The goal of the Accreditation Section is to ensure two objectives:
- That the Leon County Sheriff's Office maintains its accredited status with the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation (CFA) and the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission (FCAC) through compliance with applicable accreditation standards.
- That the Leon County Sheriff's Office objectively reviews office facilities, property, equipment, personnel, administrative, operational and detention activities through regular inspections outside the normal supervisory and line inspection procedures.
The Accreditation Section will accomplish these two primary objectives through:
- Accreditation Management - the regular review of the over 260 CFA standards and over 240 FCAC Standards that are applicable to the Leon County Sheriff's Office, and ensuring that responsibilities of each standard are met on a timely basis, so that the Leon County Sheriff's Office will maintain its status as an accredited agency through CFA and FCAC.
- Quality Assurance - the objective review of all the Leon County Sheriff's Office facilities, personnel and procedures throughout the agency, authorized by the Sheriff, to ensure that the Sheriff's Office is operating effectively, efficiently and per agency guidelines. These reviews provide the Sheriff and command staff with valuable information that will be useful in the ongoing effort in keeping the Leon County Sheriff's Office a respected professional agency.
- Policy Revisions - periodic scheduled reviews of agency general orders and written directives, updating and amending any language necessary to reflect agency practice and ensuring compliance with accreditation standards.
The Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation was established in December 1994 and is comprised of four (4) Sheriffs, four (4) Police Chiefs, and one (1) representative each from the Association of Counties, the League of Cities, the State Law Enforcement Chiefs Association, the Judiciary, and the Inspector General.
On February 18, 1997 the Leon County Sheriff's Office became the third Sheriff's Office in the state of Florida to achieve accredited status through the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation (CFA). The agency was re-accredited in 2000, 2003, 2006, and again in 2009. The Leon County Sheriff's Office continues to endeavor to meet the professional standards set forth by both commissions.
On June 27, 2000 the Leon County Sheriff's Office Jail became one of only 18 detention facilities in the state, and the first in the panhandle, to achieve accredited status through the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission, Inc. (FCAC) with an overall excellent rating. The agency was re-accredited in 2003, 2006, and again in 2009. The Leon County Sheriff's Office continues to endeavor to meet the professional standards set forth by both Commissions.