Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office Completes Reaccreditation
Dutchess County Sheriff Kirk Imperati announced that the Dutchess County Sheriff's Office has successfully completed the reaccreditation process, and was presented with its Accreditation Certificate on June 8, 2023 by the Accreditation Council of the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, Office of Public Safety.
The Law Enforcement Agency Accreditation Program
The Law Enforcement Agency Accreditation Program is designed to improve an agency’s effectiveness, professionalism, and efficiency; as well as promote training and foster greater public confidence in law enforcement. To be accredited agencies must show compliance with a strict set of standards, which is achieved through a comprehensive evaluation by program assessors.
Agencies must meet a set of standards in three categories: Administration, Training and Operations. Accreditation provides formal recognition that an agency meets or exceeds expectations of quality; demonstrates that the agency performs in a professional manner, has formalized policies in place to govern its operational practices and procedures, and that its employees contribute to the agency's mission and know what is expected of them.
New York was the first state in the country to sponsor a law enforcement accreditation program. Operational since 1989, the program has evolved to address legal, policing and social issues, with program standards revised, added or removed to remain responsive to the needs of New York’s law enforcement community.
Agencies are initially accredited, and then to remain accredited must successfully complete the assessor evaluation process again every 5 years. The Sheriff’s Office has been continuously accredited since 1997.
For more information on the reaccreditation, one can contact Captain John Watterson, 845-486-3860.