TALKING PAPER
ON
LAW ENFORCEMENT ACCREDITATION
FOR THE MEMPHIS POLICE DEPARTMENT
- Background
—Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) formed in 1979 to
establish a body of standards designed to (1) increase
law enforcement agency capabilities to prevent and control crime; (2) increase agency
effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of law enforcement services; (3) increase
cooperation and coordination with other law enforcement agencies and other agencies within
the criminal justice system; and (4) increase citizen and employee confidence in the
goals, objectives, policies and practices of the agency
—CALEA also formed to develop an accreditation process that provides law enforcement agencies an opportunity to voluntarily demonstrate that they meet an established and recognized set of professional standards
—Modeled after similar accreditation programs found historically in institutions of higher education, hospitals and churches; currently extends to North American and Caribbean jurisdictions and includes local, county, state, federal (e.g. US Marshals Service) and specialty jurisdictions and Canadian counterparts
—Process embraces seven themes: providing a management blueprint; creating a process for change; promoting employee involvement in the organization; reducing liability and risk; enhancing inspectional processes; requiring critical incident planning; and verification of excellence
—Program is a joint effort of CALEA and North American law enforcement's major
membership/public policy organizations including the International Association of Chiefs
of Police (IACP), National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE),
National Sheriffs' Association (NSA) and Police Executive Research Forum (PERF)
—CALEA overseen by 21 member board of directors with 11 members from law enforcement
and 10 members from non-law enforcement; operates as a non-profit corporation with a
permanent staff and executive director in Fairfax, Virginia
—Original standards were developed over 29 month period from 1979-1982
—Original standards, which initially numbered 944 covering 48 topics, were field
tested for one year and received final approval in September 1983; accreditation was
awarded in five year increments to agencies
—Standards have undergone four iterations in the ensuing 18 years and now encompass 443 standards covering 38 chapters or topic areas; accreditation now awarded in three year increments only; the ongoing editing process is characterized by industry recommendation, staff research/production, field review and Board approval
—Basic philosophy is that standards reflect the best professional requirements and practices for today's law enforcement agencies Standards embrace six categories: role, responsibilities and relationships with other agencies; organization, management and administration; personnel administration; law enforcement operations, operational support and traffic enforcement; prisoner and court services; auxiliary and technical services
—Standards' requirements provide a description of 'what' must be accomplished by the applicant agency leaving the agency wide latitude in determining 'how' it will achieve its compliance with applicable standards; single standards may have multiple requirements
—Standards are achievable; currently approximately 1000 agencies have been accredited and reaccredited (est.)and more than 1,000 agencies are in the process for initial accreditation (est.); 23% of full time state and local officers in the US work for agencies involved in the accreditation process
—This approach promotes independence and is key to the universal nature and flexibility of the standards; yet Commission clearly expects accredited agencies to live by the letter and spirit of the standard; established guiding principles drive the agencies and assessors in this regard
—Of particular importance: "The agency must consider its mission, its legally mandated responsibilities, and the demands of its service community in determining which standards are applicable to it and how it will comply with applicable standards " (see Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies, The Standards Manual of the Law Enforcement Agency Accreditation Program, Fourth Edition, January 1999, p. xv)
—Each standard composed of three elements: standard statement, commentary, and level of compliance required
—Standard statement is a declarative sentence that places clear-cut and binding requirement(s) on an agency
—Commentary supports the standard statement but is not binding, instead it is explanatory and advisory
—Levels of compliance denote the relative importance assigned to each standard (mandatory, other than mandatory or not applicable) based on size and service level of the agency
—Standards addressing life/health/safety issues, constitutional concerns, legal matters or essential law enforcement requirements are mandatory
—Standards dealing with important or desirable law enforcement practices or exemplary activities are classified as other than mandatory
—Standards not required of agencies because of size or function limitations are classified as not applicable
—If an agency is prevented from complying -with an applicable standard because of circumstances beyond its control (e.g. legislation, labor agreement, court order, case law, -written rule or regulation) a waiver process may be invoked Accreditation is achieved through 100% compliance -with all standards determined to be mandatory and a minimum of 80% compliance with applicable other than mandatory standards
-The Process
—Application: Agency applies to CALEA for applicant status; agreement is
signed; agency profile questionnaire completed; cost largely dependent on agency size and
service level
—Self-Assessment: Systematic, thorough and detailed internal examination of agency practices and procedures to evaluate/resolve ability to comply with standards; accomplished through an accreditation manager selected within the agency; proofs developed to demonstrate required compliance; agency is oriented to the accreditation process; with successful completion of self-assessment phase, which averages 18-36 months, agency becomes a candidate for accreditation; a 'mock' on-site assessment is normally utilized in this phase
—On-Site Assessment: CALEA approves the agency's candidate status, selects and trains a team of assessors and team leader to evaluate the agency, and over a period of 5-7 days the on-site assessment is conducted; on-site assessment includes a public hearing, media contact and community input; philosophy for assessments is 'accountability and responsibility with reasonable assistance'
—Commission Review: Assessment team's final report is forwarded to the Commission, a hearing is scheduled during one of three annual CALEA meetings, the Commission hears testimony and reviews the final report and a decision to award/not award accredited status is made
—Maintaining Compliance and Reaccreditation: Annual reports submitted to CALEA and process repeated at three year intervals
—Every accreditation is a test of the standards, their currency and appropriateness
Attachments:
1. Current CALEA brochure for upcoming conference in San Diego—This would be an
excellent opportunity for an MPD representative to see and learn the process first hand
2. Complete Table of Contents reflecting all required standards/topical areas
3. Sample standards' chapter (Ch. 1 )
4. CALEA web site home page
5. List of accredited Tennessee agencies
6. List of all accredited agencies