A national accreditation has been awarded to the Melbourne Police Department by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) in Colorado Springs, Colorado, culminating a two-year process that measured the law enforcement agency against a lengthy set of professional standards.  Police Chief Don Carey noted that the accreditation involved a process that included on-site inspections from a national team representing the commission.  Assessors evaluated the department on the basis of 466 professional standards, conducted panel interviews of staff members, inspected facilities, and performed ‘ride-alongs’ with officers.  “We worked long and hard to reach this goal.  CALEA certification means that we are nationally recognized as using the best practices in modern policing and being a model for other law enforcement agencies,” Chief Carey said.  In 2006, CALEA listed 52 Florida law enforcement agencies as accredited, including the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.

Participating in the presentation of CALEA accreditation to the Melbourne Police Department were, from left, CALEA Executive Director Sylvester Daughtry, Melbourne Deputy Chief Joe Hellebrand, Melbourne Lt. Curtis Barger, Melbourne Chief Don Carey, and CALEA Commission Chairman James O'Dell.

“Accreditation improves public safety services by comparing the Melbourne Police Department to the best procedures currently used by law enforcement and by raising any non-compliant areas up to those standards,” Carey said.  “There are only a few hundred police agencies in the country that have received accreditation.”   He said that it has been shown that accredited law enforcement agencies have more defensible positions in legal actions and experience fewer civil actions against the agency, and that the recognition improves agency standing both in law enforcement circles and in the community.  

City Manager Jack Schluckebier commended the department.  “To attain national accreditation sets the bar higher here,” he said.  “It is a distinction few agencies ever achieve and I commend the entire police department for this significant achievement.” 

CALEA was created in 1979 as a credentialing authority through the efforts of law enforcement’s major executive associations: International Association of Chiefs of Police, Nation Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, National Sheriff’s Association, and Police Executive Research Forum. 

The 21 CALEA commissioners are appointed by those four organizations. Eleven are law enforcement practitioners and the others are selected from both the public and private sectors including representation from the business community, academia, and the judiciary.