Constitution states, "In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence."

The Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Justice for All program, which operates under the Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs and is authorized by the Justice for All Act, assists state, local, and tribal jurisdictions in reducing crime and improving the functioning of the criminal justice system, specifically through support for statewide strategic planning and the protection of Sixth Amendment constitutional rights.