Delaware River and Bay Authority (DRBA) Police Department officials announced that the Commission on Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEAÒ) recently voted unanimously to reaccredit the DRBA Police Department with its Gold Standard with Excellence. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the usual CALEA Conference, where agencies are formally reviewed and awarded in person, was taken online to a virtual format. The agency was first accredited in 1996.
“I am extremely proud of the dedicated men and women who worked tirelessly to earn this prestigious recognition,” said Richard H. Arroyo, DRBA Police Administrator. “The Gold Standard with Excellence Award is CALEA’s highest recognition, and our officers and staff eagerly stepped forward to meet the challenge. It’s an honor and a privilege to lead the men and women of this Department.”
Following a multi-year self-assessment phase and a meticulous site-based assessment of community engagement, policy, procedures, equipment and facilities by CALEA assessors, the Delaware River and Bay Authority Police was presented before CALEA’s 21-member Board of Commissioners which reviews all findings and determines the agencies’ accreditation status.
This is the Delaware River and Bay Authority’s ninth award of national accreditation. The Delaware River and Bay Authority now moves into CALEA’s four-year Accreditation cycle that includes four annual remote, web-based file reviews and a site-based assessment in the fourth year. This accreditation program provides public safety agencies an opportunity to voluntarily demonstrate that they meet an established set of professional standards based on industry best practices and approved by an all-volunteer board of commissioners.
Only 5% of all law enforcement agencies in North America are nationally accredited, with less than 1% of those able to achieve the CALEA’s Gold Standard with Excellence Award. In 2011, CALEA introduced the Gold Standard Assessment for agencies to voluntarily seek a higher level of evaluation during the reaccreditation process. The rigorous Gold Standard Assessment focuses not only inspecting compliance files, but also permits on-site inspectors more time observing personnel in the field. The assessment process measures the impact of accreditation on operations rather than simply confirming compliance through a file-by-file review.
SOURCE: Delaware River and Bay Authority
