From the Aberdeen Police Department:
A team of assessors from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA®), will arrive on April 6, 2015, to examine all aspects of the Aberdeen Police Department’s policy and procedures, management, operations, and support services, Chief of Police Henry Trabert announced today.
Verification by the team that the Aberdeen Policy Department meets the Commission’s state-of-the–art standards is part of a voluntary process to gain accreditation—a highly priced recognition of public safety professional excellence, Chief Trabert said.
As part of the on-site assessment, employees and members of the community are invited to offer comments at a public information session on Tuesday, April 7, 2015, at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, located at 60 North Parke Street, Aberdeen, Maryland 21001.
If for some reason an individual cannot speak at the public information session but would still like to provide comments to the assessment team, he/she may do so by telephone. The public may call (410) 297-3011 on April 7, 2015, between the hours of 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm.
Telephone comments and appearances at the public hearing are limited to ten (10) minutes per person and must address the Aberdeen Police Department’s ability to comply with CALEA Standards. A copy of the standards manual is available for examination 24 hours at the Aberdeen Police Department. The local contact is Shirley Echols, Accreditation Manager, (410) 272-2121 x119, sechols@aberdeen-md.org.
Persons wishing to submit written comments about the Aberdeen Police Department’s ability to comply with the accreditation standards may write to: Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA), 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, Virginia 20155.
This is the Aberdeen Police Department’s initial assessment for accreditation. According to Chief of Police Henry Trabert, “We are excited to take part in this process. It allows us to be transparent to the community we are sworn to serve”.
The CALEA Program Manager for Mid-Atlantic Region, which includes the state of Maryland, is John Gregory. He said the assessment team is composed of public safety practitioners from similar agencies outside of Maryland. While on-site, the assessors will review written material, conduct interviews, tour facilities, ride with officers, and attend patrol briefings.
The assessors are:
Danny Messimer, Team Leader
John Kerns, Team Member
After completion of the review of the Aberdeen Police Department, the team will file a report with the Commission. The Commission will then determine whether Aberdeen Police will be granted accredited status.
For more information regarding the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., please write the Commission at 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, Virginia 20155 or call (703) 352-4225.
Hocus Pocus Smokus……..Smoke and Mirrors…….Feel Good BS……BFD.
“a highly priced recognition of public safety professional excellence, Chief Trabert said.”
Chief Trabert is absolutely correct. It is a high priced recognition, and something that is not necessary to achieve a professional police operation or make your organization transparent. The money spent to achieve this recognition is wasted on a piece of paper to hang on the wall at the APD.
Professionalism is achieved through dedication to proper hiring, training, and performance of day to day operations. Transparency is achieved by the dedication of leadership to be forthright with the public they serve. No piece of paper ensures either!
Kudo’s to Aberdeen PD for working on this very tough accreditation. More and more agencies are going for it. It is not a slam-dunk and departments must periodically re-certify. Jesse Bane avoided this cert for years for the HCSO. There’s a message in that and I look to Sheriff Gahler to go for this cert.