Town Police Department Receives Reaccreditation

By Andrew Gorosko

Following a review of the town police department’s records on the topics of its management and its delivery of public services, the state’s Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POSTC) has granted the department a Tier 1 reaccreditation.

POSTC has presented Police Chief Michael Kehoe with a certificate of reaccreditation, recognizing the police department’s accomplishment in again meeting the Tier 1 standards.

The department received its first three-year Tier 1 accreditation in 2005 following a POSTC review of its files and reports for the year 2004. The department had worked toward its initial accreditation for several years.

To maintain accreditation, a POSTC review is required every three years.

Last June 24, a POSTC inspection team reviewed the police department’s files and reports for the years 2005, 2006, and 2007. POSTC found that the department had met and properly documented its maintaining the Tier 1 accreditation standards. That review sought to learn whether the organization maintains a set of records that meet current standards pertaining to police liability and risk.

Through the accreditation process, law enforcement agencies document that they meet applicable standards for departmental management and the delivery of services to the public. The process is voluntary and has no cost.

Chief Kehoe said the department has started working toward receiving its Tier 2 accreditation status. The overall process has three tiers of accreditation.

In seeking Tier 2 status, police officials will organize the required files and expand their law enforcement policies. “It’s new ground for us,” he said.

Achieving Tier 2 status will be a time-consuming and labor-intensive process, the chief said.

Lieutenant James Mooney, who handles administrative matters at the police department, said the next review of the department by POSTC would occur in January 2011.

 POSTC is a public agency whose membership is appointed by the governor. Its members include federal, state, and municipal law enforcement managers, as well as members of the public.

Accreditation is a voluntary process through which municipal law enforcement agencies seek to demonstrate a commitment to excellence, according to POSTC. In the accreditation process, law enforcement agencies “demonstrate excellence in management and service delivery,” according to POSTC.

The overall accreditation program concerns 327 standards that are broken into three successive tiers. Tier 1 concerns 124 standards pertaining to liability; Tier 2 addresses 83 standards on professional certification; and Tier 3 covers 120 general management standards. 

According to POSTC, the accreditation standards are formulated to allow police departments to meet the goals of strengthening crime prevention and crime control capabilities; formalizing essential management procedures; establishing fair and nondiscriminatory personnel practices; improving service delivery; solidifying interagency cooperation and coordination; and boosting citizen and staff confidence in the police agency.