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CASE #17 (Issue #70: June 1999)Submitted by Chief James J. Keesling, Kingsport (Tennessee) Police Department
In 1986, James F. Keesling was the newly appointed Chief of
Kingsport Police Department and
As the department initiated its effort toward accreditation, high liability areas such as use of force, pursuit, etc., were easily addressed through the guidance offered by accreditation standards. However, as areas related to crime fighting came to our attention, there was a bit of uncertainty. Developing policy and procedures for such areas as crime reporting, case management, information analysis, and organizational management was of concern since any manual reporting system would soon be transitioned to computer reporting. However, as Kingsport Police Department progressed, the accreditation process became somewhat of a road map to our needs in computer technology.After seeing the details of the CALEA Standards Manual, it became obvious that a high-quality computer system was going to be required in order for us to become one of the best police departments. The integration of accreditation standards with technology works like this: standard 42.1.3 requires a written directive establishing a case file management system for criminal investigation functions that includes case status, administrative designation, guides on records to be maintained, access to files, and purging procedures. As one develops those written procedures, the focus turns to carrying out the procedure in the easiest and most efficient manner. Obviously, computer technology provides case information and efficiency. The written directive essentially creates specifications for computer software that will carry out those functions. Technology integration is but one example of the benefits of the accreditation process. As is the case in most of the standards, meeting a standard promotes research, broad thinking, and attention to detail. Consequently, great ideas are borne to accomplish the object of the standard. The accreditation process gives a department the opportunity to share new ideas as well as traditional methods with other departments. This also allowed our department to obtain new ideas about technological advancements and how they could be utilized to meet CALEA standards. Therefore, our department stays on the cutting edge of good customer service for the citizenry it serves. Accreditation has greatly assisted the Kingsport Police Department in accomplishing its' goal of becoming one of the best police departments by assisting us in all areas, not just technology. The Kingsport Police Department has completed many of our objectives in a timely and efficient manner due to the guidelines set forth by CALEA. The self-assessment phase of accreditation pointed out many areas, where the Kingsport Police Department needed to improve, particularly our policy and procedures manual. To be blunt, in 1986 the Kingsport Police Department did not have a policy manual. CALEA standards set out a "road map"' that showed the way we needed to go to improve our police services to the City of Kingsport. This may not sound like a technological advancement; but it moved us into the modem era of law enforcement. Our new General Orders and Standard Operating Procedures Manuals have greatly improved our operations. This improvement can best be seen in our crime clearance rate. In 1987, we had a Part I Crime clearance rate of 19%. In 1998, our clearance rate had improved to 56%.All of the improvements that the Kingsport Police Department has made in the accreditation process have been with one singular goal in mind - to improve our service to the Citizens of Kingsport, Tennessee. This has been accomplished in a resounding manner. Many of our recruiting and selection methods and our training procedures have been based on CALEA standards. These standards have led to our department's hiring of very capable and educated personnel. Our department aggressively seeks ways to prevent crime and takes pride in accomplishing its job in a professional, yet, courteous manner. This was reflected at our last public hearing for our reaccreditation assessment. So many citizens came to the hearing that the time limit expired before everyone could be heard by the assessors. The CALEA process works for the police department, the municipal government, and most important of all, for the citizens of Kingsport, Tennessee.
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was faced with several tough issues that had to
be addressed immediately:
