LPD Awarded CALEA Accreditation for the Sixth Time

The Littleton Police Department (LPD) has been awarded CALEA accreditation at the organization’s 2022 spring meeting. The award demonstrates the agency’s commitment to professional excellence in policy and practice. This is LPD’s sixth consecutive accreditation.

Accreditation from CALEA (Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies) requires that the department meet 366 professional standards based on national best practices. The reaccreditation process takes place every four years and requires an extensive review including a week-long, audit by outside assessors. The agency must demonstrate continual compliance during the full four-year award cycle. During the site-based assessment, the auditors focused on several key areas:

• Crisis Intervention Team Programs and LPD’s Co-responder program. Crisis Intervention Team programs are local initiatives designed to improve the way law enforcement and the community respond to people experiencing a mental health crisis. The initiatives are built on strong partnerships between law enforcement, mental health provider agencies, and individuals and families affected by mental illness.

• Technology – LPD has in-house and external partnerships that use technology to carry out daily responsibilities. Technology greatly enhances the agency's ability to document and investigate cases successfully and in a timely manner. Because technology in law enforcement is rapidly evolving, LPD seeks to stay current with techniques and equipment to provide the best service possible.

• Victim Advocate - Caring for victims of crimes is a major part of LPD’s mission statement. LPD has a dedicated, full-time Victim Advocate as well as volunteers who respond in real-time to comfort and bring resources to crime victims. The Victim Advocate also stays in communication with victims throughout their case as it makes its way through the court system. Doing so diminishes some of the stress and confusion victims may otherwise feel.

• School Resource Officer Program – LPD enjoys an exceptional working relationship with Littleton Public Schools. At a time when many schools across the country are severing ties with their local police departments, LPD is working closer than ever with the school district. This relationship affords the opportunity for School Resource Officers (SROs) to build positive relationships with students while simultaneously keeping the schools in the community safer.

Of approximately 18,000 law enforcement agencies in the United States, less than 5% are accredited. LPD is one of only 18 Colorado law enforcement agencies that have achieved full accreditation status. Chief Doug Stephens said, “We are very proud to have received our sixth reaccreditation from CALEA. Accreditation helps us achieve our goals of transparency and commitment to high professional standards for the community we serve.”

CALEA was created in 1979 as a credentialing authority through the joint efforts of law enforcement's major executive associations: International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP); National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE); National Sheriffs' Association (NSA); and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF).