LAPD News:

Los Alamos Police Chief Dino Sgambellone has announced that the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) has successfully completed the annual review of the advanced law enforcement accreditation program for the Los Alamos Police Department (LAPD). LAPD completed the week long review in July 2023.

LAPD has been fully accredited since 2018 and is one of three law enforcement agencies Nationally accredited within New Mexico. The other two agencies are the Farmington Police Department and New Mexico State Police.

During the annual review, the CALEA compliance assessor ensured LAPD has continued to adhere to the strict standards set forth by CALEA. During the review, LAPD showed compliance in all 100 inspected standards. The standards were selected randomly to ensure compliance across the entire Department.

CALEA Accreditation is a voluntary opportunity to meet established professional standards and is a means for developing or improving upon an agency’s relationship with the community through transparency and accountability.

CALEA accreditation can limit potential liability and risk exposure because it demonstrates that internationally recognized standards for law enforcement have been met, as verified by a team of independent outside CALEA-trained assessors. LAPD strives to provide the best service possible, and CALEA ensures LAPD maintains a high level of standards.

Cmdr. James Rodriguez is the Accreditation Manager for LAPD. Cmdr. Rodriguez stated, “Just as in the years past, this was a department-wide effort. It was challenging and tedious, especially for my first year taking on this new role, but I am grateful for all the help I received from various members of the department to complete all 458 required standards. I would especially like to commend Cpl. Joey Robinson, who was instrumental in reaching our year one goal. His dedicated time and effort was very much appreciated.”

LAPD will have its second annual review in March of 2024.