The Warrenton Police Department is close to being certified with the gold standard for public safety agencies after almost three years of revising its practices and policies.

The police department will undergo review by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) in early 2021. A positive outcome will indicate that Warrenton meets the high professional operating standards recognized by law enforcement agencies across the country.

“Being in compliance with the standards set forth in the CALEA program gives me ... confidence that our policies and procedures are in line with internationally accepted best practices,” Police Chief Larry Ellard told The Record. “More importantly, I feel that accreditation will also provide our officers, elected officials, and the citizens that we serve confidence that we are constantly striving to achieve a higher level of service and professionalism.”

Ellard said the police department has created or revised 91 policies governing department operations and officer conduct since beginning the process in late 2017. Each policy passes through an extensive review process before being approved by the Warrenton Board of Aldermen and then implemented by the city’s officers.

To be accredited by CALEA, Warrenton has to show that police officers are physically carrying out the operating policies that meet CALEA’s standards, Ellard commented.

CALEA representatives will conduct a web-based review of the police department the week of Jan. 15, and will conduct an on-site review March 1-3, according to a letter from Executive Director W. Craig Hartley.

The entire accreditation process has been an intensive amount of work over the past three years, with few days that someone on the team wasn’t working on or implementing the policy overhaul, Ellard said.

“There is no way this would be possible without the incredible amount of work done by everyone involved, and the invaluable guidance provided by other accredited agencies who have gone the extra mile to help us out. I consider myself fortunate that I have such an outstanding group of people to work with, and that the city has been so supportive of our efforts,” Ellard commented.

City Administrator Terri Thorn said she expects the police department’s official accreditation to be announced at CALEA’s summer 2021 conference.

“It’s a huge project that our police department has worked on for the last three to four years, and is now coming to fruition,” Thorn commented. “It’s a major accomplishment for a force of our size.”