Bergen County Police Academy Seeks Accreditation

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — The Bergen County Police Academy is preparing for an upcoming assessment, which could lead to national accreditation for the agency.

A team of assessors for the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA) will conduct a virtual on-site assessment on Dec. 6 and 7 to "examine all aspects of the Bergen County Police Academy policy and procedures, management, operations, and instructional services."

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As part of the assessment, academy personnel, trainees, and members of the public are invited to offer comments by telephone during a public call-in session. Interested people can call 201-226-5786 on Dec. 6 between the hours of 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

Telephone comments are limited to 10 minutes and must address the Academy’s ability to comply with CALEA standards.

Written comments will also be accepted, and should be addressed to: Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA®), 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320 Gainesville, Virginia 20155."

Accreditation, which is voluntary, isn't the end-all be-all for the way departments operate. In the event that the department were to lose it, in fact, the visible changes would likely be minimal. But it does show that the agency is employing modern policies, specifically the "commission’s 160 state of-the-art standards."

What are the standards?

Golden, apparently.

According to the CALEA website, the set of standards put forth by the organization are the "gold standard in public safety."

The organization was created in 1979 as a "credentialing authority through the joint efforts of law enforcement's major executive associations."

In total there are 484 CALEA best practice standards. These standards are wide-ranging, covering topics such as bias, evidence collection, internal affairs and public information.

Within those categories — and more — the criteria delves deeper into specifics.

For example, there are 13 criteria that must be met under the use of force standards, which cover aspects of use of force including:

• The use of reasonable force
• Use of deadly force
• Warning shots
• Use of authorized less-lethal weapons
• Rendering aid after use of weapons
• Reporting uses of force
• Reviewing reported uses of force
• Removal from line of duty assignment relating to the use of force
• Authorization: weapons and ammunition
• Demonstrating proficiency with weapons
• Annual and biennial proficiency training
• Issuing written directives
• Analyzing reported uses of force

Mind you, this is just one subsection of the larger law enforcement role and authority standards, which also include regulations regarding limits to authority and agency defining language such as their code of ethics and oath of office

Other standards to be reviewed include bias based profiling, command protocol, entry level training, grievance procedures and emotional stability and psychological fitness examinations.

The full list of standards can be found here: https://bit.ly/2E0yNvb