Police Dispatch and Operations

Montgomery County, Maryland

Beats and Patrol Unit Designations

On-duty patrol units are named using a Number-Letter-Number combination.  The first number is the shift, the letter is the sector, and the second number is the beat.  For example, 3-Adam-2 is the officer on shift 3 for beat 2 in sector A.  Shift numbers are used because shifts overlap, so there may be more than one officer on a beat at one time.

Some units (e.g., Beat Teams, George Sector, Paul Sector, etc.) use two digits for the last number in their identifier. In this case, the first digit identifies the beat and the second digit identifies the unit. For example, 6-Adam-34 patrols the Adam-3 beat as part of a beat team and is the fourth highest ranking officer on that team.

Actual beats are known simply by their Letter-Number combination, for example Adam-2 or Baker-1.  Sectors are letters A-P (excluding F, H, I, L, O), one, two, or three sectors making up each of five districts.  Each sector is divided into two or more beats.

Shift times are as follows: 0600-1600 ("Day"), 1500-0100 ("Evening"), and 2000-0600 ("Midnight"). Shifts 1-4 alternate working day and evening shifts (they only work one shift in a given day). The numbering for shifts 1-7 is not confirmed for the Charlie sector (Rockville City Police). 8-Charlie units are Rockville City Neighborhood Services (e.g., animal control) units.

Sergeants (supervisors) have unit numbers in even multiples of 10 (e.g., Adam-10, Adam-20, etc.). Corporals have unit numbers ending in 1 (e.g., Adam-11, Adam-21, etc.) Shift back-up units (usually the highest ranking officer(s) on a shift) are designated as "Sam" units, for example, 3-Adam-Sam-1 or 4-Baker-Sam-2 ("Sam" units are numbered in ascending order starting with one).

Official Police Ranks

• Police Officer Candidate
• Police Officer I
• Police Officer II
• Police Officer III
• Corporal (Master Police Officer) - "x1" units (e.g., 2-Adam-11, 9-Whiskey-31, Car 171)
• Sergeant - "x0" units (e.g., 1-Adam-10, 9-King-20, Car 120)
• Lieutenant
• Captain (Commander)
• Major (Assistant Chief)
• Lieutenant Colonel (Deputy Chief)
• Colonel (Chief)

District and County-wide Special Units

District-based special units (those not assigned letter designations, see "District Car Number Designations," below) are identified by "car number" (e.g., motor, DB, etc.).  High-level officers are identified only by car number. Car 10 is the county-wide Duty Commander. The Duty Commander job rotates among Lieutenants and Captains. Car 10 must be notified of all major incidents in the county, including officers' use of force.  Car 1 is the department chief. Car 12 is the ECC Captain. Cars 70-77 are Office of Internal Affairs units. Car numbers 9x are Office of Media Services Section units (Public Information Officers). 9-King-15 is a bomb dog.

Fire Marshals and Sheriffs (completely separate from the Police department) use the Police radio channels.  Fire Marshals and Sheriffs are identified by their respective unit numbers prefaced by either "FM" or "Sheriff" (e.g., FM 56, Sheriff 40).  9-King-90 is the Sheriff's canine unit (bomb dog).  Fire Marshals operate on both the Police and Fire/Rescue channels, and also may be heard on the Montgomery County Park Police frequency.

Occasionally, Montgomery County Park Police units will use the county radios.  They identify themselves using their Park Police unit identifier, prefaced by "Park."  Park Police canine units are identified as 9-King-3x units.

Very rarely, Maryland State Police Troopers will be heard on the county radios, these units have been heard identifying themselves as "MSP" or "Trooper Patrol" followed by a number (the same way Sheriff and FM units are identified).

U.S. Park Rangers (C&O Canal) also have been heard identifying with their Park Service radio ID (3 digit number) prefaced by "Park Ranger."

Off-duty units identify using "OD" followed by their "ID number" (Montgomery County Police do not have "badge numbers"). All on-duty radio identifiers for patrol and non-patrol units are associated with an officer's unique ID number in the CAD. 3-digit ID numbers and 4-digit ID numbers starting with 1 (i.e., 1xxx) are Montgomery County Police units. 5xxx are Rockville City Police units, 6xxx are County Sheriff units, and 7xxx are Gaithersburg City Police units. 17xx, 18xx , and 19xx ID numbers are for County Police dispatchers (civilian staff).

Special Units

• Eagle x - U.S. Park Police helicopters (see Trooper x )
• Field Com 1 - large tour bus-type vehicle with lights/siren, it is operated by the County Police but may be used by Fire/Rescue when warranted, this unit responds on very major incidents only
• Field Com 2 - large RV-type vehicle (see Field Com 1)
• MC-1 - County Executive
• MC-2 - County Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)
• MC-10 - Transportation observation aircraft (see the Transportation Management Center page)
• MC-xx - other county employees
• Trooper x - State Police helicopter (usually Trooper 8 or Trooper 3), primarily assists with aerial searches (more information is available on my Trooper Helicopter page).

District Car Number Designations

Car numbers follow a pattern based on the district and type of unit.  The first number represents the district (the same numbers as channel assignments), 1xx-Rockville, 2xx-Bethesda, 3xx-Silver Spring, 4xx-Wheaton/Glenmont, 5xx-Germantown, 6xx-Gaithersburg/Montgomery Village.  The second number indicates the type of unit (see table, below).  The third number is simply the individual unit identifier (units are numbered from highest rank to lowest rank in ascending order, i.e., 0 is reserved for the sergeant, 1 for corporal, etc.).

Letter Unit Designations

County-wide, non-beat units (listed below) are designated as "shift 9" to distinguish them from sectors, e.g. 9-Frank-12, 9-Zebra-14.  There are some exceptions, e.g., Charlie, Delta, and Mary, for localities which "piggy-back" on the county police radio channels. All letters A-Z have been assigned to special units, so this list is not yet complete.

Sector Designations and Other District Information

Rockville District (Sectors A, B, C)

Adam sector is the eastern portion of the district, primarily the city limits of Rockville east of I-270 and some immediately surrounding areas to the north and east (including a majority of the Derwood area, south of Shady Grove Road and west of Muncaster Mill Road); sergeant is Adam-10; corporal is Adam-11; beats are numbered 1-4, in ascending order from south to north (Adam-1, Twinbrook/Viers Mill; Adam-2, Twinbrook/east Rockville; Adam-3, central Rockville; Adam-4, north Rockville and Derwood).  Adam-3x units make up the Adam-3 beat team (Lincoln Park substation).

Baker sector is the western portion of the district plus a portion of southwest Rockville, but primarily the Potomac area; beats are numbered 1-4 (Baker-1, south central Rockville city; Baker-2, Rockville City west of I-270; Baker-3, Potomac-south; Baker-4, Potomac-west).

Charlie sector is a pseudo-sector designating Rockville City Police units.  Rockville City Police units are dispatched by the county dispatcher on channel 1 for all their calls. However, they continue to have their own channel and city dispatcher on channel 9.

Bethesda District (Sectors D, E)

Delta sector is the eastern portion of the district, including downtown Bethesda. Beats are numbered 1-3.

Edward sector is the northern and western portion of the district, including the White Flint area. Beats are numbered 1-4.

Mary (shift 9) units on channel 2 are Chevy Chase Village Police units.  9-Mary units are dispatched by the county dispatcher on 911 calls that occur within the village.  Their jurisdiction extends north from Chevy Chase Circle (at the DC line) to Bradley Lane (about 1/2 mile) and west from Wisconsin Avenue to Chevy Chase Section 3 (about 9 miles of road in total).  They usually have one officer and one dispatcher/call-taker on-duty.  They use the same 10-codes and activity codes as the county police.  The on-duty officer usually has the vehicle radio on county police channel 2 and his/her portable radio on the CCVP frequency.

Silver Spring District (Sector G)

George sector composes the entire district (the Henry sector was eliminated and combined with George in early 2001). Beats are numbered 1-5.

Wheaton-Glenmont District (Sectors J, K)

John sector is the northern portion of the district.  John-2 beat is the Aspen Hill area.  John-3 beat includes Olney, Airpark, and the portion of Derwood east of Muncaster Mill Road.  John-4 beat is the Brookeville area. John-3x units make up the John-3 beat team (Olney substation).  Beats are numbered 1-4.

King sector is the southern portion of the district, including Wheaton and Glenmont.  Beats are numbered 1-4.

Germantown District (Sectors M, N, P)

Mary sector is the portion of the district east of I-270, including Germantown (part), Damascus, and Laytonsville. Beats are numbered 1-2, in increasing order from west to east.

Nancy sector is the portion of the district west of Interstate 270, including Germantown (part) and Poolesville. Beats are numbered 1-3, in increasing order from east to west.

Paul sector includes the Gaithersburg and Montgomery Village areas. It makes up the area assigned to the "6th District Substation." Eventually it will become a sector in the future 6th police district. Beats are numbered 1-6 with beats 1-2 west of I-270 and beats 3-6 east of I-270.

Delta (shift 9) units are Gaithersburg City Police units.  Gaithersburg City Police units are dispatched on channel 5 by the county dispatcher for all their calls.

Common Abbreviations/Terminology

• AEU - Alcohol Enforcement Unit
• CAD - Computer Aided Dispatch
• CATT - Centralized Auto Theft Team
• CBD - Central Business District (usually refers to a CBD substation)
• CDL - Commercial Driver's License
• CDS - Controlled Dangerous Substance
• CID - Criminal Investigations Division
• CPU - Central Processing Unit
• CR - Case Reference (number)
• CRU - Collision Reconstruction Unit
• CSD - Community Services Division
• DB - Detective Bureau (same as IS)
• DNR - Department of Natural Resources (Maryland)
• DOA - Dead On Arrival
• DOB - Date Of Birth
• DPW - Department of Public Works
• DRE - Drug Recognition Exam
• ECC - Emergency Communications Center (it is located in its own building in downtown Rockville, Police dispatchers are on the first floor, Fire/Rescue on the third floor)
• EP - Emergency Petition (when a citizen [i.e., family member or EMS worker] feels that a person is a danger to themselves or others because of their actions, and that they are unable to make decisions for themselves, law enforcement can place that person under protective custody and make decisions for that person, including medical care and transport) police pronounce this abbreviation with a long "e" sound
• EOB - Executive Office Building
• ERT - Emergency Response Team (SWAT is a part of the ERT)
• ETA - Estimated Time of Arrival
• FM - Fire Marshal
• FTA - Failure To Appear
• FTPF - Failure To Pay Fine
• FTS - Forensic Technical Services
• GOA - Gone On Arrival
• Investigative Services Bureau (ISB) - Includes: Major Crimes Division, Special Investigations Division, Criminal Investigations Division, Family Services Division, Tactical Operations Division
• IS - Investigative Section (one for each district, car numbers x7x, also see DB)
• Lane # - traffic lanes are numbered in ascending order, from left to right (in a given direction)
• MCDC - Montgomery County Detention Center (jail)
• MDT - Mobile Data Terminal
• ME - Medical Examiner
• MILES - Maryland Interagency Law Enforcement Information System (MVA/warrants database)
• MO - Mental Observation
• Motor - Motorcycle unit (all Motor units are considered Traffic units)
• MRC - Message Routing Center (teletype)
• MSP - Maryland State Police
• MVA - Motor Vehicle Administration (on channel 5, MVA is frequently used as an abbreviation for "Montgomery Village Avenue")
• NCIC - National Crime Information Center (national warrants database)
• NLETS - National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System
• OD - Off-Duty
• OIA - Office of Internal Affairs
• PIO - Public Information Officer
• PBT - Portable Breath Test
• PRA - Police Reporting Area (3-digit identifier for small area of a beat)
• ROPE - Repeat Offender Program Enforcement
• SID - Special Investigations Division (includes: Drug/Narcotics/Pharmaceutical Enforcement, Repeat Offender Section, Vice and Intelligence) Note: SID uses NexTel
• SAT - Special Assignment Team (car numbers x2x)
• SOD - Special Operations Division (now known as Tactical Operations Division)
• Soundex - driver's license number
• SWAT - Special Weapons And Tactics (a part of the ERT)
• TEAM - Traffic Enforcement and Accident Management Section (consists of the Collision Reconstruction Unit and the Alcohol Enforcement Unit)
• TMC - Transportation Management Center (see the TMC page)
• TOD - Tactical Operations Division (includes: Canine, Tactical, Alcohol Enforcement(?), Collision Reconstruction)
• TRU - Telephone Reporting Unit (pronounced like the word "true")
• TSS - Technical Services Section
• VIN - Vehicle Identification Number
• VOP - Violation Of Parole
• WARRS - County warrants database
• YSI - (see YSID)
• YSID - Youth Services Investigations Division (now known as Family Services Division)

Cop Slang

• Light Man - (see Light Shop)
• Light Shop - place that controls the traffic lights (see TMC, above)
• Slide By - back-up another unit (apparently this is much more "in" than 10-51, which is never used)
• Slow It Down - decrease response code from code 3 to code 1
• Step It Up - increase response code from code 1 to code 3
• Times & Numbers - case number, beat, PRA, time call was received, etc. (information for a report)
• Writeable - a report will need to be taken for an incident

Common Call Types/Abbreviations

• DUI - Driving Under the Influence
• DWI - Driving While Intoxicated (more serious than DUI)
• MO - assist fire/rescue with a person in need of Mental Observation
• One Down - assist fire/rescue with a person (usually on the ground) who is not moving for an unknown reason
• PDA - Property Damage Accident (no longer politically correct, see PDC)
• PDC - Property Damage Collision
• PI - Personal Injury (see PIA, PIC)
• PIA - Personal Injury Accident (no longer politically correct, see PIC)
• PIC - Personal Injury Collision (Code 3 response)

Response Codes

• Code 1 - Standard Response (default for all calls, unless otherwise indicated -- sometimes for PICs a code 3 response is understood but not indicated by the dispatcher)
• Code 3 - Emergency Response (lights and siren)

10 Codes

Common 10 codes will often be referred to simply by their number, without the preceding "10."  Some of the more common 10 codes are shown in bold.

Status Activity Codes

These are generally referred to as "code XX" but may be referenced only by their number.  Some of the more common codes are shown in bold.

Event Clearance Codes

These will be used along with a 4-digit event code to "clear" calls before units go back in service.  They will be preceded by an event code and  "dash."  For example, 2991-5, where "5" is the event clearance code.

Event Codes

These 4-digit codes will be used to "clear" calls, thus placing the clearing unit(s) back in service.  They will be followed by an event clearance code (see above).  These codes will often be used on the radio in reference to certain types of situations, e.g., "2934" is used frequently by dispatchers and officers.  The general "hundred" categories may also be used by officers to refer to certain types of incidents, e.g., "1800," "5300."

Race Codes

Codes are used to give a suspect or driver's race over the radio.  These are usually referred to as "code X" but may also be called "number X," for example "code 2 male" or "number 1 female."

Related Sites

• Montgomery County Department of Police