Iowa State Patrol
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| Iowa State Patrol | |
| Abbreviation | ISP |
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| Patch of the Iowa State Patrol. | |
| Motto | Courtesy, Service, Protection. |
| Agency Overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1935 |
| Preceding agencies |
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| Employees | 485 (as of 2004) [1] |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional Structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | State of Iowa, USA |
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| Iowa State Patrol Districts | |
| Size | 56,272 square miles |
| Population | 2,988,046 (2007 est.)[2] |
| General nature | |
| Operational Structure | |
| Headquarters | Des Moines, Iowa |
| Troopers | 389 (as of 2004) [3] |
| Civilians | 96 (as of 2004) [4] |
| Elected officer responsible | Eugene T. Meyer, Commissioner |
| Agency executive | Patrick J. Hoye, Colonel |
| Parent agency | Iowa Department of Public Safety |
| Facilities | |
| Districts | 16 |
| Website | |
| http://www.dps.state.ia.us/ISP/index.shtml | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
The Iowa State Patrol is the state police organization in the state of Iowa. Currently, there are just over 378 officers in the patrol[5]. State Troopers are responsible for patrolling over 112,000 miles of roadways in the state. The State is broken into 16 Districts. Their primary concern is enforcing motor vehicle laws, but they also assist with other incidents. These include riots, prison disturbances, labor related disturbances, and providing security at sporting events.
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[edit] History
The State Patrol was created in 1935 (as the Iowa Highway Safety Patrol), after an act creating the Patrol was passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor. Initially the patrol was composed of 53 men. Later that same year, the word Safety was dropped from the name, and the unit became known simply as the Iowa Highway Patrol, by the early 1970's, the name had changed again, to reflect the change that Iowans felt was needed, the Iowa Highway Patrol became known as the Iowa State Patrol. The change was quickly reflected by the difference in the uniform shoulder patches, and by the wording of the logos on the car doors.
In 1936, Oran H. Pape became the first man to die in the line of duty, and remains to date the only member of the Patrol to be murdered in the line of duty.
In the early days of the Patrol, cars were painted black, with the State Patrol logo on the front doors, then, in the 1970's, the cars were repainted white, with the logo on the front doors, by the early 1980's, Patrol vehicles had a light tan color with the Iowa State Patrol logo on the sides of the vehicle. In the late 1990s, the Patrol switched to a black and gold color scheme on their vehicles. The change was not particularly well received, however, with some critics feeling that the new color scheme had turned Patrol cars into moving advertisements for the University of Iowa's Hawkeye sports teams. The Patrol later switched back to the prior color scheme; however, the 2007 and newer patrol vehicles have been predominately silver or white in color. The Patrol has mainly used the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor for a number of years. Recently the Patrol has begun using the Dodge Charger (LX) Police Pursuit Version as well. For a short time, the Patrol also had motorcycle officers, riding custom made Harley-Davidson ElectraGlide's, until the early 1980's due to the neglect, and later, uninterest of a motorcycle division within the Patrol. For the Patrol's Special Tactical Division (similar to a police department S.W.A.T. team), they use special panel trucks, made with several layers of bulletproof plating, as well as bulletproof glass, this special squad is located in Des Moines, and responds mostly to riot, and prison escapes. The Patrol also utilizes several airplanes, mostly the Cessna 180, for use as air traffic patrol, and to locate suspects fleeing on foot, into the wooded areas, and farm fields of rural Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol is one of few police agencies that do not utilize helicoptors in the field. The airplanes are kept in hangars located at airports either within, or near the district barracks in which the pilot operates from, and once in the air, are easily spotted from the ground, due to the words "IOWA STATE PATROL" painted along the length of the wings, and in place of an aircraft service number.
[edit] Uniform
The uniform of the Iowa State Patrol is unique in the fact that all officers wear the same uniform, no matter the rank, it consists of a chocolate brown shirt, with grey pocket flaps, and epiulats, grey trousers with a chocolate brown stripe, and black shoes, the campaign hat that is worn by all Troopers is modeled after the hats worn by the Drill Instructors of the Army, and Marine Corps, and are chocolate brown in color. the uniform of the Special Tactical Division are simple BDU style uniforms, in Olive Drab Green, with the patches in Olive Drab, and black. The badge of the State Patrol has changed many times over the years, but the current badge is a simple shield surmounted by an eagle design, with red enamled ribbons, the badges are gold plated for all ranks, with no difference between the standard Trooper, to the Commissioner of the State Patrol.
[edit] Fallen Officers
Since the establishment of the Iowa State Patrol, 9 officers have died in the line of duty. [6]
| Officer | Date of Death | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Trooper Oran H. Pape |
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Gunfire (murder) |
| Trooper Harold Emmerson Klinkefus |
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Automobile accident |
| Trooper Harold Clarence DeGear |
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Struck by vehicle |
| Trooper Ralph Franklin Garthwaite |
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Vehicular assault |
| Trooper Marvin C. VanderLinden |
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Automobile accident |
| Trooper Charles Gerald Whitney |
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Struck by vehicle |
| Trooper Stanley E. Gerling |
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Aircraft accident |
| Trooper Pilot Lance G. Dietsch |
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Aircraft accident |
| Trooper Allen Patrick Nieland |
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Aircraft accident |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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