INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — “The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office is very proud of our accredited status with both the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation and the internationally recognized Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies,” Sheriff Deryl Loar stated.
“By having these accreditations, we are furthering our commitment to the community to provide the very best law enforcement and correctional services. I would like to personally thank the members of the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office for their continued dedication in achieving the highest of standards,” explained Loar.
FCAC
The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office received its first reaccreditation award by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission (FCAC) on Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2013, at the Florida accreditation conference which was held in Howie in the Hills, FL.
Participation in the accreditation process is strictly voluntary. Every three years an agency must again prove compliance of the 240 standards in order to maintain the accredited status.
An agency’s first reaccredited on-site assessment is one of the most intense assessments due to requirement of proving compliance with all standards since their inception into the agency.
The Florida Corrections Accreditation program offers the opportunity to evaluate the corrections facility’s operations against standards developed by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission.
This process allows administrative staff to remedy deficiencies and upgrade the quality of correctional programs and services. The benefits from such a process include:
improved management
strengthening the facility’s defense against lawsuits and complaints
increased accountability
enhanced public credibility for administrative and line staff
a safer and more humane environment for personnel and inmates
potential reduction in liability through adoption of sound operating practices
demonstrating a “good faith” effort to improve conditions of confinement
establishment of measurable criteria for upgrading programs, personnel, and physical plant
The overall purpose of FCAC is to improve the delivery of correctional services. All aspects of Correctional operations are addressed through the standards, including: Admission, Classification, Housing, Sanitation, Food Service, Personnel Issues, Fiscal Activities, Security, Training, and Medical.
CFA
The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office received its third reaccreditation award by the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation, Inc. (CFA) on Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013, at the Florida accreditation conference which was held in Howie in the Hills, FL.
The Sheriff’s Office was first accredited by the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation, Inc. in 2004, again in 2007, 2010, and 2013. Every three years the agency must prove compliance with the 85 comparative compliance standards as well as compliance with the 480 standards defined by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA.)
The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office will be one of eleven agencies in the State of Florida to be accredited by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission (FCAC,) Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation, Inc. (CFA,) and the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA.)
Our accredited status has proven to show increased cooperation and coordination with other law enforcement agencies and other branches of the criminal justice system.
The accreditation process requires an in-depth review of every aspect of the agency’s organization, management, operations, and administration to include:
establishment of agency goals and objectives with provisions for periodic updating
reevaluation to determine if agency resources are being used in accordance with agency goals, objectives, and mission
reevaluation of agency policies and procedures, especially as documented in the agency’s written directive system
correction of internal deficiencies and inefficiencies before they become overly problematic
the opportunity to reorganize without the appearance of personal attacks
The accreditation standards provide norms against which agency performance can be measured and monitored over time. Accreditation provides objective measures to justify decisions related to budget requests and personnel policies.
Accreditation streamlines operations, providing more consistency and more effective deployment of agency manpower.
