Commissioner News

CALEA Agency News

• El Paso County Sheriff Leo Samaniego passed away December 28, 2007, following a brief illness. Sheriff Samaniego was the longest serving Sheriff in the 155 year history of the El Paso County (TX) Sheriff’s Office. His first term as Sheriff began in 1984 after serving 28 years with the El Paso Police Department, where he retired as Deputy Chief. Under Sheriff Samaniego’s leadership, the El Paso Sheriff’s Office attained Law Enforcement Accreditation in 2001 and with his vision, began working toward CALEA’s coveted Tri-Arc Award. When the Sheriff became ill, the men and women of the El Paso Sheriff’s Office worked all the more diligently to ensure Sheriff Samaniego’s accreditation goals were met. The agency had successful on-site assessments for both the Communications Section and the Training Academy in the first week of December 2007 and will be awarded the Tri-Arc Award at CALEA’s Spring Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Sheriff Samaniego will long be remembered by the CALEA community.

• Cary (NC) Police Department’s new Chief of Police is Patricia Bazemore. Cary Police Department has been CALEA Accredited since November 1992.

• Ronnie J. Bastin is the new Police Chief of Lexington (KY) Division of Police. Lexington Division of Police has been CALEA Accredited since November 1993.

• Jimmy Apodaca was sworn in as Sheriff of El Paso County, Texas. El Paso County Sheriff’s Office has been CALEA Accredited since March 2001.

• Colerain Township (OH) Police Department recently appointed Daniel P. Meloy as the new Chief of Police. Colerain Township Police Department has been CALEA Accredited since November 2005.

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Police Accreditation Coalition (PACs) News
A directory of all PACs is located in the CALEA Client Section, CLICK HERE to view list.

• The new President for the State of Ohio Accreditation Resource (SOAR) is Lieutenant Craig A. Stone. Lt Stone is the Accreditation Manager for the Columbus (OH) Division of Police.

• Recently the Virginia Association of CALEA Accreditation Professionals (VACAP) launched a new website. It is located at www.vacap.us.

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Conference News

• Attention CALEA Client Agencies: There are new procedures to enhance reserve seating at the Celebration Banquet. See the CALEA Client Information Section of this newsletter for more information.

• Next CALEA Conference March 12-15, 2008 Atlanta, Georgia
  Visit Atlanta, see what makes this city’s tourist attractions unique. Discover the history of the world’s most popular soft drink at the Coca-Cola Museum, take a tour inside CNN Atlanta Studio and the Centennial Olympic Park. Whether you are interested in Atlanta entertainment, arts, history, dining, sports or shopping you will definitely find something to do here. The CALEA Hotel and Conference site is the Hilton Atlanta, which is located one block from historic Peachtree Street. Getting around the city is easy with MARTA Rapid Transit. The Hartsfield International Airport is only 10 miles from Downtown Atlanta and there is a MARTA stop two blocks from the front door of the Hilton. A very special thanks goes out to the Atlanta Police Department and the Georgia Police Accreditation Coalition (GPAC) who are working hard to prepare for this conference and to make your visit a memorable one. For additional information on this wonderful city or hotel visit the website at www.atlanta.net. Download Conference Brochure HERE.

• Space is available in the CALEA Conference Exhibit Hall! Interested parties should contact Amber Wright for information.

• Conference Host Agency announces raffle to win a 2008 Suzuki KingQuad! Click HERE for details.

• The updated Atlanta Conference Agenda and Training Workshop Summaries have been posted on CALEA Online. CLICK HERE to view the agenda and HERE for the workshop summaries.

• The Conference Hotel is the Atlanta Hilton. Attendees can make hotel accommodations online by clicking the following link— www.hilton.com/en/hi/groups/personalized/ATLAHHH-CAL-20080311/index.jhtml.

• CALEA Conferences are open to CALEA Clients and non-CALEA Clients. Please note: all conference attendees must be registered and only individuals with an official name badge will be admitted to conference workshops and meetings. CLICK HERE to register online.

• CALEA invites conference attendees to a Guest Speaker presentation on Friday afternoon, March 14^th, to hear Chief Charlie T. Deane, Prince William County (VA) Police Department, discuss how his agency is addressing local immigration issues.

• CACE Laboratory workshop provides hands-on instruction to the primary users of the CALEA Accreditation Compliance Express (CACE-L, CACE-C, CACE-T, or CACE-R) Programs. Topics covered will include program navigation, hyperlink set up, reports building, developing task reminders, and performing system utilities. Advanced registration is required and enrollment is on a first come/first serve basis. Registration is limited to one CACE user per agency. To register and receive additional information, please contact Information Technology Coordinator Linda Phillips at lphillips@calea.org.

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Visit CALEA Online Web Store!

Visit the CALEA Store  (www.copshop.com/calea/catalog) today! Check out the new inventory and special offers, including the option of selecting your favorite CALEA logo (law enforcement, communications, training academy, or recognition) on most store items! Visit often for daily and unadvertised sales! All proceeds from the CALEA Store benefit the CALEA Accreditation Support Fund.

Upcoming Events

• Program Manager Maya Mitchell will attend the Virginia APCO/NENA Winter Summit in Richmond on January 24, 2008, at the Henrico County Training Center.  

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CALEA Client Information

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY — AWARDS BANQUET SEATING CHANGE
The following new policy and procedure should help ease confusion at the CALEA Conference Celebration Banquet and ensure all attendees with RESERVE SEATS are accommodated:

Agencies presented before the Commission for credentialing (Candidate Agencies) are required to complete an “Awards Banquet Verification Form”, which will now be emailed to the Accreditation/Recognition Manager. The verification form is used to reserve table space at the Celebration Banquet, held on Saturday night. Agencies must complete this form and return it to CALEA by the required deadline with an accurate count of the number of seats they want to reserve. Only the number of seats requested by the agency will be RESERVED. An agency that fails to return the Awards Banquet Verification Form will have to use the general seating area of the banquet hall; NO RESERVED SEATS will be available to them. Please contact your Program Manager with any questions you have regarding this policy.

CALEA Standards

• There are six proposed changes to CALEA Standards posted in the CALEA Forum II. CALEA Clients please review the standards and post your comments no later than January 25, 2008.

• Agencies in the CALEA Law Enforcement, Communications, and Training Academy Accreditation and CALEA Recognition Programs can download the Interim Change Notices for their Standards Manuals. The change notices are located in the CALEA Standards and Process Section of CALEA Online.

CALEA Meeting Minutes

• Standards Review and Interpretation Committee meeting minutes from the November 2007 CALEA Conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado are posted in the Clients Only CALEA Minutes and Reports Section.

CACE Version 2.0

• Current CALEA Accreditation Compliance Express (CACE) Users, with an active CACE Update Service plan, can receive CALEA Standards updates free of charge via the CALEA website by visiting the CACE Download Section. Also in the section a fix to Time Sensitive Standards for CACE-C users can be found. For more information, contact CALEA staff member Linda Phillips (lphillips@calea.org).

CALEA Assessors

• Assessors with Spanish Language Skills Needed -- CALEA is seeking to train additional assessors who are fluent in speaking and reading both English and Spanish. Potential assessors should be from agencies enrolled in the CALEA Process, and have at least five years of recent law enforcement supervisory experience. Applicants need the written endorsement of their CEO to be considered. To apply, send your resume and the CEO endorsement letter to CALEA Associate Director Jim Brown.  

• Assessor Bio Requested -- CALEA has implemented a policy of sending a brief biography of each assessor to the assessment team and the agency being assessed. If you have not already submitted an updated bio; please fill out the form in the Assessor Forum section. CALEA will not edit the submissions. Assessor bios must not exceed 200 words. Suggested items to include are:

  • Rank/position
  • Agency
  • City and state/province of residence
  • Educational Achievements
  • Work Accomplishments
  • Professional awards
  • CALEA experience/accreditation/assessor
  • Other relevant

CALEA FORUM II is an electronic discussion forum where CALEA Clients can post specific questions or seek advice from others in the accreditation community. The following is a list of recent thread postings: