Campus police
Encyclopedia
Campus Police or University police in the United States
and Canada
are often sworn police officers
employed by a public school district
, college
or university
to protect the campus
and surrounding areas and the people who live on, work on and visit it.
Many university police forces employ a combination of police officers, security guard
s and student workers.
University police can also become familiar with the campus buildings and people, providing better service to the campus community.
University police's jurisdiction varies by location. Some university police have jurisdiction statewide, some have city wide or county wide jurisdiction. Some campus police departments' jurisdiction is limited to campus property, but may also include property and roadways adjacent to the campus.
Consequently, a need emerged for a better solution for campus security, which led to the creation of university/campus police departments across the nation. Laws were passed and regulations enacted that provided officers with the necessary statutory authority to perform their expanded roles. Campus police officers were required to attend the police academy and to meet higher training and educational standards, particularly when dealing with campus-specific issues such as non-violent crisis management and riot training.
Alternatively, on some campuses, sworn police officers work side by side with campus security officers who perform similar duties and often assist each other. While some universities and colleges just employ campus security officers, it is common in the United States for a major university to have its own police force. On many campuses, the police employ students to act as escorts for students who do not want to walk alone at night, allowing the sworn police officers to concentrate on other enforcement related duties.
s, they are sworn in as special constable
s by the municipal police board
in the jurisdiction that the respective university campus is based. While they have peace officer authority while engaged in duty, they do not have such powers off-duty.
Campus Police in Canada do not carry firearms, but are generally given other law enforcement
's tools of trade
- namely handcuffs
, body armor, batons
and pepper spray
.
Campus police do not exist in the Provinces of British Columbia and Québec. Instead, colleges and universities employ civilian security guards.
and, until 2003, Oxford University Police
. Instead most universities have a Police Liaison Officer seconded from the area's Police Service. The liaison officer can provide crime prevention and recruitment information, patrol of campus site and create links with community as part of the national Community Policing Strategy. It is also known for officers to take lectures in policing for students studying law, police studies etc. This allows students to gain first hand knowledge on policing and real life scenarios that the force faces.
as local or state police officers.
Many departments operate some of the same units as municipal agencies such as detective
units, special response teams (SWAT
or SRT), canine units, bicycle patrol units, motorcycle patrol units, and community policing units. In some cases, campus police agencies are better equipped and staffed than municipal and county agencies in their area due to the significant amount of funding available in a college environment.
The campus police in many state owned schools tend to be a division of the state's police, giving them state-wide authority and jurisdiction similar to that afforded to state police. Officers of the Colorado State University Police Department and the University of Colorado (Boulder) Police Department are commissioned officers of the state of Colorado, but also hold commissions through the cities and counties where their universities are based (respectively Fort Collins and Larimer County for CSU and the City of Boulder for CU). In Virginia, state law (VA. Code Section 23.232-23.236) allows campus police officers to be armed and have full police powers on and around the campus grounds with concurrent jurisdiction with the local police.
Campus Police at public institutions in the State of Rhode Island are sworn police officers, but state law prohibits them from carrying firearms. Campus Police at private colleges or universities in the state, however, may be armed.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
are often sworn police officers
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
employed by a public school district
School district
School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...
, college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
or university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
to protect the campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
and surrounding areas and the people who live on, work on and visit it.
Many university police forces employ a combination of police officers, security guard
Security guard
A security guard is a person who is paid to protect property, assets, or people. Security guards are usually privately and formally employed personnel...
s and student workers.
Basis
University police departments are established to provide a quicker response time to incidents on campus and to offer campus-specific services not necessarily available from local policing organizations. For many campuses, if there were no campus police the local agencies would have to almost double in size. Many larger universities have a student population equal to or greater than the civilian population of the community.University police can also become familiar with the campus buildings and people, providing better service to the campus community.
University police's jurisdiction varies by location. Some university police have jurisdiction statewide, some have city wide or county wide jurisdiction. Some campus police departments' jurisdiction is limited to campus property, but may also include property and roadways adjacent to the campus.
History
As a result of the domestic violence and mass civil disturbances found across the nation in the 1960s and early 1970s, campus security often proved ineffective against riots and other violent civil demonstrations, occasionally resulting in injury to both the students and the officers. These campus security officers were often poorly trained, ineffectively led and unprepared to effectively respond to many turbulent and unanticipated events.Consequently, a need emerged for a better solution for campus security, which led to the creation of university/campus police departments across the nation. Laws were passed and regulations enacted that provided officers with the necessary statutory authority to perform their expanded roles. Campus police officers were required to attend the police academy and to meet higher training and educational standards, particularly when dealing with campus-specific issues such as non-violent crisis management and riot training.
Alternatively, on some campuses, sworn police officers work side by side with campus security officers who perform similar duties and often assist each other. While some universities and colleges just employ campus security officers, it is common in the United States for a major university to have its own police force. On many campuses, the police employ students to act as escorts for students who do not want to walk alone at night, allowing the sworn police officers to concentrate on other enforcement related duties.
Canada
Canadian campus police are trained to standardized provincial curriculum. As peace officerPeace officer
A law enforcement officer , in North America, is any public-sector employee or agent whose duties involve the enforcement of laws. The phrase can include police officers, prison officers, customs officers, immigration officers, bailiffs, probation officers, parole officers, auxiliary officers, and...
s, they are sworn in as special constable
Special constable
A Special Constable is a law enforcement officer who is not a regular member of a police force. Some like the Royal Canadian Mounted Police carry the same law enforcement powers as regular members, but are employed in specific roles, such as explosive disposal technicians, court security, campus...
s by the municipal police board
Police board
A police board is an appointed form of local government charged with the responsibility of overseeing a local police forceIn the United States, the term is used for some police departments. For example, the Chicago Police Board oversees the Chicago Police Department...
in the jurisdiction that the respective university campus is based. While they have peace officer authority while engaged in duty, they do not have such powers off-duty.
Campus Police in Canada do not carry firearms, but are generally given other law enforcement
Law enforcement agency
In North American English, a law enforcement agency is a government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws.Outside North America, such organizations are called police services. In North America, some of these services are called police while others have other names In North American...
's tools of trade
Tools of trade
Tools of trade is a term generally used in bankruptcy law to determine what property a person would commonly use for the purpose of making a living, as items that are tools of trade are separately exempt from attachment with an additional amount above that normally given for a person's...
- namely handcuffs
Handcuffs
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists close together. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each half has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist...
, body armor, batons
Baton (law enforcement)
A truncheon or baton is essentially a club of less than arm's length made of wood, plastic, or metal...
and pepper spray
Pepper spray
Pepper spray, also known as OC spray , OC gas, and capsicum spray, is a lachrymatory agent that is used in riot control, crowd control and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears...
.
Campus police do not exist in the Provinces of British Columbia and Québec. Instead, colleges and universities employ civilian security guards.
United Kingdom
In the UK, universities do not have a specific police force that responds to crime on university campuses, with the exception of Cambridge University ConstabularyCambridge University Constabulary
The Cambridge University Constabulary is a body of constables based around the precincts of the University of Cambridge. There are approximately 20 to 30 constables in the Constabulary....
and, until 2003, Oxford University Police
Oxford University Police
The Oxford University Police, or Oxford University Constables , was the private police force of the University of Oxford between 1829 and 2003. They carried warrant cards and were empowered to act as police officers within the University precincts and within areas of Oxford within four miles of any...
. Instead most universities have a Police Liaison Officer seconded from the area's Police Service. The liaison officer can provide crime prevention and recruitment information, patrol of campus site and create links with community as part of the national Community Policing Strategy. It is also known for officers to take lectures in policing for students studying law, police studies etc. This allows students to gain first hand knowledge on policing and real life scenarios that the force faces.
United States
Most university police officers are commissioned through their state Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) after completing established training and pre-licensure preparation. This is usually equivalent to that of a municipal or state peace officer. They routinely attend the same police academyPolice academy
A police academy is a training school for new police recruits, also known as a law enforcement academy.-Australia:Larger police departments usually run their own academies. States often run a centralised academy for training of personnel of law enforcement agencies within the state.Police...
as local or state police officers.
Many departments operate some of the same units as municipal agencies such as detective
Detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
units, special response teams (SWAT
SWAT
A SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. They are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers...
or SRT), canine units, bicycle patrol units, motorcycle patrol units, and community policing units. In some cases, campus police agencies are better equipped and staffed than municipal and county agencies in their area due to the significant amount of funding available in a college environment.
The campus police in many state owned schools tend to be a division of the state's police, giving them state-wide authority and jurisdiction similar to that afforded to state police. Officers of the Colorado State University Police Department and the University of Colorado (Boulder) Police Department are commissioned officers of the state of Colorado, but also hold commissions through the cities and counties where their universities are based (respectively Fort Collins and Larimer County for CSU and the City of Boulder for CU). In Virginia, state law (VA. Code Section 23.232-23.236) allows campus police officers to be armed and have full police powers on and around the campus grounds with concurrent jurisdiction with the local police.
Campus Police at public institutions in the State of Rhode Island are sworn police officers, but state law prohibits them from carrying firearms. Campus Police at private colleges or universities in the state, however, may be armed.
See also
- Special policeSpecial policeSpecial Police does not have a consistent international meaning. In many cases it will describe a police force or a unit within a police force whose duties and responsibilities are significantly different from other forces in the same country or significantly different from other police in the same...
- Auxiliary policeAuxiliary policeAuxiliary police or special constables in England) are usually the part-time reserves of a regular police force. They may be armed or unarmed. They may be unpaid volunteers or paid members of the police service with which they are affiliated...
- Company policeCompany policeCompany police, also called private police, are police officers who work for a private company rather than a government agency.-United Kingdom:...
- Safety escort serviceSafety escort serviceA safety escort service, security escort service, or simply escort service is a service provided on and around many college and university campuses to help ensure the safety of students and staff. The escort may be provided by campus police staff or student volunteers and may be provided on foot or...
- Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement AgenciesCommission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement AgenciesThe Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., is a credentialing authority , based in the United States, whose primary mission is to accredited public safety agencies, namely law enforcement agencies, training academies, communications centers, and campus public safety...