Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office reaccredited by Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation

Team commends agency for ‘flawless onsite assessment’

Image courtesy Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office

The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office has been reaccredited by the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation (CFA), Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman has announced.

The agency received its official notification at the commission’s general meeting on Feb. 18, a news release notes.

A team from the commission performed an assessment of all aspects of the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office — including its policies, management, operations, and support services — in October 2020, the release adds. The team members “found the agency in compliance with all 239 applicable standards, and in their recommendation for re-accreditation commended the agency for its flawless onsite assessment,” the release notes.

“This is the ninth time the agency has achieved 100% compliance, garnering it the coveted Excelsior Agency status for the fourth consecutive time,” the release adds.

“Compliance with professionally accepted standards, including review by independent experts, is vital to ensuring we are implementing proper policies and following best practices,” said Hoffman in the release. “The agency’s continued exceptional accreditation status is a testament to our workforce and the quality of service we are providing to the community,” he added in the release.

In addition to this CFA law enforcement accreditation, the Sarasota County Correctional Facility is accredited by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission (FCAC), while the facilities’ medical services are accredited by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC), the release notes.

The agency’s Public Safety Communications Section is accredited by both the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement (CALEA) for law enforcement dispatch, as well as the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch (NAED) for medical and fire communications.

Finally, the agency’s Property and Evidence Section is accredited by the International Association for Property and Evidence (IAPE), the release says.

The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office was the first law enforcement agency in the state to become fully accredited in 1996, the release points out.