According to Monday’s analysis by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University, 127 weapons-related charges were brought against the federal government in the southern district. This was within the first ten months of fiscal 2018. The district ranks ninth among the 94 federal judicial areas per capita in the United States with 81 weapons-related prosecutions. The Eastern District of Missouri, which is headquartered in St. Louis was ranked No. 1. At 230 prosecutions for every million people. The district received only 37 weapons prosecutions last year; 73 were obtained two years ago. These new data are in line with U.S. attorney Mike Hurst’s Project EJECT initiative, which aims to reduce violent crime in Mississippi’s capital. Federal officials claim Project EJECT aims to detain and arrest people to help them prosecute in the federal system. This allows convicted criminals to be sent to other states without parole. According to Hurst’s press releases, many of the District’s Project EJECT prosecutions have focused on illegal possession or use. Hurst presented statistics at Jackson’s recent town halls this summer to support the effectiveness of the initiative now in its ninth month. Hurst stated that Project EJECT’s outcomes include a 22% drop in violent crime over the past year, and more than 70 federal indictments so far, although he also admitted a 60% increase in the number of murders over the previous year. The number of weapons prosecutions is also increasing across the country. According to Justice Department data, 8,403 weapons prosecutions have been reported within the first ten month of fiscal year. TRAC analysis has shown that federal weapons prosecutions have increased 22.5 percent compared to last year. If this pace continues, 31.2 weapons prosecutions will be filed for every one million Americans in the United States by the end of 2018. Last fiscal year, 25.5 weapons prosecutions were brought against the federal government for each one million people._x000D