Friday, September 17, 1999
Delhi police taking aim at national accreditation
BY LEW MOORES
The Cincinnati Enquirer
DELHI TOWNSHIP — The police department here isworking to gain national accreditation, hoping to join a growing list of Ohio police departments that have done so in the past several years.
A team of assessors from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. (CALEA) will visit the township in early October, spending four or five days reviewing the department's policies and procedures, conducting interviews with department administrators and officers, and holding a public meeting with township residents to get their comments.
If the on-site assessment, which begins Oct. 2, is successful, the police department could be accredited by CALEA as early as November, said Police Chief Thomas Bauer.
The police department has been working for two years to rewrite and update its policies and procedures to get them in compliance with CALEA's standards. There are close to 400 standards the department must comply with.
“It's given us an opportunity to examine everything we do against a set of national standards,” said Chief Bauer.
Trustee Carol Espelage said national accreditation, which is voluntary, sends a signal to township residents that its police department aims for high standards.
“It puts us in a select group of departments,” said Ms. Espelage. “This is another step. It's going to give the officers in the department a lot more pride in what they do. I think that's one of the biggest things.”
Police agencies that have received CALEA accreditation say it boosts morale, increases the department's stature in the eyes of the public, and helps with recruiting officers.
CALEA is based in Fairfax, Va., and has accredited more than 400 police agencies in the United States and Canada, including more than 40 in Ohio.
In Southwestern Ohio, police departments in Cincinnati, Amberley Village, Indian Hill, Harrison, Clermont County, Hamilton County Park District Rangers, Evendale, Milford and Lebanon are accredited by CALEA.
Delhi has 30 full-time police officers and 14 full- and part-time civilian employees.
“We are ready for them to walk in the door and look at us,” said Chief Bauer of the assessors, who are law enforcement officials from around the country. For township residents, the chief said, it means “they're getting the best bang for their bucks.”
Police agencies must comply with 80 percent of the 400 standards to get accredited. The standards cover such areas as criminal investigations, keeping statistics, use-of-force policies, traffic stops and crime analysis.
Both Ms. Espelage and Trustee Nicholas LaScalea said the accreditation will enhance the department, which already involves itself in the community with the block watch program, bike and motorcycle patrols, and occasional foot patrols.
As part of the on-site assessment, the public can offer comments during a hearing at 7 p.m. Oct. 4, at the township Administration Building, 934 Neeb Road.
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