Continued Accreditation Sought by Sheriff Davis

The Charles County Sheriff’s Office is pursuing re-accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., (CALEA) and, as part of that process, a team of CALEA assessors will arrive in Charles County on August 14 to examine all aspects of the Sheriff’s Office’s policy and procedures, management, operations and support services.

"In 2001, our Agency became one of the proud few that have earned CALEA accreditation by meeting the Commission’s hundreds of standards," said Sheriff Frederick E. Davis. "Re-accreditation would mean we continue to meet the Commission’s standards and provide Charles County citizen’s with supreme professional excellence."

As part of the on-site assessment, Agency employees and members of the community are invited to offer comments at a public information session August 16 at 7 p.m. in the Charles County Commissioner’s Hearing Room at the County Administration Building, located at 200 Baltimore Street in La Plata.

Individuals who wish to comment to the CALEA assessment team may also do so by calling 301-609-6432 on August 15 between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Telephone comments and appearances at the public information session are limited to 10 minutes and must address the Agency’s ability to comply with CALEA’s standards. A copy of the standards manual is available at the Planning and Accreditation office in the Sheriff’s Headquarters Building, located at 6915 Crain Highway in La Plata. To make arrangements to view the standards manual, call 301-609-6416.

Additionally, the CALEA assessment team will accept written comments regarding the ability of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office to meet the Commission’s standards of accreditation. Written comments should be mailed to: Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA), 10302 Eaton Place, Suite 100, Fairfax, Virginia, 22030-2215.

"Our CALEA accreditation demonstrates how committed our Agency is to providing the best possible service to the citizens of Charles County," said Sheriff Davis. "The effort to comply with these standards is significant, but in doing so we hold the level of our organization to stand among the best law enforcement agencies in the world."

CALEA currently has accredited agencies in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Barbados in the Caribbean. Because CALEA evaluates continuing processes and management techniques, it determines that agencies continue to provide excellent services to their communities.

The CALEA assessment team is composed of law enforcement practitioners from similar but out-of-state agencies. The assessors will review written materials, interview individuals and visit offices and other places where standards compliance can be witnessed. The Sheriff’s Office must meet comply with every applicable standard to earn re-accreditation.

The assessors are: Team Leader Roy Liddicott, an Executive Officer with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Brad W. Slater, Sheriff of Weber County in Ogden, Utah; and Jeffrey Shrader, a division chief with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office in Golden, Colorado. Once the Commission’s assessors complete their review of the Agency, they report back to the full Commission, which will then decide if the Agency is to be re-accredited.

Accreditation is for three years, during which the agency must submit annual reports attesting continued compliance with those standards under which it was accredited. For more information regarding the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., please write the Commission at 10302 Eaton Place, Suite 100, Fairfax, Virginia, 22030-2215; or call (800) 368-3757 or (703) 352-4225.