The Greenville Police Department received a significant honor Tuesday night, when it was formally presented with an award designating it as a “Recognized Law Enforcement Agency.”
Rockwall Police Chief Mark Moeller, Area/Regional Director with the Texas Police Chiefs Association Law Enforcement Recognition Program, explained the distinction says a lot about the department.
“It means your police department is one of the best police departments in the State of Texas,” Moeller said in presenting the award at the beginning of Tuesday’s Greenville City Council meeting.
Greenville Police Chief Daniel J. Busken said the award was something he had been striving for since coming to the city in 2010. He credited the efforts of Crime Analyst/Planner Deborah Warren, Sgt. William “Buddy” Oxford and his entire staff.
“I want to recognize the hundreds of hours they put into this program,” Busken said. “This is a representation of what we’re doing right.”
The Greenville Police Department was notified last month that it had received the award.
The Recognition Program evaluates a police department’s compliance with more than 165 Best Business Practices for Texas Law Enforcement, including use of force, protection of citizen rights, vehicle pursuits, property and evidence management, and patrol and investigative operations.
“It has become, in a sense, the gold standard for Texas law enforcement,” Moeller said.
The process required the Greenville Police Department to conduct a critical self-review of the agency’s policies, procedures, facilities and operations.
“It is a very, very time consuming process,” Moeller said.
A final on-site review took place February 11-12. The results of the review were then sent to the Texas Police Chiefs Association’s Recognition Committee — an assembly of nine police chiefs from across the state — for a final analysis and the decision on awarding “Recognized” status.
“In this case, the vote for the Greenville Police Department was unanimous,” Moeller said.
Greenville became only the 93rd agency in the state to be so recognized.
Several current and former members of the department, including former Chief Leon Powers, were on hand for the event.
“They laid the foundation for what we are doing today,” Busken said.