Police tactical unit explained

A police tactical unit (PTU) is a specialized police unit trained and equipped to handle situations that are beyond the capabilities of ordinary law enforcement units because of the level of violence (or risk of violence) involved.[1] [2] [3] The tasks of a police tactical unit may include executing dangerous search warrants and arrest warrants for dangerous persons; arresting or neutralizing dangerous or mentally ill armed persons; and intervening in high risk situations such as shootouts, standoffs, hostage-takings, and terrorist incidents.

Definition

Police tactical units are dedicated units composed of personnel selected and trained in tactical skillsets to carry out the responsibilities of the unit, and in use of force policies, including lethal force for counterterrorism.[4] A PTU is equipped with specialized police and military-type equipment. PTU personnel may also be trained in crisis negotiation skills.

A police tactical unit can be part of either a police force under the authority of civilian officials, or a gendarmerie-style force under the authority of civilian officials (interior ministry) or a defence ministry that may have formal military status.[5] Other government agencies, depending on the country, may establish specialized units with comparable taskings, training, and equipment, such as border guard, coast guard, customs, or corrections.

In the United States, police tactical units are known by the generic term of special weapons and tactics (SWAT) teams; the term originated from the Philadelphia Police Department and the Los Angeles Police Department in the 1960s.[6] In Australia, the federal government uses the term police tactical group. The European Union uses the term special intervention unit for national counterterrorist PTUs.[7]

Characteristics

Police tactical units have similarities to military special forces units such as organization, selection, training, equipment, and operational methodologies.[8] [9] Police tactical units, similar to military units, are not gender diverse, with female members being rare.[10] [11]

For "certain counter terrorism operations, such as hostage rescue, there is a significant convergence of roles, tactics and force when employed in either an armed conflict or policing role".[12] Aside from counterterrorism, the roles of police and military units differ in that the role of military units can result in the use of the maximum permissible force against enemy combatants while the role of police units is to use only minimal force sufficient to subdue suspected criminals, including negotiation.[13] [14]

See also

Notes

  1. Alvaro. Sam. Tactical law enforcement in Canada; an exploratory survey of Canadian police agencies. Carleton University. 2000. 9780612484191. 1,37,51-52. 29 August 2021.
  2. Book: Australia-New Zealand Counter-Terrorism Committee. Active Armed Offender Guidelines for Crowded Places. 2017. Commonwealth of Australia. 3. 9781925593976. 30 September 2017.
  3. Rantatalo. Oscar. Sensemaking and organising in the policing of high risk situations: focusing the Swedish Police National Counter-Terrorist Unit. 2013. Department of Education, Umeå University. Umeå. 9789174596991. 15,32. 25 May 2017.
  4. Web site: NTOA. Tactical Response and Operations Standard for Law Enforcement Agencies. April 2018. 12,34,38. 3 February 2021.
  5. Book: Lutterbeck . Derek . The Paradox of Gendarmeries : Between Expansion, Demilitarization and Dissolution . 2013 . Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) . Geneva . 9789292222864 . SSR PAPER 8. 7. 3 February 2021.
  6. Mitchel P. Roth & James Stuart Olson, Historical Dictionary of Law Enforcement, Westport, Ct: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001, p. 333 and; John S. Dempsey & Linda S. Forst, An Introduction to Policing, Clifton Park, NY: Delmar Cengage Learning, 2011, p. 276.
  7. On the improvement of cooperation between the special intervention units of the Member States of the European Union in crisis situations. 23 June 2008. 26 May 2017. 2008/617/JHA. Council Decision.
  8. Book: NATO Glossary of Terms and Definitions. en, fr. North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 18 December 2020. AAP-06. 2020. NATO Standardization Agency. Brussels. 119. https://web.archive.org/web/20210602210816/https://nso.nato.int/nso/ZPUBLIC/_BRANCHINFO/TERMINOLOGY_PUBLIC/NON-CLASSIFIED%20NATO%20GLOSSARIES/AAP-6.PDF . 2 June 2021 . dead.
  9. Alexander. John B. Convergence: Special Operations Forces and Civilian Law Enforcement. July 2010. Joint Special Operations University (JSOU) Press. MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. 48–62. https://jsou.libguides.com/ld.php?content_id=51792184. 29 August 2021. 4: Comparison between SOF and Law Enforcement Agencies. JSOU report 10-6.
  10. Dahle . Thorvald O. . March 2015 . Women and SWAT: Making Entry into Police Tactical Teams . dead . Law Enforcement Executive Forum . Macomb, Illinois . Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board Executive Institute . 15 . 1 . 21,25 . 10.19151/LEEF.2015.1501b . 2024-06-09 . 1552-9908 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171006092234/https://www2.cohpa.ucf.edu/media/1008908/leef-march_2015_issue_ada_done__1_.pdf . 6 October 2017.
  11. Book: Turnley . Jessica Glicken . Special Operations Forces Mixed-Gender Elite Teams . Stewart . Dona J. . Rubright . Rich . Quirin . Jason . June 2014 . Joint Special Operations University (JSOU) Press . William Knarr (Project Leader) . MacDill Air Force Base, Florida . 11,85–86 . 3 February 2021.
  12. Book: Watkin. Kenneth. [{{Google books|2NMdDAAAQBAJ|page=437|plainurl=yes}} Fighting at the Legal Boundaries: Controlling the Use of Force in Contemporary Conflict]. 2016. Oxford University Press. New York. 9780190457976. 437.
  13. Book: Newburn. Tim. Tim Newburn. Neyroud. Peter. Peter Neyroud. [{{Google books|1fqAZzIDlgYC|page=187|plainurl=yes}} Dictionary of Policing]. 2013. Routledge. Abingdon, Oxon. 9781843922872. 187.
  14. Book: Weber. Diane Cecilia. Warrior Cops: The Ominous Growth of Paramilitarism in American Police Departments.. 1999. Cato Institute. Washington. Cato Briefing Papers No. 50. 3. 25 May 2017.

Further reading

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Police tactical unit".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.