The Sequim Police Department earned accreditation from the Washington Association of Sheriffs &Police Chiefs (WASPC) last week ranking it among some of the best law enforcement departments in the state.

Police Chief Bill Dickinson, Deputy Chief Sheri Crain and Sgts. Darrell Nelson, Mike Hill and Sean Madison accepted the accreditation plaque on Nov. 16 at the WASPC Semi-Annual Training Conference held in Lake Chelan.

Staff have worked toward the accomplishment since opening the new police station in the Sequim Civic Center, 152 W. Cedar St., in 2015. Sequim is now one of 63 state- accredited police departments of more than 300 law enforcement agencies in Washington.

City staff say accreditation provides a review process for agencies to be certified as operating under industry best practices and standards.

“This is an amazing accomplishment for our department,” Dickinson said. “The department staff has worked tirelessly to fulfill the documentation requirements for the assessment process. I am extremely proud that we have achieved this distinction for the citizens of Sequim.”

Previously, Dickinson said receiving accreditation was one of his two biggest goals upon coming to Sequim. However, the department could not be reviewed because the former police station didn’t meet state standards.

Becoming accredited includes staff assessing their own abilities and gathering documentation to prove they meet the 132 standards in 18 different areas such as codes of conduct, prisoner security, internal affairs and records management.

The Sequim Police Department was evaluated on-site by volunteer assessors from law enforcement agencies across Washington and was later reviewed by the WASPC’s executive board for approval.

For more information, visit www.waspc.org/accreditation or call the Sequim Police Department at 683-7227.