National group poised to accredit sheriff’s office

The Bucks County Sheriff’s Office is expected to become the first sheriff’s office in Pennsylvania to earn accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. (CALEA), a national body that maintains professional standards for public safety agencies.

The sheriff’s office, which has more than 75 deputies and serves the entire county, is focused on carrying out the duties of the courts, including prison transports, courthouse security, making arrests on warrants, and serving court papers.

The accreditation is expected to be finalized within the coming weeks by the CALEA Commission.

The Bucks County Sheriff’s Office will join more than a dozen other law enforcement agencies in the state that have earned the accreditation. They include the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Capitol Police, the Bensalem Township Police Department, the Abington Township Police Department, the Temple University Police Department, the University of Pennsylvania Police Department, and others.

CALEA accreditation is a voluntary, multi-year process that requires an agency to demonstrate compliance with hundreds of exacting standards and professional best practices. 

CALEA was created in 1979 by several police groups to improve public safety services through its accreditation process. It is not a government body.

The sheriff’s office underwent a process that included a review and grading by CALEA assessors to ensure compliance with a range of standards. 

According to the sheriff’s office, the standards included requirements for:

• Use of Force: Strict standards on de-escalation, the use of reasonable and deadly force, and mandatory, in-depth administrative reviews of every force incident.
• Personnel and Training: Mandates for fair and non-discriminatory recruitment, thorough background investigations, and a robust system for annual in-service training.
• Internal Accountability: A transparent and standardized process for receiving, investigating, and adjudicating all citizen complaints and allegations of employee misconduct.
• Operations and High-Risk Procedures: Proven best-practices for critical functions like vehicle pursuits, property and evidence management, court security, and emergency response.

Sheriff Fred Harran, a Republican running for reelection, celebrated the achievement by the agency. 

“This achievement is a direct reflection of our team’s dedication to professional excellence, and it’s a tangible promise to the people we serve,” Harran said. “For our deputies, this is a proud validation that they are operating at the highest national standard. For the community, CALEA accreditation is an independent, third-party guarantee of our commitment to accountability. It shows that our policies are not just words on a page, but are proven, best-practice procedures that build public trust and ensure our operations are transparent and professional.”

Harran previously led the Bensalem Township Police Department as public safety director when that agency was CALEA accredited.