Culminating a yearlong effort, the Westtown-East Goshen Regional Police Department announced that it has received accreditation from the Pennsylvania Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission (PLEAC).
The unanimous vote from PLEAC occurred on March 30 and places the department among the eight percent of all law enforcement agencies in Pennsylvania that have received PLEAC accreditation. Among the many benefits are decreased liability insurance expenditures, reduced agency risk and exposure to lawsuits, improved community relations, and increased agency accountability to the public, according to a police department press release.
The Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association introduced the Pennsylvania Law Enforcement Accreditation Program in July 2001. The program was designed and developed by professional law enforcement executives to provide a reasonable and cost-effective plan for the professionalization of law enforcement agencies in Pennsylvania.
To become accredited, an agency must demonstrate that it meets the 132 standards developed by PLEAC. The agency must present evidence to a team of assessors that the agency has a policy in place to address each standard and that officers are stringently complying with the policy. These standards include procedures relating to patrol operations, vehicle pursuits, use of force, detention of prisoners, and property-evidence control.
In order to retain accreditation status, the department must undergo a reaccreditation assessment every three years. The ongoing accreditation process will guarantee that the department continually reviews and revises departmental procedures, thereby ensuring that the Westtown-East Goshen Regional Police Department is in compliance with the national best practices in policing.
The police department extended thanks to the elected officials of East Goshen, Westtown, and Thornbury Townships and their citizens for their support and encouragement during the accreditation process.
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