Continuing its nearly three-decade record of earning national accreditation, the St. Charles Police Department again received the accolade on Nov. 18, according to its press release.
Granted to the department since 1989 by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), the distinction requires adherence to 482 parameters determined by the commission, as well as an outside review and citizen feedback. When it earned accreditation 28 years ago, the release noted it was among the state’s first to do so.
This year's designation marks the first time the department has completed re-accreditation under Police Chief James T. Keegan, who took office in 2014, according to a report in the Daily Herald.
Upon completion of the outside review in May, the commission’s representatives saw something they have rarely seen: no problems were documented as needing correction, the release noted.
Keegan issued a statement thanking the officers for their part in earning re-accreditation.
“I am proud that the professionalism and excellence of our department has once again been recognized and awarded by independent third-party reviewers in the field of professional law enforcement accreditation,” Keegan said in the release.
Once the external review was finalized, 21 commissioners judged the department after listening to public feedback at an open forum and analyzing all pertinent reports and evaluations.
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