Iowa State Patrol

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The Iowa State Patrol is the state police organization in the US state of Iowa. Currently, there are just over 400 officers in the patrol. State Troopers are responsible for patrolling over 112,000 miles of roadways in the state. Their primary concern is enforcing motor vehicle laws, but also assist with other incidents. These include riots, prison disturbances, labor related disturbances, and providing security at sporting events.

[edit] History

The State Patrol was created in 1935 after an act creating the Patrol was passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor. Initially the patrol was comprised of 53 men.

Oran H. Pape in 1936 became the first man to die in the line of duty, and to date the only member of the Patrol to be murdered. While others have died in the line of duty, their deaths have all been accidental.

For many years Patrol vehicles had a light tan color with the Iowa State Patrol logo on the sides of the vehicle. In the late 1990's, the Patrol switched to a black and gold color scheme on their vehicles. However, the reaction to this change was not very good. Critics felt that the new color scheme turned Patrol cars into moving advertisements for the University of Iowa's Hawkeye sports teams. The Patrol has since switched back to the original color scheme.