Onsite complete

We have applied for our sixth accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA).  We were first accredited in 1989.  The accreditation cycle is three years and we were last reaccredited in 2008, so if we achieve reaccreditation it will be awarded in the first quarter of 2011. 

The review occurs in two parts: a desk review, in which assessors pore over all the documents that demonstrate our compliance, and a site review in which a team of assessors visits the agencies and looks under the hood.  Our site team was here this week.  the assessors have extensive backgrounds in policing, they have a good frame of reference for comparing us with the rest of the policing field.

A public hearing was held Monday night for CALEA to accept comments concerning our application for reaccreditation.  Testifiers could also call in comments on a hotline during the afternoon.  The testifiers spoke about the quality of our work with other agencies, with the homeless, with victims of sexual assault, with chronic alcoholics, and with domestic violence victims.  The Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court was among testifiers who phoned in comments to the assessment team.

The exit interview with the assessors before they departed was a button-buster.  To say that they were impressed would be an understatement.  They specifically mentioned the quality of our personnel, our facilities, the apparent quality of our relationship with citizens and with other governmental and community organizations, and our information technology.  The daily news meeting briefing and lineup both were singled out for special mention, too.  The praise was glowing, and a prelude to what I expect with be smooth sailing when the full commission hears the team’s report early next year.

I am incredibly proud to serve as Lincoln’s police chief.  The opportunity to work with the women and men who share this mission to provide police services that promote a safe and secure community is immensely fulfilling.  Special thanks is due to our own accreditation team, who handle this in addition to their many other duties: Capt. Joy Citta, Sgt. Don Scheinost, and Officer Katie Flood.