Southold Weighs State Accreditation Of Police Department

SOUTHOLD, NY — The Southold Town board took on the topic of police accreditation at Tuesday's work session in Town Hall.

Members of the town's police advisory committee, including Jack Slattery, Kevin Foote and George Lessler, along with Southold Town Police Chief Martin Flatley, met to discuss the New York State Law Enforcement accreditation process.

The talk followed questions and concerns raised by Orient resident Allison Skrezec at the July Southold town board meeting, where she asked if it was true that the Southold Town Police Department was soon to be accredited.

According to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, accreditation is a "progressive and contemporary way of helping police agencies evaluate and improve their overall performance", providing formal recognition that an organization meets or exceeds general expectations of quality in the field.

The New York State accreditation program was instituted in 1989 and focuses on four primary goals, including to increase "the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement agencies utilizing existing personnel, equipment and facilities to the extent possible, to promote increased cooperation and coordination among law enforcement agencies and other agencies of the criminal justice services; to ensure the appropriate training of law enforcement personnel; and to promote public confidence in law enforcement agencies," the page says.

The accreditation program is made of of a set of standards and addresses issues such as "agency organization, fiscal management, personnel practices, and records management," training standards, and operations standards, dealing with "critical and litigious topics as high-speed pursuits, roadblocks, patrol, and unusual occurrences," the NYS DOCJS said.

Jack Slattery, Southold police advisory committee chair, began by discussing that July meeting, where Skrezec alleged that the town, for example, was lacking transparency in offering up its crime statistics on the police department's website.

Slattery said those stats are displayed on the New York Department of State's website; linking to those statistics on the town police department's website is something that's easily done, he said.

As for accreditation, the town's police advisory committee believes it's a critical step.

"What we are dealing with is a shifting landscape," Slattery said, adding that transparency is key. He suggested the town's police department could "mimic" Suffolk County Police's website, pulling crime statistics and offering them to residents on the town site.

In researching accreditation, Slattery said he'd learned that 80 percent of program managers statewide are ranked sergeant and above; the program manager would be responsible for getting the accreditation process up and running, and then maintaining that accreditation down the line.

Slattery and Lessler both said they support accreditation; Foote said while his initial concerns were for potentially "bogging down" the police chief, he now believes the process makes sense, especially from an "exposure point of view."

Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell asked how many man hours it would take to get the program up and running and how much of a workload accreditation would entail.

To get the program started, it would take one sergeant a full year to get the paperwork in order for accreditation, Flatley said.

Then, moving forward, Flatley explained it would take a full month's worth of work out of every year, dedicated to keeping continuing accreditation "up and going."

Russell said someone would be needed to "plug that hole", if a sergeant was relieved of his normal duties and instead, focusing on accreditation, something that could lead to overtime.

Justice Louisa Evans asked why a civilian or someone of lesser rank couldn't work on accreditation; Flatley said to have the authority to rewrite standard rules and procedures, someone ranked at least a sergeant would be needed; while that person cannot single-handedly rewrite policy, he or she can bring it to be reviewed, the chief said.

Despite the questions that still need to be discussed, Southold Town Councilman Jim Dinizio, liaison to the police advisory committee, said one point was very clear: "We've all come to the conclusion that we want to do it. This is something that has to be done."

He said down the line, some duties might be shifted from police officers, such as keeping track of fuel, that don't need a police officer to sign off on them.

"There are plenty of other efficiencies that can be done," so that police resources can be freed up toward the accreditation process, Dinizio said.

"There's a standard that's been set by the state that we haven't proven that we've achieved," Dinizio said.

"It comes down to transparency," Evans said.

Councilwoman Jill Doherty said she, like Foote, was initially hesitant to embark upon the accreditation process but said, now, "I think this is something we should welcome because it gives us a standard, as police commissioners . . . it creates a dialogue."

Evans said she's "all for it" but is concerned about the cost.

Dinizio said the town board needs to "pay better attention and be more active," with monthly reports from Flatley, focusing on issues such as how many complaints were filed.

Flatley said if the board outlines what reports they would like, he will see that the reports are completed and distributed every month.

"I don't want to be a bull in a china shop. I just want to know what goes on daily," Dinizio said.

Russell said the estimated annual cost of maintaining the accreditation would be about $15,840, the "best case scenario," with the starting salary of a sergeant, although he assumed whoever was chosen would be more seasoned.

The funds could be found, Dinizio said, and may not involve hiring a new officer but instead, just relieving police officers of some of their current duties.

The goal would be to start the accreditation process in September. Flatley said it's a matter of finding the right person, "who wants to leave their duties and sit at a desk doing paperwork." He said he's been putting out feelers to determine if anyone is interested. Russell agreed finding that individual might prove a challenge.

It's key to keep the accreditation current once it's achieved, Dinizio added. "We don't want to say we lost our accreditation."

Councilman Bob Ghosio said he didn't want the public to perceive the town's seeking accreditation as being done "because there's a problem. Aside from a few tweaks here and there, we're doing just fine."

"This is proactive, not reactive," Foote said.

"It is a necessary step that ensures that our department is up to date with its policies and procedures," Dinizio said. "It forces the department and the town board, as commissioners, to review our policies and meet minimum standards. I'm not saying we don't meet minimum standards now. I'm saying it is the established way that we use to confirm that."

The supervisor has not yet made his final decision, he said.

After the meeting, Russell said, via email, "The accreditation of the Southold Town Police Department is something I will need to consider more. I can’t yet say I support it or oppose it. I am very interested in learning more. What is clear is that to secure the accreditation, a great deal of hours would need to be worked to complete the substantial amount of paperwork it requires. It will also require a great deal of work on an annual basis to maintain our accreditation."

He added, "In government, like all organizations, time is money and we really need to weigh all of the benefits against the investments that need to be made."

Patch photo by Lisa Finn.