Altegrity names Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Chief of Police Michael Berkow as President, COO of new Altegrity Security Consulting business unit

FALLS CHURCH, Va., August 25, 2009— Altegrity Inc.—the global screening and security solutions provider—has named Chief of the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department Michael Berkow as president and chief operating officer (COO) of Altegrity Security Consulting (ASC), a new business unit in Altegrity. ASC will provide products, services, and solutions—including training, information, and consulting—to law enforcement agencies and the federal government, both in the United States and overseas. Chief Berkow will report to William J. Bratton, currently Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), who will be the CEO of ASC when he joins Altegrity later this year. 

As president and COO of this criminal justice program support business unit, Chief Berkow will manage day-to-day operations, including the development and delivery of ASC’s client-by-client specialized training and mentoring services. Chief Berkow will also lead the business’s recruiting efforts as the unit expands its team of experienced law enforcement and criminal justice system professionals (www.usis.com/cjps). ASC will coordinate its efforts with Altegrity’s government business, USIS, which has already trained more than 10,000 students in over 50 countries in police, anti-terrorism, and counterinsurgency techniques, and presently has training teams operating in Iraq, Indonesia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Colombia.

“We’re excited to welcome Mike on board as a leader in our new ASC business,” said Altegrity CEO Mike Cherkasky. “Because of Mike’s wealth of experience, he will help us focus on quality training solutions, products, and services. Over and beyond his work as a leader of major U.S. police forces, Mike established a number of civilian police forces abroad, leading efforts in Somalia, Haiti, South and Central America, Uganda, and Tanzania. Mike’s leadership of law enforcement training and force development operations overseas will help us deliver a wide range of customized law enforcement training and mentoring services of the highest quality to our government customers.”

As part of this effort, ASC is seeking experienced law enforcement and criminal justice system professionals interested in serving as independent contractors on new contracts both in the United States and overseas. The web-based tool provides background information about the company’s criminal justice program support programs, a listing of opportunities, and a sign-up tool (www.usis.com/cjps).

 “I’m proud to join Altegrity and look forward to working with Chief Bill Bratton once again,” said Chief Berkow. “I chose to come to Altegrity because of Mike Cherkasky’s focus on growing the company and personal leadership as well as the company’s commitment to developing what I see as absolutely vital security programs. Through our work, we will make valuable contributions to international security and stability. When it comes to rebuilding post-conflict nations and developing civilian police forces, I know firsthand the commitment that’s required by both the organization as well as the frontline team.”

Chief Berkow has served as Chief of Police for the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department in Georgia since November 2006. Prior to that, he was Deputy Chief of the LAPD, where he served as Chief Bratton’s Chief of Staff and Commanding Officer, Professional Standards Bureau, with responsibility for all anti-corruption, misconduct, and force or officer-involved shooting investigations. He was also heavily involved in leadership training, officer professional development, and counterterrorism work during his service with the LAPD.  

Prior to his appointment with the LAPD, Chief Berkow served as Chief of Police for Irvine, South Pasadena, and Coachella, Calif. He is credited with re-organizing each police department, using a geographic model of policing to fight crime and create safer communities. Early in his career, Chief Berkow served with the Rochester, N.Y., Police Department, in a variety of assignments ranging from patrol and narcotics investigations to service on the chief’s staff and coordinator of resources with federal law enforcement agencies.

In the international arena, following his departure from the Rochester force, Chief Berkow served with the United States Department of Justice as an international police assistance project manager. This led to his service as director of the effort to rebuild the Somalia National Police Force and subsequent service as the first director for the Haitian National Police Project, an effort to create the first civilian police force in Haiti’s history. Chief Berkow’s international law enforcement and criminal justice system experience also includes significant work in leading police training and assistance initiatives in South and Central America.   

Chief Berkow served as a member of the board of directors for the Police Executive Research Forum and was the 1999 recipient of a prestigious Eisenhower Exchange Fellowship to study the conflict in Northern Ireland. Chief Berkow’s significant experience and involvement in overseas police assistance programs also includes serving as the police liaison for President Jimmy Carter’s election monitoring missions to Jamaica in 1997 and 2002, and providing training for police forces in Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania. Chief Berkow was instrumental in providing civil disorder management training in Africa to the Tanzania and Uganda police forces, as well as to the Yemeni Police Force in Sanaa, Yemen. 

A published author and acknowledged expert on police investigations, discipline, and management, Chief Berkow serves as an instructor throughout the United States on topics such as the implementation of community-oriented policing, integrity, and the operations of internal misconduct investigation and administration systems. 

Media Contact:
Wendy Wallace, 703.637.1691 or wendy.wallace@altegrity.com

About Altegrity—www.altegrity.com

Altegrity, a global screening and security solutions company headquartered in Falls Church, Va., has nearly 8,000 employees in locations around the world. Altegrity, which is the holding company for USIS, HireRight, and Explore Information Services, partners with its clients to help them Make Decisions Smarter® by providing superior investigative services, specialized training, contextualized data mining, and cutting-edge software solutions. Altegrity is the largest commercial provider of background investigations for the government; a trusted supplier of criminal justice and law enforcement specialized training solutions; a global commercial employment background and drug screening supplier to more than 25 percent of the Fortune 500; and one of the principal providers of data services to the insurance industry.