Newtown Police Department has earned Tier III accreditation — the highest level — from the Connecticut Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POSTC).

The council is the governing body that oversees training, accreditation, certification, and field services across the state. The 23-member appointed council is comprised of police officers representing multiple municipalities based on population numbers; members of the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association, also from municipalities of varying populations; two chief elected officials, one from a municipality under 50,000 residents and the other from a municipality over 50,000; members of the public with specific backgrounds; the chief state’s attorney; and a faculty member from a higher education institution with a background in criminal justice, among others.

Connecticut is one of few states with mandatory accreditation for all police departments. Since 2019, every municipal, state, and special police agency in this state must achieve and maintain POSTC accreditation.

Accreditation became mandatory statewide following legislation passed in 2019-20, which was part of broader police accountability reforms.

All agencies were required to achieve at least Tier I, or basic compliance of entry level standards, by 2022-23. Newtown PD has been Tier I since 2005.

Tier II was required across the state by the 2025-26 season. Statewide Tier III levels are currently targeted for 2027-2030.

Accreditation covers over 322 standards, everything from use of force, pursuit policy, body-worn cameras, and internal affairs investigations to evidence handling, community engagement, mental health responses, and much more.

Newtown completed its Tier II and III file review in October. Following a thorough self-evaluation, the department underwent an independent audit by state assessors and appointment members of POSTC assigned to the council’s Accreditation Subcommittee.

Newtown’s Tier II accreditation was formally voted on and approved during POSTC’s January 8 meeting. Newtown joined East Granby, East Haddam, Oxford, Southbury, and Trumbull in receiving the Tier II accreditation that day.

Tier III accreditations for Newtown, Colchester, and Trumbull were also voted on and approved during the same meeting.

Most members of Newtown’s accreditation team traveled to Meriden on March 12, when they attended this month’s POSTC meeting and formally received their Accreditation Award. POSTC’s citation in part commended the department “for demonstrating a commitment to professional excellence in policy and practice.”

NPD Chief David Kullgren, Deputy Chief Bryan Bishop, Lt Scott Smith, and Sgt John McDermott accepted the honor on behalf of the local department. Frank Eannotti, a retired Stratford Police captain and the accreditation manager for Newtown, was unable to attend the meeting.

‘Constant Gardening’

The local team said last week that one of the things that kept Newtown PD at Tier I level for so long was its previous location. Chief Kullgren said the building at 3 Main Street prevented the local department from moving forward because the second and third accreditation tiers include facility requirements.

Newtown PD had been headquartered within Town Hall South since the 1970s. It moved to its current home at 191 South Main Street in November 2020, after the former Taunton Press administrative complex there was extensively renovated.

“Because it was such an antiquated facility, it did not enable us to move forward,” the chief said March 16.

POSTC accreditation and reaccreditation is done in four-year cycles. Smith on Monday said the last time POSTC reaccreditation was done in Newtown was 2017. The most recent cycle, he said, “was the first chance we had since we’ve been in this building to re-do our accreditation.”

Benefits of POSTC accreditation, the group noted, include a department’s demonstration of professional excellence and accountability, a reduction of liability, improvement of officer training and retention, strengthening of public trust and community relations, and the qualification for certain grants and insurance discounts.

Kullgren also said the standards that must be complied with for POSTC dictate how a department operates on a day-to-day basis.

“These ensure that we are following best police practices, we are compliant with transparency with the community, following the implicit bias de-escalation procedures, mental health response, community engagement,” and more, he said. “Those 322 standards are laid out in hundreds of policies.”

Eannotti noted “each of those 322 standards may include multiple ‘proofs,’ or accreditation requirements. Inside each of those standards you might have up to 22 proofs that you have to show for each one. There are thousands of actual proofs to prove all your standards over time.

“It is a time-consuming process, but a lot of it is showing you are compliant,” Eannotti added. He also noted there are 22-24 state policies that are mandated for every department.

McDermott said the accreditation process includes not only saying officers do something, but proving every one of those elements.

“A lot of it is directly quoted from reports,” he said.

Filing reports correctly — and on time — is also a requirement, Eannotti noted.

Photos are also an important part of the documentation process, showing everything from first-aid kits in Booking and emergency buttons in specific locations to available AEDs and fire extinguishers. These are just a few of the multiple items a department must have in place to achieve the level of accreditation Newtown has, it was noted.

Newtown’s accreditation went into effect on January 8. While the accreditation cycle is four years, departments must meet standards annually. There is no downtime.

“This now sets the clock to do this all over again,” Eannotti said this week. “Every year you have to prove your set of standards. It’s constant gardening — it’s an ongoing, repetitive process.”

Departments that fail to achieve or maintain POSTC accreditation not only risk potential decertification of an agency or its officers, they also face state funding reductions and increased civil liability exposure.

Smith said the process is an undertaking for the whole police department.

“Patrol officers, detectives, school resource officers, they’re all working every day in compliance of these high standards. It’s based on their work that we’re able to satisfy these proofs and ultimately obtain the accreditation.”

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Managing Editor Shannon Hicks can be reached at shannon@thebee.com.