What's Happening in Newburyport, MA…

Reaccreditation by the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission (MPAC) has been awarded to the Newburyport Police Department.

This is the eighth time the department has received reaccreditation since its first accreditation in 2003. The Newburyport Police completed this self-initiated, comprehensive, and lengthy evaluation process in February 2026. Lt. Gregory Whitney, Accreditation Manager, and Sgt. John Gavin, Assistant Accreditation Manager, initiated this year’s accreditation.

An internal self-review is completed by participating departments while experts from the MPAC complete an external assessment. This voluntary accreditation process enables police departments to meet and uphold the highest professional standards in law enforcement. It serves as the premier benchmark, allowing departments to evaluate their performance against established best practices from across the region and country.

Accreditation is valid for three years, after which agencies need to reassess themselves to maintain their status. A comprehensive onsite assessment is conducted by a team of assessors from MPAC who reviewed nearly 400 standards. There are 257 standards that are mandatory and 125 optional standards. Accreditation requires a department to meet all required standards and 60% of the optional ones.

City Marshal Matthew Simons said that accreditation reinforces a culture of preparedness and professionalism for staff and officers, and reassures the community that the department is dedicated to the highest level of service.

News of such recognition and its significance for a department and community can be made known with flyer printing.