Battle Creek Police Department Presented With Accreditation Award

The Battle Creek Police Department is one of only 16 law enforcement agencies across the state to achieve full accreditation with the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police.

MACP Directors Neal Rossow and Bob Stevenson presented the Accreditation Award at Tuesday’s City Commission meeting. “I’m here to tell you, you have an excellent police department,” Stevenson said during the presentation. He praised the Battle Creek Police Department for its progressive reputation, and for the variety of services it offers the community.

Robert Stevenson, executive director of the MACP and a retired chief, presents the accreditation certificate to Police Chief Jim Blocker.

The accreditation process affirms that the BCPD voluntarily met best practice standards, and complied with 105 MACP required professional standards. It involved a public comment period, as well as on-site assessments in January.

BCPD Inspector Brad Wise led the effort to achieve accreditation, working more than two years on the process. The department first attempted to achieve accreditation in 1998, but was unable to do so. However, Chief Jim Blocker said this gave the BCPD the opportunity to begin viewing itself through the lens of a national model, based on best practices from other law enforcement agencies. “To achieve successful accreditation took hard work, concentration, focus and a little humility,” Blocker said. “The accreditation process, in essence, forced us to ‘clean our room,’ recognizing that we were pretty good, but wanted to become great in the work we do with and in our community.”

During the process, Wise spent time modifying department policies, developing procedures, and providing adequate evidence to the MACP assessors that the BCPD meets the required standards. These standards result in great accountability within the agency, reduced risk and liability exposure, increased community advocacy, and more confidence in the agency’s ability to operate efficiently and respond to community needs.

“Brad put a remarkable amount of work into this program,” Blocker said. “In doing so, he successfully pushed this organization through to accreditation, a great point of pride for the Battle Creek Police Department.”

Accreditation requires an annual report, and can be renewed every three years. The BCPD’s next evaluation will be in January of 2021.