Alabama Department of Public Safety

The Alabama Criminal Justice Center, which houses the headquarters of the Department of Public Safety and the Department of Corrections

The Alabama Department of Public Safety is a law enforcement agency serving the U.S. state of Alabama. It is made up of five divisions: Administrative Division, Alabama Bureau of Investigation, Driver License, Highway Patrol Division, and the Service Division.^[1]

History

The Alabama Department of Public Safety began as the Alabama Highway Patrol on December 5, 1935. The Highway Patrol was renamed the Department of Public Safety on March 8, 1939 and then included 4 divisions: Highway Patrol, Driver License, Accident Prevention Bureau, and Mechanical and Equipment.^[2]

On January 17, 2011, Hugh B. McCall was appointed to the position of Colonel of the Alabama Department of Public Safety by Governor Robert J. Bentley, making him the first African-American to head the agency.

Rank structure

The Alabama Department of Public Safety rank structure is as listed:

Rank	Insignia
Colonel
Lieutenant Colonel
Major
Captain
Lieutenant
Sergeant
Corporal
Agent
Trooper

Organization

The Department of Public Safety is headed by a Director is appointed by the Governor of Alabama who is the executive officer of the Department and holds the rank of Colonel. The Director is aided in managing the Department by an Assistant Director, who is also appointed by the Governor and who holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Each of the Department's five Divisions are headed by uniformed officers with the rank of Major.

• Administrative Services Division
  • Capitol Police Unit
  • Dignitary Protection Unit
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Office
  • Fatal Accident Reporting System
  • Financial Services Unit
  • Legal Office
  • Governor's Mansion Security Office
  • Office of Inspections
  • Payroll Unit
  • Personnel Unit
  • Purchasing Unit
  • Recruiting Unit
• Driver License Division
  • Drive License Examining Unit
  • Drive Records Unit
  • License Reinstatement Unit
  • Safety Responsibility Unit
• Alabama Bureau of Investigation
  • Criminal Investigation Support Group
    • Alabama Center for Missing and Exploited Children
    • Alabama Fusion Center
    • Alabama Missing Senior Alert
    • Bomb Squad
    • Community Information Center
    • Cyber Crimes Unit
    • Dive Team
    • Identification Unit
    • Internet Crimes Against Children
    • Latent Print Unit
    • Sex Offender Registry
  • Investigative Operation
    • Region A Investigative Office
    • Region B Investigative Office
    • Region C Investigative Office
    • Region D Investigative Office
    • Special Investigations Command
  • Identification Unit
    • Automated Fingerprint Identification System Section
    • Imaging Section
    • Record Check Section
    • Classification Section
    • Nation Crime Information Center Liaison Office
• Alabama Highway Patrol Division
  • Career Development and Training Office
  • Traffic Homicide Investigations Office
  • Division Programs Office
  • Patrol Operations
    • Alexander City Field Office
    • Birmingham Field Office
    • Decatur Field Office
    • Dothan Field Office
    • Eufaula Field Office
    • Evergreen Field Office
    • Gadsden Field Office
    • Grove Hill Field Office
    • Hamilton Field Office
    • Huntsville Field Office
    • Jacksonville Field Office
    • Mobile Field Office
    • Montgomery Field Office
    • Opelika Field Office
    • Selma Field Office
    • Tuscaloosa Field Office
  • Motor Carrier Safety Unit
• Service Division
  • Communications Engineering Unit
  • Aviation Unit
  • Photographic Services Unit
  • Fleet Maintenance Unit
  • Supply Unit
  • Printing Services Unit
  • Alabama Criminal Justice Training Center (Trooper Academy)

Fallen officers

Since the establishment of the Alabama Department of Public Safety, 28 officers have died in the line of duty. The following list also contains officers from when the Alabama Department of Public Safety was the Alabama Highway Patrol.^[3]

Alabama Bureau of Investigation

The Alabama Bureau of Investigation is the investigative branch of the Alabama Department of Public Safety. The ABI provides investigation services in support of other members of the criminal justice system in Alabama. In addition to criminal investigations, the ABI also provides fingerprint services and a bomb squad, as well as the Alabama Fusion Center. The ABI is not a first responder agency and investigations are conducted upon request by a criminal justice agency. Members of the ABI also provide law enforcement services for operations with the other DPS divisions, such as in times of natural disaster and other special details.^[4]

Highway Patrol

Alabama Highway Patrol

The Alabama Highway Patrol is a division of the Alabama Department of Public Safety and is the highway patrol agency for Alabama, which has jurisdiction anywhere in the state. It was created to protect the lives, property and constitutional rights of people in Alabama.

In 1971, the Alabama Highway Patrol became the first U.S. police organization to use down-sized vehicles for regular highway patrol duties when they purchased 132 AMC Javelins. This pre-dated, among others, the Camaros and Mustangs used by other departments years later.

See also

• List of law enforcement agencies in Alabama
• State police
• State patrol
• Highway patrol

References

1. ↑ Alabama DPS main page
2. ↑ ADPS History page
3. ↑
4. ↑ Alabama DPS BOI page

External links

• Alabama Department of Public Safety