The Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies voted unanimously on Saturday to award Advanced Law Enforcement Accreditation to Sheriff Hammond and the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office. The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office is one of only five sheriff's offices in Tennessee to receive the award. Sheriff Hammond accepted the Certificate of Accreditation on Saturday, Nov. 16, during the CALEA awards ceremony in Winston-Salem, N.C.

The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office chose to pursue CALEA accreditation based on the desire to provide the highest level of safety and service possible to the residents of Hamilton County.

The department had to meet 480 internationally recognized law enforcement standards, demonstrating a commitment to professionalism in many key areas including training, operations, and policy. Before awarding accreditation, CALEA assessors spent three days inspecting the Sheriff's Office policies and procedures and interviewing its staff.

"CALEA compels an agency to meet standards set by international law enforcement leaders," Hammond noted. "These standards work toward: preventing discrimination in hiring and promotion, building citizen confidence, creating non-existent policies and amending others, improving agency accountability, and giving employees measurable, common goals."

CALEA was established as an independent accrediting authority in 1979 by the four major law enforcement executive associations: National Sheriffs' Association, International Association of Chiefs of Police, National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, and Police Executive Research Forum.

"Our proactive participation in CALEA Accreditation reflects the willingness of the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department to review and adopt improvements in management and operational procedures without the mandates of the Department of Justice. Our law enforcement officers are committed to excellence and are to be congratulated for their fine work," Sheriff Hammond added.

During the CALEA awards ceremony, Sheriff Hammond commended the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office for its diligence in working on this certification for the past three years, specifically thanking Director of Support Services G. A. Bennett, Accreditation Manager Lt. Max Templeton, and Standards Specialist Paul Hutchings.