Freeholders Applaud Accreditation of Morris County Sheriff's Office
Published on September 01, 2020
The Morris County Sheriff's Office is One of Two in New Jersey to Receive the National Accreditation
The Morris County Board of Freeholders today applauded the Morris County Sheriff's Office Bureau of Law Enforcement for achieving a prestigious national accreditation of its operations for the eighth time since 1998.
The accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law 
(PNG, 80KB)Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA) is a demanding process that measures a law enforcement agency's compliance with the most advanced standards on policy, procedures, operations, and administration and support services. The Morris County Sheriff's Office is one of just two Sheriff's Offices in New Jersey to receive the national accreditation.
I and the entire Freeholder board commend Sheriff James Gannon and his officers for maintaining these nationally recognized standards of excellence and for being accountable, fair-minded and community-oriented in how they deal with the citizens of Morris County. This is a very important achievement, particularly in this volatile era when some citizens and law enforcement are clashing in other parts of this nation, said Morris County Freeholder Director Deborah Smith.
The office initially achieved the accreditation back in March 21, 1998, and has since been reaccredited on seven additional occasions. This marks the first time it was achieved under the administration of Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon, who was sworn in as the county's 77th Sheriff in January 2017.
The Freeholders were provided an overview at the board's public work session yesterday on how the Bureau of Law Enforcement met 361 rigorous reaccreditation standards. The presentation was provided by Sheriff Gannon, Sheriff's Office Detective Captain Denise Thornton, CALEA Executive Director Craig Hartley and CALEA Regional Program Director Paul MacMillan.
(JPG, 462KB) From left, Morris County Sheriff's Office Corporal Laura Bertelli, Officer Kayla Santos, Officer Travis Somerville, Sheriff's Chief Kelley Zienowicz, CALEA Assessor Charles Groover, Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon, CALEA Assessor Thomas Clark, Undersheriff Mark Spitzer, Undersheriff Richard Rose, Sheriff's Investigator Ashley Craig, Detective Captain Denise Thornton.
Achieving reaccreditation is a rigorous process but necessary, I believe, to show the community that the Morris County Sheriff's Office strives for excellence and transparency. I asked the assessors to kick the tires and look into everything because we welcome the scrutiny. It's a true credit to everyone in the Bureau of Law Enforcement that its quality has again been affirmed, Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon said.
CALEA accreditation is a voluntary process for law enforcement agencies, and successful accreditation demonstrates that an agency has a proven management system of written directives, clearly defined lines of authority, sound training, robust service delivery, excellence in leadership and compliance with recognized best practices in terms of safety procedures that protect the lives and health of citizens and officers alike.