The Jones County Sheriff’s Office added a new accreditation plaque to its wall to add to six previously received from the Georgia State Certification program.
The JCSO’s first certification was in 2004 under the only law enforcement certification program available, which was from the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police. That certification program was created in 1996, and the JCSO was one of 22 sheriff’s departments in the state receiving the certification.
The department has maintained continuous compliance, but the new plaque is from a new accreditation program created to fit sheriff’s departments. The Office of Sheriff Accreditation Program is through the Georgia Sheriff’s Association.
JCSO Administrative Coordinator Brittani Marks was the point person for the accreditation process. She explained this program has 236 total standards across five modules: administration, court security, jail, law enforcement, and sex offender registration.
The sheriff’s office is required to have a policy for each standard.
“We will be accredited for three years,” Marks said. “Once those three years are up, we will need to show a policy and proof for each of the last three years before we can become accredited again.”
She said biggest hurdle for the JCSO was creating policies for the jail. The previous certification program that was created primarily for police departments did not include jails. Marks said the sheriff’s office was already practicing the majority of the standards because they are based on state laws.
The coordinator said she worked with jail supervisors to create the policies for the accreditation, and those policies went live in August of 2025. The policies were submitted for review in October.
The JCSO officially received accreditation Jan. 20 at the Sheriff’s Annual Winter Conference in Barrow County.
“Our plaque is proudly displayed in our lobby,” Marks said. “Right now, we are only one of fewer than 30 sheriff’s offices in the state with the OSAP accreditation.”
The coordinator said she is already pulling proofs for the first year.
“My favorite thing to say to employees is, ‘But did you document it?’” Information on the georgiasherriffs. org website states GSA’s Office of Sheriff Accreditation Program is a process to determine if defined standards are met.
“An accreditation program is a means to acknowledge that the highest standards of professionalism in areas specific to the Office of Sheriff have been achieved.”
The Office of Sheriff Accreditation Program was developed by sheriffs for sheriffs.
