The public will have an opportunity to offer comments regarding the Virginia State Police when a national accreditation team arrives in Richmond in July to assess the Department. The Virginia State Police are in the process of reaccreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA).
“Accreditation provides both the agency and the public with quality assurance that the State Police is fulfilling its mission to provide the Commonwealth with superior service and protection,” said Colonel W. Steven Flaherty, Superintendent. “The assessment process verifies that the Department regularly reviews all aspects of its operations and is in compliance with law enforcement standards established by the Commission.”
When the Virginia State Police achieved its initial accreditation from CALEA in 1986, the Department was the second state law enforcement agency in the nation to receive this prestigious award. Since then, the Virginia State Police has successfully and successively maintained an accredited status. The reaccreditation process takes place every three years.
The public is invited to share its comments with the CALEA on-site assessment team by telephone or written correspondence. The two-member assessment team will be available to take phone calls July 29, 2013, from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. A toll-free telephone number has been established for those wishing to contact the team: 1-866-468-4903. Telephone comments are limited to ten minutes and must address the Department’s ability to comply with CALEA standards.
Those wishing to offer written comments about the Department’s ability to meet reaccreditation standards are requested to write: Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, Virginia20155.
The CALEA on-site assessment team is comprised of the following law enforcement practitioners: Mr. Dean Register, Assistant Inspector General of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and Colonel Mary Ann Viverette, Chief of Police (retired) of the Gaithersburg (MD) Police Department.
Through the review of written materials, interviews and site visits, the assessors will examine the Department’s policy and procedures, administration, operations, and support services for compliance with CALEA standards.
A copy of the CALEA standards can be viewed by the public at the State Police Administrative Headquarters at 7700 Midlothian Turnpike in Chesterfield County. For those with additional questions, please contact Ms. Cynthia Griffith, Virginia State Police Accreditation Manager, at 804-674-2755.
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Chris Graham
