The department has become the first out of the 550 state law enforcement agencies to be state and nationally accredited.
Evesham Police Chief Christopher Chew has announced that the Evesham Township Police Department has become the first police department out of the 550 state law enforcement agencies to be both state and nationally accredited.
During the official accreditation hearing in front of the New Jersey State Chief’s Association Commission Staff, the Evesham Police Department was praised for dedication, a high level of professionalism and for being leaders in the state for the department’s body worn camera program and its internal mental health initiatives for staff.
“This is a tremendous accomplishment by our police department”, Chew said. “Being accredited by the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police reaffirms the professionalism and standard of excellence throughout our organization”.
According to Evesham Police, accreditation is a progress and time-proven method of assisting law enforcement agencies to calculate and improve their overall performance.
Evesham Police officials describe the foundation of accreditation as the adoption of standards containing a clear statement of professional objectives.
Participating agencies conduct a thorough self-analysis to determine how existing operations can be adapted to meet these standards and objectives.
When the procedures are in place, a team of trained, independent assessors verifies that the applicable standards have been successfully implemented.
According to Evesham Police, accredited status represents a significant professional achievement. Accreditation acknowledges the implementation of policies and procedures that are conceptually sound and operationally effective.
The New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police has pursued the concept and development of a voluntary statewide law enforcement accreditation program for New Jersey which has resulted in the formation of the NJSACOP Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission, consisting of commissioners with the overall responsibility of adoption of program standards, as well as review of all assessment reports and approval of all recommendations for the granting of accredited status of applicant agencies.
The attitudes, training and actions of personnel of New Jersey’s law enforcement agencies best reflect compliance with the standards contained in this program.
Police note that policy and procedure based on accreditation will not insure mistake-free policing or a crime-free environment for citizens, nor will it ensure an absence of litigation against law enforcement agencies and executives.
However, police say comprehensive and effective leadership through professionally based policy development is directly influenced by a law enforcement program that is thorough, complete, and obtainable, and based on standards that reflect professional best practices.
