Top 25 Terms Every Police Officer Should Know

There are many police officer terms that a law5. Compstat: A method of tracking criminal activity
enforcement officer will need to use on a daily basisand subsequent enforcement.
to do their job and communicate with their fellow6. Condition: A problem or concern in need of police
officers and law enforcement professionals. Someattention.
may also refer to police officer terms as jargon,7. DA: District Attorney
because only those in the law enforcement field can8. DV: Domestic Violence
understand someone speaking with a great deal of9. DOB: Date Of Birth
these terms. There is a very large body of10. DOA: Dead on Arrival
acronyms, abbreviations, codes and slang used by11. EC: Emergency Contact
law enforcement personnel to provide quick and12. FD: Fire Department
concise descriptions of people, places, property and13. NAT: Necessary Action Taken
situations. Law enforcement officers must learn a14. Puke: A pejorative for an inmate of the county
huge list of general police officer terms in order tojail or state prison.
pass examinations, so they will be ready for both15. PA: Prosecuting Attorney
spoken and written communication in the field.16. PC: Probable Cause (Reasonable Suspicion for
There are many police officer terms, and it would bearrest or stop)
ludicrous to attempt to list them all in one simple17. PD: Police Department
article. There are slang terms, numerical and18. RO: Registered Owner
alphanumerical codes, subject descriptions, code19. RP: Reporting Person or Party
violations, initials and descriptive terms. The following20. SO: Sheriff's Office
are perhaps the top 25 terms every police officer21. SA: State's Attorney
should know to do their job on a daily basis:22. SNEU: Street Narcotics Enforcement Unit
23. Skell: An unsavory character, often used by New
1. APB: All Points BulletinYork City Police Officers.
2. APC: All Points County24. Skell Gel: An antibacterial lotion used by officers
3. CJ: County Jailafter contact with "skells."
4. Civies: A term used to describe non-uniform25. Wood Shampoo: Using less than lethal force to
clothes used in undercover operations.gain voluntary compliance.