Sheriff Jim Bowen of Saratoga County (our longest tenured Sheriff, celebrating his 38^th year in office) was surrounded in his office on Janaury 28, 2010, by a proud staff as they shared recognition for accreditation of the Jail and the Sheriff’s Communications Center.  Sheriff Bowen accepted the awards before a packed house that included deputies, corrections officers, communications officers, and other Sheriff’s staff.

As Sheriff Bowen received the wall plaques from Peter Kehoe, Executive Director of the New York State Sheriffs’ Association, he praised his staff in a rousing speech that emphasized the contributions of his dedicated staff in achieving accreditation of both the Jail (Corrections) and the Public Safety Answering Point /911 Center (Communications).  The Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office also earned accreditation of its law enforcement (Road Patrol) division through the New York State Law Enforcement Accreditation Council since its inception in the 1980’s.

The operation of a safe and secure county jail is one of the most difficult government functions – and one which exposes the Sheriff and county government to great legal and financial liability.  The corrections accreditation program has 166 established standards of excellence which must be achieved by the county jail in order to receive the accredited status.

911 Centers are known, within Sheriff’s Offices, as one of the most important but also one of the most difficult and demanding divisions.  Desk Officers must daily deal with crisis and emergencies, and are responsible for gathering critical information and making sure it is quickly and accurately routed to the appropriate police, fire or EMS responder.   With the addition of all wireless 911 calls, there has been a corresponding increase in volume and complexity of calls.  There are 70 stringent standards of excellence which must be met by a PSAP (communications division) in order for the 911 center to earn this accredited status.

Certificates of Appreciation, recognizing the extra efforts of those involved in the managing of the two New York State Sheriffs’ Association projects, were presented to Colonel Richard Emery, Sergeant Steven Gordon, Officer Anthony Taylor, Officer Michael Rhodes, Lieutenant Dawn Covell, and Lieutenant Peter Arpei.  Sheriff Bowen encouraged his entire staff, in all of its divisions, to continue to work as a team in strengthening the Sheriff’s Office, and providing Saratoga’s citizens with the finest service possible.