OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) – The Oshkosh Police Department will have assessors from the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group on-site, taking a look at how they run things this week.
A team of assessors from the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group (WILEAG), will arrive on February 10th, 2022 to examine aspects of the Oshkosh Police Department’s policy and procedures, management, operation, and support services.
“We’re actually the only municipal law enforcement agency in the state of Wisconsin that is a dually accredited at the national level, and also through the state level,” said Professional Standards Lieutenant Matt Harris. “With the state WILEAG accreditation and the 242 standards, some of them are overlapping [with national standards], so we get lucky there a little bit. But also with the WILEAG standards, there are some that are state of Wisconsin specific.”
The assessment will examine policy and procedures, management, operation, and support services – and how Oshkosh Police comply with each of 242 standards. Harris says they handle self-assessments on a daily basis.
“Making sure that we’re embracing the best policing practices in the country, and then specifically in Wisconsin…Whether it’s state law or whether it’s an accreditation requirement, there are some things that require monthly documentation, annual documentation or a review,” Harris said. “We’re going through our assessment cycles and making sure that our policies and procedures are modified. If there’s any state statute changes or any other thing that would require the best industry practices to be modified…If there’s something that we need to modify, we will do that. If there’s something that we’ve been doing great, we can continue to do that then maybe others can see what we’re doing too.”
Verification by the team that the Oshkosh Police Department meets the Board’s state-of-the-art standards is part of a voluntary process to gain accreditation – a highly prized recognition of law enforcement professional excellence.
“It makes sure that we’re operating on the latest professional standards. So there might have been some state law or something that went into effect, and we make sure that our policies and procedures are up to scale,” Harris said. “Basically, it’s a way for scrutiny by an outside team to look at what we’re doing to make sure that we have the updated policies and procedures, and also that we’re following them, so we have to show proof of compliance…This is what we say we’re going to do in our policies and procedures, which is the national standard or state standard, and also that we’re actually doing that by providing examples.”
As part of the on-site assessment, agency employees and members of the community are invited to offer comments via phone. That’s something Harris welcomes with open arms.
“Citizens and employees have the opportunity every day to tell us how we’re doing. This is just a way, in kind of a centralized area, where we’re opening up our policies and procedures for review for transparency and accountability and integrity,” Harris said. “Right now is also an opportunity where we can kind of show what we think we’re doing right, but now we can also let our citizens tell the WILEAG board if you we’re doing right, if we’re doing wrong…The assessor will listen to them, there’s not going to be too much back-and-forth dialogue, but they’ll document their concern whether it’s positive or negative.”
The assessment team, will be available to the public as indicated below:
Public Call-In Session
920-236-5146
Thursday, February 10, 2022
11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Telephone comments are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with WILEAG’s standards. A copy of the standards is available at the Oshkosh Police Department, 420 Jackson Street, Oshkosh, WI. The Department contact for further information is Professional Standards Lieutenant Matthew Harris at (920) 235-5758 or mharris@ci.oshkosh.wi.us.
Those wishing to offer written comments about the Oshkosh Police Department’s ability to meet the standards for accreditation are requested to write to Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group (WILEAG) at:
WILEAG
P.O. Box 528
Hartland, WI 53029
Comments can also be e-mailed to executive.director@wileag.info.
The Assessors will review written material, interview individuals, and visit offices and the places where compliance can be witnessed. The Assessors will be:
- Team Leader: Brian Uhl – Chief – Ashwaubenon Department of Public Safety
- Assessor: Darin Rice – Lieutenant – Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department
- Assessor: Jeff Herro – Sergeant – New Berlin Police Department
Once the WILEAG Board’s Assessors complete their review of the agency, they report back to the full Board, which will then decide if the agency is to be granted accredited status.
Accreditation status is granted for four years, during which time the agency must submit annual reports attesting continued compliance with those standards under which it was initially accredited.
For more information regarding the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group, please write to WILEAG at P.O. Box 528, Hartland, WI 53029 or executive.director@wileag.info or visit their website at http://www.wileag.info.
