| Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State Polícia Militar do Estado do Rio de Janeiro |
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| Abbreviation | PMERJ |
| Badge of the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State. | |
| Motto | To serve and protect Servir e proteger |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | May 13, 1809 |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Map of police jurisdiction. | |
| Size | 43.696,054 km² (16,871.1 sp mi) |
| Population | 16,010,429 (2009) |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | City of Rio de Janeiro |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
The Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State (Portuguese: Polícia Militar do Estado do Rio de Janeiro) (PMERJ) like other military polices in Brazil is a reserve and ancillary force of the Brazilian Army, and part of the System of Public Security and Brazilian Social Protection.[1] Its members are called "State Military" person.[2]
The primary mission of PMERJ is ostensibly preventive policing for the maintenance of public order in the State of Rio de Janeiro.
Under the United Nations, in cooperation with the Brazilian Army, the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State has served in Angola, Mozambique, East-Timor, Sudan, and Haiti.
Contents |
The first militarized police in Portugal (when Brazil was still a colony) was the Royal Police Guard of Lisbon (Portuguese: Guarda Real de Polícia de Lisboa), established in 1801,[3] which followed the model of the National Gendarmerie (French: Gendarmerie Nationale) of France, created in 1791.
When the Portuguese Royal Family was transferred to Brazil, the Royal Police Guard of Lisbon remained in Portugal, and another equivalent guard was created in Rio de Janeiro under the name of Military Division of the Royal Guard Police of Rio de Janeiro, in 1809.[4]
With the abdication of Emperor Pedro I in 1831, the Regency held reformulations on the Brazilian Armed Forces. The Royal Guard Police of Rio de Janeiro became extinct,[5] and was replaced by the Municipal Guard Corps of Volunteers,[6] a type of security force similar to the National Guard. The same law allowed each Province to establish its own Guard of Volunteers.
In 1834, Pedro I died in Portugal and this reduced the fear in Brazil of a reunification of the kingdoms. The Guard of Volunteers were then transformed into Province Police Corps, with professional troops.[7] The Police Corps were created with the same structure as the Army, and to serve as reserve troops when necessary, under provinces presidents' control. In 1835, the president of Rio de Janeiro province created the "Rio de Janeiro Province Police Corp" (Guarda Policial da Província do Rio de Janeiro).
With the Proclamation of the Republic, Brazil adopted a constitution based on the United States, where the states have a large autonomy. The Corps of Police began to be administered by the states and became smaller regional armies, with infantry, cavalry, artillery, and later, even with air forces. This dangerous situation to the national security remained until the rise of Getúlio Vargas dictatorial government in 1930s, when he abolished states autonomy, and the Brazilian army began its control over states military polices and firefighters corps.
The PMERJ is operationally organized into Intermediary Commands or Policing Area Command (Portuguese: Comandos Intermediários/Comandos de Policiamento de Área), Military Police Battalions, companies, and platoons; and administratively, in departments.
The battalions are based in major urban centers, and their companies and platoons are distributed according to population density in cities.
The Military Police of Rio de Janeiro is present in all cities of the State.
These are the Policing Area Commands and their respective batallions. Cities and neighborhoods indicate the location of their headquarters.
| Aircraft | Type | Versions | In service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eurocopter AS350 | Patrol helicopter | AS-350B3 | 3 |
| Bell Huey II | Special operations | Huey II | 1 |
| Piper PA-34 Seneca | Personal transport | PA-34 | 2 |
Since 1975, the PMERJ use dark blue in their uniforms on blue with black trousers.
The PMERJ has the same hierarchical classification[8] of the Brazilian Army, with another type of insignias.[9]
| Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel |
Major | Captain | First Lieutenant |
Second Lieutenant |
Aspirant | Student Officer or Cadet |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sub-Lieutenant | First Sergeant |
Second Sergeant |
Third Sergeant |
Corporal | Private of First Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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