Sheriffs Office seeks re-accreditation status

Sheriff David Shoar announced to Historic City News today that a team of assessors from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA), will be at the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office Saturday April 9th, to examine all aspects of the agency’s policies and procedures, management, operations, and support services.

“Verification by the team that the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office meets the Commission’s state-of-the-art standards is part of a voluntary process to gain continued law enforcement accreditation, a highly prized recognition of professional excellence,” Sheriff Shoar said.

As part of the on-site assessment, agency personnel and members of the community are invited to offer comments at a public information session Monday, April 11th at 7:00 pm. The session will be conducted in the First Coast Technical College located at 3640 Gaines Road in St. Augustine.

If for some reason an individual cannot speak at the public information session but would like to provide comments to the assessment team, they may do so by telephone. The public may call (904) 209-1155 on Sunday, April 10th between the hours of 2:00-4:00 pm.

Telephone comments as well as appearances at the public information session are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with CALEA Standards. A copy of the standards is available for review at the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, Administration Building, (904) 824-8304 contact CPT Mary Fagan or Accreditation Manager SGT Carol Newmans.

Persons wishing to submit written comments about the agency and its ability to comply with the standards for reaccreditation may send them to the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement, Inc. (CALEA), 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, VA 20155.

“Gaining reaccreditation,” Sheriff Shoar said, “will mean that our men and women have continued to provide the best in professional law enforcement services as measured by compliance with the CALEA standards.”

This assessment is a part of the process to ensure agencies are following the standards. The Sheriff’s Office was originally accredited in 1991, and reaccredited in 1996, 1999, 2002, 2006 and 2008.

The assessment team will be composed of law enforcement practitioners from similar, but out-of-state agencies. The assessors will review written materials; interview personnel; and observe on-the-job where compliance can be verified.

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 granted re-accreditation status.

Reaccreditation is for the period of three years, during which time the agency must submit annual reports attesting continued compliance with those standards under which they were initially re-accredited.