Funding Grows for Weed and Seed Effort

Police have received an additional $50,000 for the Weed and Seed program, which aims to curb crime in southwest Santa Ana neighborhoods with stepped-up patrols, and to reseed the area with social services.

Santa Ana was one of the first cities nationwide to participate in the U.S. Justice Department program.

Police say about $2.8 million in federal money has been devoted to the area over the last seven years, helping to bring dramatic reductions in crime.

The extra federal money approved by the City Council on Monday came from assets seized from criminals and will go toward officer overtime costs, police vehicles and informants, according to a city report.