onsite final report

Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police

MICHIGAN LAW ENFORCEMENT ACCREDITATION PROGRAM

Onsite Final Report

The City of Zeeland January 15, 2021

Onsite Dates:

December 8th and 9th, 2020

Team Leader: Scott McDonald

Team Member: David Robinson

MLEAC ONSITE ASSESSMENT REPORT CITY OF ZEELAND POLICE DEPARTMENT

2

A. Agency Name, CEO and AM: City of Zeeland Police Department 21 South Elm Street Zeeland, MI 49464 Phone: 616-772-6400 Fax: 616-772-5352 Timothy Jungel Chief of Police Sgt. Kevin Cisler Accreditation Manager B. Dates of the On-Site Assessment: Tuesday, December 8, 2020 – Wednesday, December 9, 2020 C. Assessment Team: 1. Team Leader: Scott McDonald, Director of Public Safety City of Marshall 323 W. Michigan Avenue Marshall, MI 49068 [email protected] (269) 781-2596 2. Team Member: Dave Robinson, Chief of Police Rockford Department of Public Safety 7 S. Monroe Street

Rockford, MI 49341 [email protected] (616) 866-9557 D. Community and Agency Profile:

1. Community Profile Zeeland was founded in 1847 by Jannes Van de Luyster, Reverend Cornelius Vander Meulen, and approximately 450 other Dutch immigrants. They had emigrated from the Netherlands both to avoid religious persecution and escape a faltering economy. They followed in the footsteps of Albertus Van Raalte who had settled Holland, Michigan. The City was established in 1849. The department itself was formed in 1929, being policed by Town Marshal’s prior to their formation.


3

Zeeland is located in Ottawa County, and has a population of about 5,500 people. It is approximately 3.01 square miles. The community is surrounded by residential areas, and farmland. It is interesting to note that at one time Zeeland was a major producer of poultry hatchlings and eggs. By the mid-1940s, hatcheries and related poultry businesses were the leading industry in Zeeland. A total of 50 million eggs were produced each year. An older ZPD shoulder patch bears the image of a baby chick. This patch is still worn on special events and parades.

Within these 3.01 square miles are residential areas, a vibrant downtown, a business district, schools, parks, as well as many industries. These include some large companies like Gentex (automotive and space), Mead-Johnson (food) and Herman Miller (furniture). The City also own and operates its own utility company. The Zeeland Board of Public Works (ZBPW) is a municipally owned water and electric utility serving the City of Zeeland and its surrounding community. The electric utility operates 36,000 kilowatts of natural gas fired generation capacity located in or near Zeeland.

The City utilizes a Council-Manager form of government and is governed by a City Council consisting of a Mayor and six council members. The City Council appoints the City Manager who manages the day-to-day operations of the city. The Police Department has a $1,561,528 yearly budget, from the City’s general fund. They recently used the City’s capital budget to outfit Watchguard video recording devices for all of their police officers (bodycams), and vehicles (MVR’s)

The City is known as being a fiscally sound and safe community. The public is proud of their community, and seem to go to great lengths to preserve their history and their lifestyle. The business community is thriving, and appears to re-invest in their community. The Zeeland Public School District serves the City and surrounding area. They have a graduation rate of 95%, and are a three-time recipient (2012, 2013, and 2015-2017) of the Apple Distinguished Program Award. The ZPD has a full time School Resource Officer. This officer is funded by the Department, not the school, which shows the importance the department places on their relationship with their schools.


4

The city is very safe, and has a relatively low crime rate. A review of the 2019 MICR reports show only 289 reportable incidents. The MICR closure rate is shown as 25%.

2. Agency Profile The Zeeland Police Department has a long tradition of service to the citizens and visitors of the City of Zeeland. The Police Department’s authorized strength of 11 sworn members. This includes the Chief of Police, Police Lieutenant, Police Sergeant, and Patrol Officers. They also have three part-time patrol officers, two Administrative Clerks (one full time and one part time), and five Reserve Police Officers. ZPD Mission Statement: It is our mission to provide the highest quality service to our community in a professional and courteous manner. We choose to protect the rights and property of the community and treat everyone with the dignity they deserve.

3. Biographies

CHIEF TIMOTHY JUNGEL Chief Jungel is originally from Jenison, Michigan. He attended college at Western Michigan University where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice. He also graduated from the 51st Mid-Michigan police academy. Chief Jungel finished his formal training by graduating from Michigan State University’s School of Staff and Command. Chief Jungel spent 25 years with the Eaton County Sheriffs’ Office. While there he served many roles including road patrol Deputy, Sergeant, Lieutenant, Captain, and retired as the Chief Deputy. During his career he served in specialty roles including Hostage


5

Negotiator, Field Training Officer, Tactical Team Member/Commander, Honor Guard and Marine Patrol. Chief Jungel joined the city of Zeeland in the spring of 2018. Some of Chief Jungel’s goals for the Zeeland Police Department include getting accredited through the MACP and implementing body and dash cams.

LIEUTENANT THOMAS BALL Lieutenant Ball graduated from Grand Valley State University in December of 1983. After completing an internship with the Holland Police Department, he was hired as a Cadet, and then a Reserve Officer. He was hired by the Zeeland Police Department in February 1988. After being in the patrol division he spent eleven years in the Zeeland Public and Zeeland Christian Schools as the D.A.R.E. Officer. Once this assignment was completed, he returned to the road patrol for a short time before being promoted to Sergeant. At that time the Sergeant position was considered second in command of the department. He graduated from Eastern Michigan University Staff and Command School in June of 2001. During his tenure as Sergeant, he was twice put in the position of Interim Police Chief. In January of 2019 he was promoted to Lieutenant by Chief Tim Jungel and has continued as ZPD’s second in command. Some of his duties include being the department’s Evidence/Property Room custodian and other administrative duties such as maintaining training records, scheduling, overseeing crossing guards and reserves. One of the highlights of his career was when he worked in the security division of the Olympics. First in 1996 in Atlanta, Ga for the summer games and again in 2002 in Salt Lake City, UT for the winter games.


6

SERGEANT KEVIN CISLER Sergeant Kevin Cisler grew up in Holland and graduated from West Ottawa High School in 1992. He went through the academy and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Ferris State University in 1996. He started his career with Zeeland Police Department as a part-time officer in September of 1998. He became a full-time police officer in the summer of 1999 when a position was created for D.A.R.E./Community Policing Officer. This position consisted of teaching D.A.R.E. to Zeeland school children ages Kindergarten to fifth grade as well as community policing. After 3 school years he went into the patrol division and worked nights until 2011 when he switched to day shift. He had the honor of being selected as a Field training Officer in 2005, and has trained over 20 new officers. He was promoted to Corporal in the fall of 2005. In 2017 Chief William Olney retired after 17 years and Sergeant Cisler was named Interim Chief of Police Operations. In April of 2018 Tim Jungel was selected as the new Chief of Police. Sergeant Cisler was placed in charge of the MACP Accreditation process and quickly became an Accreditation Manager and Assessor. Sergeant Cisler was promoted from Corporal to Sergeant in January of 2019. Sergeant Cisler continues to work on the accreditation effort as well as investigate complaints and road patrol with passion and pride for his department.

4. Future Issues The Zeeland Police Department is a well-established part of their community. When former Chief Bill Olney retired in 2017, the City took a serious look at their options for the Police Department, ranging from keeping their police, to subcontracting for police services. The City confirmed their desire to maintain their own police department, citing the professional and personal service the officers provide the community. Under Jungel’s command, the agency is focused to maintain the agency’s small-town personality, yet couple it with current technology and trends. This includes his recent addition of bodycams, as well as beginning to migrate the department over to a computerized RMS. This is further evidenced by his use of Lexipol as the cornerstone to start his policy


7

review and revision. His future goals are digitalizing the Evidence Room, as well as their training records. E. Public Information Activities: Public notification of the accreditation review and their input to the process are cornerstones of democracy and MLEAC accreditation. This section reports on the community’s opportunity to comment on their law enforcement agency and to bring matters to the attention of the commission that otherwise may be overlooked.

1. Telephone Contacts

The public telephone line was active on Wednesday, June 6, 2018, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. The telephone line was tested, found to be functional and no calls were received. Mary Vandepoel- Downtown Business Owner- 616-748-4938 Mary stated that the Zeeland PD is a very professional department that goes out of their way to help people. Mary is a long-time downtown business owner who has seen first-hand how Zeeland PD has helped her and other downtown businesses. Mary said Zeeland PD has given her a ride when she locked her keys in her car. They’ve responded to complaints about parking downtown and handled the complaint professionally. Mary said when Chief Jungel was first hired as the police chief he gave her an unsolicited call to just talk and see how she was doing. Mary have been very happy with the services they have provided her throughout the years.

Mary Timmer- Zeeland Public Schools/City Council Member 616-886-1004 Mary says the Zeeland PD goes above and beyond the call of duty. She’s seen first-hand working for the school’s officers responding to complaints or just to stop in and visit. They are very professional and treat all the kids with respect. Mary is also a council member and has the utmost confidence in how the Zeeland PD treats the community.

3. Media Interest There were no inquiries from the media to assessors regarding the on-site.

4. Community Outreach Contacts Some informal connections were made on the assessment, from IT staff, city employees and a handful of residents and business employees. The consensus was that the Zeeland Police are viewed as professionals, and are committed to the betterment of the community.


8

5. Agency Ride-along On Tuesday Afternoon, Assessor Dave Robinson rode along with Officer Matt Bowyer. Office Bowyer went to several key locations in the city, city borders, prominent neighborhoods, businesses, and residential developments. Officer Bowyer discussed his desire late in life to become an officer at 33 years of age. Bowyer attended the police academy and worked for a short time with Greenville DPS before getting hired at Zeeland PD. Officer Bowyer talked about his passion to be out in the community helping people which is what made him change career paths later in life. During his ride along, Bowyer made a traffic stop for speeding and handled it with professionalism giving the citizen a warning.

6. Community Involvement The community views their police as partners, so as such, they are involved in numerous community groups and functions. These range from service organizations, to church and religious groups, to traditional non-profit agencies. The agency participates in numerous community events to include Plaider Day Chili Cook-off, Corn on a Cop, Trick or Treat, as well as numerous parades, shows and races. While the assessors were on site, the agency was making preparations for a community support project for the Holidays. This project, “Cram the Cruiser” is a partnership with the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office. The departments will solicit donations for new toy and clothing items, as well as food donations. These donations will benefit the community through the Harvest Stand Ministries.


9

F. Essential Services: Chapter 1 – The Administrative Function: Direction of Personnel The Chief of Police has the sole authority to issue, modify, and approve agency general orders and personnel orders. However, the Chief of Police, the Lieutenant, or the Sergeant may issue a Directive. The overall written directive system was understandable. Their policies and procedures are on the Lexipol policy software. The policies were constructed in a logical manner with employee duties and responsibilities clearly defined. Lexipol was chosen when the Department made their commitment to the accreditation process. As seen with other Lexipol agencies, there are some overly general policy statements provided. ZPD has identified many of these areas, and addressed them with personalization to make them work for ZPD and MLEAC. Lexipol is used to implement new policy and acknowledge receipt of policy by employees. The agency has a mission statement, but has not adopted a vision or values statement. Fiscal Control The agency has only one cash account, which is their Records fund. The fund has very limited access. This fund is to receive money only, and is generated from fees for parking summons, fingerprints, SOR registrations and FOIA requests. All transactions are receipted and the receipts issued from this fund are recorded daily. The cash drawer is reconciled monthly. The account is also reviewed quarterly by the sergeant, checking for accuracy. Internal Affairs The Chief of Police is responsible for the internal investigation function of the agency. Complaints may be initiated in person, over the telephone, or in writing, either internally or externally. Anonymous complaints are also accepted for investigation, if they can be sustained. Cases are assigned to supervisors, or handled by the Chief himself. The Chief makes final determinations of all internal complaint investigations. The only exception, which occurred recently, is that when the complaint is filed against the chief. In this case, the City Manager, with assistance from the Sheriff’s Office, completed the investigation (unfounded). All internal investigation files are properly secured with limited access, and kept as required by retention laws.


10

During the assessment period, one internal investigation was conducted, which was partially sustained. The incident was reviewed, documented properly and acted upon. It was included in the written annual analysis. Disciplinary Procedures The agency’s written directive system details the methods of disciplinary responses available to supervisors. Supervisors have discretion to place employees on administrative leave. The agency appears well-disciplined and staff seems to adhere to their leader’s rules and regulations. They have procedures to apply training and counseling in lieu of punitive employee discipline. The agency has an appropriate grievance process in place with established timelines. One disciplinary action was taken during the assessment period, as the result of an IA compliant. The written warning was issued by the Chief, and acknowledged by the employee, all in a timely manner. Organization All sworn personnel take and sign the standard State of Michigan oath of office. All agency personnel acknowledge a code of ethics, and have received ethics training. It is scheduled tri-annually. The agency has a structured unity of command. The Chief of Police is supported by a lieutenant, and a sergeant, who can act in the Chiefs behalf if absent. The agency also has access to supervisory personnel on a 24-hour basis. In the absence of the Chief of Police, the Lieutenant would assume command. Bias-influenced policing is prohibited by the agency. There is a clear definition for bias-influenced policing, including but not limited to race, religion, color, gender, or national origin. The agency did not have any bias influenced policing complaints during this assessment. The agency also prohibits unlawful workplace discrimination and harassment, including sexual harassment. The written directive outlines a proper reporting mechanism in the chain of command, but also allows for alternate reporting that goes outside the agency for any conflict of interest. The directive requires employees (victim, witnesses or persons with information) to report any type of harassment and requires investigations to be conducted in accordance with state law. There were no reported incidents of workplace harassment during the assessment period. Agency Equipment and Property Agency personnel are responsible for all equipment issued to them or physically under their control. It is the responsibility of the employee to maintain all their equipment in an


11

operational state and report any malfunctions, damage, or loss of equipment immediately to their supervisor. The wearing of duty body armor is mandatory for all sworn personnel, and there are additional requirements to wear body armor while engaged in pre-planned and high-risk operations. Each officer also has been issued a tactical vest and accompanying equipment (go-bag, helmet, pouches, etc.) for use as needed. All sworn personnel are responsible for the maintenance of their agency-issued equipment. Shared equipment, such as flashlights, PBT’s, and tasers are checked out at the beginning of the shift by the officer and checked in at the end of the shift. Department has an equipment spreadsheet for tracking all agency shared equipment, and was audited during this assessment cycle. Public Information The Chief of Police is also the agency PIO. This works well for their smaller agency, as the community has a relatively low crime rate. The Chief can give permission to another supervisor, or senior officer to work with media. It does not appear any press releases were made during this assessment cycle. Agency Records and Computers The agency has procedures and facilities to protect their records. Any hard copies of reports, and attachments, are securely stored where only limited staff have access. Juvenile records are kept separate, and there are extra security measures for non-public records. Training records, IA records, and personnel records are also filed separately, and have limited access. Afterhours access to CJI is restricted. Older records are secured in a separate area, with limited access as well. All freedom of information requests are handled by records personnel. The agency abides by the state retention and disposal requirements in accordance with Michigan Statute and Retention schedules. It should be noted that the agency only recently began to convert over to an electronic RMS, so they have a lot of paper files. The system they use appears very effective, and well run. Their computer data is stored and backed up electronically, as well as password-protected. The Department recently had a LEIN audit, which was successful. Annual security audits and password audits are performed by city IT staff, as well as by the dispatch authority IT. The City IT controls the departments network, while OCCDA controls access to agency records electronically with records management passwords. There were no known breaches in security during the assessment period. One issue found during the onsite was the recording storage device for interviews was in located in an office area. It was moved during the onsite to a secured area.


12

The agency has a written directive system describing field reporting, follow-up investigations, and the approval of reports by supervision. Agency Training The ZPD documented over 1300 hours of training in the assessment period. The agency handles some training internally, but also is a member of the Western Michigan Criminal Justice Training Consortium. The WMCJTC membership is currently composed of 92 law enforcement agencies and three institutions of higher learning. Member agencies are located south from the Michigan-Indiana state line to as far north as Manistee and as far east as Ionia. The agency training records are current and are being maintained in accordance with applicable retention schedules. Currently the files are largely paper, but it is the intent of the agency to secure an electronic method of training for scheduling and records. A training calendar is developed yearly, after the Lieutenant assesses and identifies department needs. In-house instructors are properly trained and experienced. Training course content is outlined by the individual instructors. Training material is archived. Newly sworn personnel are required to complete an extensive FTO program. Officers in field training rotate shifts and are assigned multiple field training officers in an attempt to expose newly hired officers to all shifts. Field training officers are selected and trained through a documented process. The Police Chief makes the final determination of selection of field training officers. The field training program is supervised by the command staff. The agency has a remedial training policy. Specific required annual training topics were properly identified in the written directive. Annual internal training included firearms, hazmat, use of force, blood borne pathogens, and taser. Authorization and Use of Agency Weapons and Ammunition The CEO authorizes all department weapons and ammunition. The agency uses certified/qualified staff for armorer inspections, repair and replacement. Records of firearms are properly maintained. During our inspection, the unissued weapons, while locked in a secure area, needed to be locked further due to other department staff having access to the storage room. A second locked area with limited access, inside the secured area was arranged during the onsite visit. The policy language for inspecting, and bi-annual training for OC and batons is wet ink. The agency has resources for this training. The agency does not use any munitions. The agency has a dedicated area for out of service weapons.


13

Chapter 2 – The Personnel Function: Personnel Benefits and Responsibilities The City has a third-party provider for EAP services. The service is also available to the agency staff’s family. The agency has a critical incident stress debriefing policy. The agency does not allow extra-duty employment. All law enforcement duties are under the authority of the agency. The agency has written directives outlining line-of-duty death, employee collision and injury reporting (and review process). During the assessment period, there were no serious line of duty injury or death incidents. There were two traffic crashes during the assessment period. Both were investigated by a neighboring agency, and reviewed internally for any training or policy revision needs. The agency also has a comprehensive exposure control and reporting policy. A review found that incidents are well documented, reviewed, and employee follow up needs are addressed. The agency provides an exercise room for personnel to utilize at any time. Performance Evaluations All agency personnel receive documented annual performance evaluations. The performance evaluation system has established and defined criteria, and is scored on a rating scale. The policy regarding forms is ‘wet ink’. Training for evaluators is documented, and the evaluations are maintained according to the department’s retention schedule. The evaluation system has a clear appeal process, and no appeals of evaluations occurred during the assessment period. The agency has an early warning system. Due to the small size of the agency, and their very limited incidents, the Chief of Police personally reviews any incident and tracks for any behavior needing intervention. Incidents such as attendance, use of force, driving related events, and common disciplinary issues are used as indicators. No employees were identified as needing intervention during the assessment period. Promotion of Sworn Personnel The promotional process is outlined in policy and bargaining agreements. The employee redress procedure is ‘wet ink’. There were no promotions during the assessment period.


14

Special Assignment The agency has a written directive for specialty assignments. These include internal training instructors, Field Training Officers, bike officers, as well as the school resource officer. Recruitment of Sworn Personnel The agency is committed to the principal of Equal Employment Opportunity. The recruitment plan is wet ink. No employees have been recruited, or hired since its publication. The stated goals and objectives for recruitment are clear and understandable. The agency has a desire to increase agency diversity; however, the recruitment of qualified personnel based on the agency’s minimum standards has become difficult. The triennial review of the plan will occur during the next accreditation cycle. Selection of Personnel The agency has a complete written process for the selection of new full and part-time personnel, which includes a thorough background investigation, as well as a medical and psychological exam. The selection process includes panel interviews, examinations, and an executive interview. The Chief makes the final decision on selection of new personnel. Reserve Officers and Civilian Volunteers The agency has an active reserve program. The program is supported by a City ordinance (dated October 1996) that describes the program, including activity, training and duties. The reserves training is identified in the overall training policy, and is consistent with sworn staff. Reserves are held to the same ethical standards as sworn staff. They have no civilian volunteer program. Chapter 3 – The Operations Function: Arrest, Search and Seizure The Zeeland Police Department is a full-service agency with arrest powers. The agency and its policies follow the U.S. and Michigan Constitution in relation to arrest, search and seizure. The agency recognizes the foundation set forth in the Fourth Amendment. Agency policy outlines the warrantless search exceptions and the need for a court-authorized search warrant, when applicable. The agency takes in-custody arrests directly


15

to the Ottawa County Jail for processing. Intoximeters for Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) arrests are also conducted at the County Jail. Strip and Body Cavity Searches The agency only conducts strip searches when an arrestee is lodged and pursuant to MCL764.25a when authorized by the chief of police. The strip search must be conducted by person of same sex. Body cavity searches are conducted by a licensed physician (or nurse, under the direction of and in the absence of the doctor), only with a search warrant. Interview and Interrogation The Zeeland Police Department has established procedures for compliance with contemporary criminal procedural requirements related to interviews, investigative detention interviews, and interrogations. The agency has one interview room located on the premises that has audio and video recording capability. It meets MCOLES standards. Officers can press the emergency button on their portable radios to summon assistance. Others within the agency can watch the interview from computers in the department. Use of Force The agency has a strong use of force policy, based on Lexipol’s model. There were 3 use-of-force reports completed during the assessment period. The agency conducts a thorough review for each use-of-force incident. There was 1 incident involving physical control tactics, 1 involving the pointing of a firearm at a suspect (not fired) and 1 use of a Taser to gain compliance. The agency completed a detailed annual review of the use-of-force incidents for the assessment period, with no needs identified to change training or policy. The report did stress future training to the ‘duty to intervene’. The agency does participate in the National Use of Force Data Collection program. Communications The Zeeland Police Department, and all police and fire agencies in Ottawa County are part of the Ottawa County Consolidated Dispatch Authority. This authority is funded via a Countywide millage. Their services include not only typical 911 PSAP responsibilities, but also maintenance of the Countywide RMS system, and communication technology such as computers and radios. The authority is responsible for all emergency calls for service and all after-hour calls for service. The onsite team leader toured the facility and spoke with the agency’s telecommunicators and management regarding dispatch policy and operations. The center is fairly new and


16

well maintained. The center appears very well run, and appears to conform to recognized industry standards. They have staffing for their training, internal QA review, and peer support. All radio traffic and phone calls are recorded, and kept according to records retention rules. Review of the recordings are limited to personnel with a legitimate and official need. The center uses a CAD software, that prompts to collect information from call takers to meet standards. The center has policies for 911 hang ups, supervisor notification and officer needs assistance calls. The center has IT staff that not only maintains the OCCDA system, but covers all radios, MDT’s and other department needs. The Communications Center has a back-up generator onsite. The generator is inspected and tested weekly. It meets all MLEAC standards. When power goes out, the generator will automatically engage, supplying power to the Communications Center to maintain operation. The Communications Center is equipped with an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS), which is designed to bridge the gap between the power outage and when the generator provides power. All dispatchers are Emergency Medical Dispatch Certified, using Priority EMD. Each dispatch station is set up to allow dispatchers to move station to station seamlessly. Overall, this assessor was impressed by this site visit, and OCCDA staff. Motor Vehicle Pursuits The motor vehicle pursuit policy is like other typical Lexipol policies, and covers the requirements of MLEAC. Officers involved in MV pursuits must complete a MV Pursuit form, documenting the officers’ actions, and to collect data as required by policy. These forms are used by supervision staff to assist in their review of the pursuit. The agency did a yearly report of MV pursuits. During the assessment period, they had 6 pursuits. 5 of them resulted in apprehension of the suspects. 3 of the pursuits ended voluntarily, while 2 ended due to a MV crash. One pursuit was terminated by the officer. The yearly review found no need for policy change, nor did it identify any training issues.


17

Field Activities Zeeland PD has applicable policies in place for roadblocks and forcible stopping of vehicles with no occurrences during this assessment period. The agency prepares its officers to encounter subjects with mental illness by providing online training dealing with responding to people with mental illnesses. This occurred during the assessment period. The agency utilizes video recording equipment to include in car cameras. Officers are required to record contact with individuals when they are in the performance of their duty. Retention of this data occurs in accordance with policy to assist with criminal and departmental investigations. Zeeland PD maintains mobile data computers within their patrol vehicles in compliance with CJIS standards. The agency has a foot pursuit policy that was created during the assessment period, which complies with the standard. The policy will be considered wet ink. No foot pursuits occurred during this assessment period. Traffic Safety and Enforcement Zeeland PD has applicable policies in place regarding traffic violation enforcement, enforcement options, offenders, and traffic direction and control. The directive establishes procedures to conduct motor vehicle stops, including high-risk stops. The enforcement options include warnings, citations, and arrest when appropriate. Homeland Security/Critical Incidents The agency has a critical incident system in place, which includes command, operations, planning, logistics and fiscal responsibility. The agency indicated that no critical incidents took place during the assessment period that required activation of the incident Command System. Upon discussion it was learned that the City of Zeeland host several events during the summer. It’s was recommended to start formally using and documenting the elements of the ICS per the standard. Chapter 4 – The Investigative Function: Criminal Investigation Officers assigned to patrol are responsible for the investigation of an incident from start to finish, for being a small department they don’t have a detective bureau. If additional investigative resources are needed, they will contact the Sergeant or Lieutenant for additional help. The agency has written directives in place for eyewitness identification.


18

Crime Scene Processing The agency has a certified evidence technician available for some of the less serious calls for service. For larger investigations the department calls on Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office or the Michigan State Police who are available 24 hours a day for crime scene processing and accident investigations. All lab processing is completed by the Michigan State Police Crime lab and their personnel. Written directives are in place to ensure the proper identification, preservation and collection of evidentiary items by officers. Storage of Evidence and Property A visual inspection found the property room and processing area was generally neat and organized. The processing area is stocked with an assortment of packaging materials. Upon packaging an item, it is secured in a temporary locker. These lockers have a padlock that the officer will secure once placing the evidence into the locker. The property officer will retrieve the items and transfer them to the long-term storage property room. The property room is secured via key access. The property room manager needs to use a secured code to get into a lock box that has a key to access a key storage for the actual property room key. High value items are double locked in a file cabinet within the property room. There is one camera which monitors the door leading into the process room. Once in the processing room there is another secured door leading into the property room, but no cameras. An additional camera in the processing room and property room are recommended for additional security measures. The property room is maintained by the Lieutenant and the Sergeant is a secondary. All time sensitive inspections, audits and inventories were conducted. One issue was the chief conducted the annual representative audit, but has access to the property room. This was correct onsite with the chief no longer having access to property room. Appropriate policies are is in place for the possession, transfer and destruction of property. Juvenile Matters The agency has established policies regarding juvenile status offenses, including dealing with runaway cases, unidentified children, and the safe delivery of newborns. There were no incidents where the agency needed to use Amber Alerts. Special Investigations and Operations The agency has policy in place which dictates procedure for special investigations and operations.


19

Chapter 5 – The Arrestee/Detainee/Prisoner Handling Function: Transporting of Arrestees/Detainees/Prisoners Zeeland PD has established procedures for the transportation of arrested subjects, to include searching vehicles prior to the beginning of each shift, prior to and following any transport, and the securing of arrested subjects in restraints during transport. The agency does not engage in the processing and holding of arrestees, detainees, and prisoners. The agency utilizes the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office for the processing of arrests and detainees. G. Applied Discretion Compliance Discussion: This section provides specific information on those standards found to be in compliance after on-site adjustments were made. During this on-site, the agency had 3 standards in applied discretion. 1.6.1 Agency Equipment and Property Storage and Accountability ISSUE: Agency was storing un-issued firearms in a manner not satisfactory to assessor. Un-issued guns were secured in the armory, (which has limited access), but more than two persons had access to the armory. AGENCY ACTION: The agency used a secured locker for storage within the armory with access restricted to very limited personnel. They also made restrictions to the keypad for the armory. 3.3.1.b Use of Force- The “duty to intervene”. ISSUE: Agency policy had wording of “should” in regards to ‘The Duty to Intervene when observing excessive or unnecessary force’. AGENCY ACTION: The agency corrected the policy wording while assessors were on scene, to “shall”. Standard 4.3.2. Permanent Storage ISSUE: Agency was storing found bikes in an offsite storage area. AGENCY ACTION: The agency eliminated the offsite storage area and will be keeping any found bikes at the department.


20

H. Waivers of Standards: This section provides specific information on those standards which qualified for waivers. Waivers are available to agencies when it is impossible to comply with a specific standard. A request to waive standard compliance must be made to the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police Accreditation Program Director in writing, on official agency letterhead, signed by the CEO. The following standards were granted non-applicable waivers: Standard 1.9.8 Tactical Team Training Standard 2.6.2 Civilian Volunteer Program Standard 3.5.9 Police Canines Standard 4.5.3. Using Confidential Sources Standard 5.1.2 Vehicle Modification Standard 5.2.1. Processing Procedures Chapter 5.3 Holding of Arrestees/Detainees/Prisoners Field Activities I. Standards Noncompliance Discussion: Standard 2.1.6 (d) Critical Incident Stress - Stress Recognition Training The agency has policy which indicates that stress recognition ‘will be provided’. In discussion, the agency interpreted this to mean the training would be provided as needed after a critical incident. The assessor, as well as his assistant felt this policy was to mean the training would be provided to all staff ahead of any potential need. A discussion with the Agency Accreditation Manager found he agreed after an explanation. ZPD will get this training covered as soon as able, considering the pandemic. The agency had one standard in noncompliance. J. Future Performance / Review Issues: The agency has (3) areas of applied discretion requiring either written directive modifications, or physical changes to the facility. One policy was misinterpreted by the agency, causing a lack of training resulting in non-compliance. Correction is being scheduled as soon as able. Several standards have agency-initiated plans in place to ensure future compliance based upon “wet ink”. Attention should be directed to executing these plans to ensure future compliance occurs. The existing accreditation software was very cumbersome to use, and the assessors spent significant extra time in using the module. It is hoped that this can be rectified for future assessments.


21

K. Summary and Recommendation: Overall, the Department is well run and professional. The assessment team enjoyed their visit, and were impressed by the professionalism of staff, and their ability to work with MLEAC. Being a small agency, with a lower incident rate, they do have many NA’s, but they have policy in place to deal with them as they arise. A thorough review of the files for compliance was conducted, as well as observations of compliance; and, after interviews were conducted, it was determined that the agency was in compliance with all of the established accreditation standards, with the one exception and waivers noted. Accreditation is recommended. Scott McDonald, Team Leader Date: January 15, 2021 Reviewed and approved to be scheduled for a hearing before the MLEAC.

Program Director Neal Rossow Date: February 2, 2021


22

onsite final report

Documents