Accreditation of a law enforcement agency is the certification of the agency's commitment to establish policies and procedures which result in the adherence to a nationally recognized body of professional standards of law enforcement. It assures the community that its law enforcement agency is committed to provide services of the highest quality, and that its policies and procedures are not only effective and responsive, but fair and equitable. Accreditation also assures agency personnel that every aspect of its personnel system is in agreement with nationwide standards and that it is both fair and equitable. The Hagerstown Police Department is proud to be among the agencies who have attained the status of national accreditation.

To receive this certification, the department began a self-assessment process in 1989 in which all aspects of its operations were evaluated for compliance with the more than 800 standards developed by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). In January of 1994, a team of law enforcement officers chosen by CALEA from agencies around the country came to HPD for an on-site assessment of our compliance with the standards. After several days of examination and inspection, the team concluded that the Hagerstown Police Department was in compliance with the necessary standards. On March 26, 1994, full accredited status was awarded to HPD by CALEA.

After that initial accreditation, the Hagerstown Police Department continued to assess its compliance with CALEA's standards. Again, in January of 1999, another team of CALEA-selected assessors came to HPD for another on-site assessment. That team found that HPD continued to comply with the required standards. On March 20, 1999, CALEA formally awarded re-accreditation status to the Hagerstown Police Department.