The St. Louis County Police Department and its accreditation agency want to know what you think of the department.

On Monday, November 18, 2019, a team of assessors from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., commonly known as CALEA, will arrive to examine all aspects of the St. Louis County Police Department’s policies and procedures, management, operations and support services. This on-site assessment will cover the areas of law enforcement, police communications and the training academy.

Verification by the team that St. Louis County Police Department meets the commission’s state-of-the- art international standards is part of a voluntary process to gain accreditation — a highly prized recognition of public safety professional excellence. As part of the assessment, agency personnel and members of the community are invited to offer comments at a public information session at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19 at the St. Louis Jewish Community Center (The J), Arts and Education Building, Performing Arts Center, 2 Millstone Campus Drive, St. Louis, 63146.

If an individual is unable to speak at the public information session but would still like to provide comments to the assessment team, he or she may do so by telephone. The public may call the following phone numbers for the various areas of the assessment between 2 and 4 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19.

Law enforcement – 314-275-0986

Police communications – 314-615-9560

Training academy – 314-275-0986

Telephone comments, as well as appearances at the public information session, are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with CALEA’s standards. A copy of the standard titles is available at the department’s website at www.stlouiscountypolice.com.

Those wishing to offer written comments about the St. Louis County Police Department’s ability to meet the standards for accreditation are requested to write: Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, Virginia, 20155.

In order to achieve accreditation, the department must comply with 484 law enforcement standards, 159 law enforcement training academy standards and 212 police communications standards in order to retain accreditation status. Accreditation is for four years, during which the agency must submit annual reports and participate in annual remote web-based assessments attesting to continued compliance with those standards under which it was initially accredited.

For more information regarding the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., please write the Commission at 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, Virginia, 20155; or call (703) 352-4225 or email calea@calea.org.