In April the Nome Police Department became the fifth Alaskan agency to earn accreditation through the multi-state Northwest Accreditation Alliance. The certification was earned after decades of mistrust between the police force and community it serves. According to NPD, the road toward earning the accreditation has already made an impact on its policing.
A 2021 KNOM investigation revealed that during a three year span in the mid-2010s, over a third of sexual assault cases in Nome went uncharged. The statistic shed light on a known issue in Nome, particularly for native people that make up just over half of the population.
Later that year, Nome’s newly-formed Public Safety Advisory Commission voted to recommend the police department earn accreditation. The City Manager at the time, Glenn Steckman, said the hope was to “create a change in culture” for the department.
City of Nome Public Information Officer, Megan Onders, said the department has undergone a “humble transformation” in the four years since it set out to earn the accreditation. She said NPD had over 100 standards to implement like report writing, handcuffing procedures, and search policies.
“It's a complete overhaul, and the new policy of the NPD really reflects the Alaska State Troopers policy adjusted for the needs of Nome and the Accreditation Alliance,” Onders said.
Also on the list of improvements were overhauls to the force’s evidence room, which needed to be integrated into a digital record management software called CrimeStar. She credited NPD’s Administrative Officer, Austin Martino, with leading the project with support from Evidence Custodian Paul Kosto.
While the accreditation was awarded in late April, NPD will need to complete annual training to retain the certification. A draft budget for the upcoming fiscal year estimated training costs at $40,000 a year, while the department's membership to the alliance will cost $2,100. Onders said the expense should be viewed as an investment.
“Our hope is that the accreditation that was achieved, that's an investment in a team,” Onders said. “It's an investment in a department. And you have to keep going, we have to keep building.”
The department’s chief, William Crockett, declined a request for an interview but addressed the accreditation in a prepared statement.
“We understand that accreditation is not an end all, be all, but that it will take the ongoing work of our staff in service to the community of Nome,” Crockett said. “We have made advances investigating crimes of domestic violence and sexual assault and we will not stop.”
According to the city, sexual assaults in Nome dropped from an annual average of over 100 to just 29 last year. Onders attributed the change in part to a new model that places victim advocates alongside officers from the beginning of an investigation through prosecution.
“Having an advocate for that individual work alongside an officer really helps improve investigation rates, so that crimes are being prosecuted,” Onders said.
In a press release, Mayor John Handeland praised the department for listening to public concerns and responding with meaningful reform.
“On behalf of the City Council, I express our appreciation of the hard work and the dedication of the NPD employees,” Handeland said. “They not only listened to the public’s concerns and those of the Public Safety Advisory Commission, they took action. Accreditation was achieved through long hours and hard work of all NPD staff.”
Though challenges remain, Onders said Nome residents should feel assured that the city has invested in a professional police force.
“Nome is a safe place. That’s, I think, more than a lot of communities can say,” Onders said.
