CALEA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 21, 2007

Springdale Police Department Earns First Commission on Accreditation for Law
Enforcement Agencies Certification

On March 17, 2007 at the recent Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) conference in Greensboro, North Carolina, the Springdale Police Department received its first award of accreditation. This award is a prestigious recognition of law enforcement excellence. It signifies that the agency has successfully met a body of professional standards.

CALEA was established as an independent accrediting authority in 1979 by the four major law enforcement executive associations: International Association of Chief's of Police (IACP); National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE); National Sheriff's Association (NSA); and Police Executive Research Forum (PERF). CALEA's purpose and mission is two-fold. First, to establish a body of standards designed to increase agency effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of public safety services and, second, to establish and administer a series of accreditation programs through which public safety agencies can demonstrate voluntarily that they meet an established set of professionally recognized standards leading to excellence in service delivery and management.

In November 2006, a team of law enforcement professionals serving as CALEA Assessors spent three days reviewing the Springdale Police Department's compliance with 446 standards. Inspectors also toured facilities, interviewed numerous Springdale employees, and conducted a public hearing. Following this inspection, the Assessors submitted a thorough report of their findings to the Board of Commission. The agency then received a full vote by the commission to receive its first award of accreditation.

Springdale Police Department is now distinguished as one of the 16 agencies to receive accreditation in the Greater Cincinnati Area.

Photo:

Left to Right: Sylvester Daughtry, Jr., Executive Director of CALEA
Lt. Tom Wells, Cpt. Willian Hafer, Ric Ideker, Accreditation Mgr., PO Marsha Bemmes, Assistant Accreditation Mgr., Chief Michael Laage, and James M. O'Dell, Board of Commissioners, President