# Police Jargon and why don't they use everyday expressions for describing their work **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 19, 2013, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358 "2013-03-19T15:28:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/41 "2013-03-19T21:28:44Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > And seeing it in context it looks pretty bad. Especially the way the first example is written. It sounds racist. He’s not a male, he’s a black who happens to be male. Black as the noun male as the adjective. It does. I was trying to avoid bringing that up, but in one of those examples there’s “a male Assyrian” and “a male black” in close proximity. It was easier to find an example of “male black” than “male white,” too. > [@](#): > > And the male/female thing has a reason. Sometimes the sex might be apparent but the age isn’t. A suspect may be described as male but the age is not known. Do you say man when it could be a 13 year old child? When do you make that age cut off from boy to man? And of course the word boy has a bad history so you certainly wouldn’t put that in a police report as a descriptor. Its just easier and many times more accurate to say male/female. That makes some sense. Of course you could also just give an approximation of the age, which seems to happen a lot anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/42 "2013-03-19T21:54:33Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > That makes some sense. Of course you could also just give an approximation of the age, which seems to happen a lot anyway. As the saying goes, form follows function. But no it is not always needed but it evolved from a particular function. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/43 "2013-03-19T22:44:14Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Uh huh. Sorry the ICRC does not define English. They are stating what the word means with regards to certain specific international treaties. Not what the word means in the English language. You give one non-liguistic cite. I can keep showing you multiple dictionary definitions if you want. I don’t know exactly when it began to pertain to police but it certainly didn’t happen recently and not because a small group of people were using it. That is the definition. : "_late 14c., “judge or authority on civil law,” from Old French civilien “of the civil law,” created from Latin civilis “relating to a citizen, relating to public life, befitting a citizen; popular, affable, courteous” (see civil). Sense of “non-military person” is attested by 1819 (earlier in this sense was civilian, attested from c.1600 as “non-soldier”). The adjective is from 1640s. "_ and there’s this: [http://pl.atyp.us/wordpress/index.php/2009/03/police-vs-civilians/](http://pl.atyp.us/wordpress/index.php/2009/03/police-vs-civilians/) But in any case, 'civilian meant "Non -military " for at least 600 years and just recently, due to common USA Police usage, became to change it’s meaning- in some US descriptivist dictionaries- to include ‘non-police’. > **[memidex.com - This website is for sale! - memidex...](http://www.memidex.com/civilian)** > > This website is for sale! memidex.com is your first and best source for all of the information you’re looking for. From general topics to more of what you would expect to find here, memidex.com has it all. We hope you find what you are searching for! Show that many dictionaries do not include police as non-civilain, and in fact in some they are _defined_ as civilian. But even if the Police do use it thusly, and even if the word IS changing it’s US definition due to that usage, it’s a bad idea. It perpetuates a “us vs them” where “them” is the tax-paying, voting, law abiding citizenry, the very “them’ the police should feel a part of. ---
**Author:** ![Inter\_Alia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@Inter\_Alia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inter_Alia)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/44 "2013-03-19T22:55:47Z")
I read a police report once where the officer, talking about a combative man he was trying to arrest, wrote that he “escorted [the man] to the ground.” My friends and I now jokingly threaten to escort each other to the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/45 "2013-03-19T23:01:00Z")
I witnessed an instance in which some bad guy, trying to evade cops, burst into a residential-sort of home (actually, a nursing home) and hid in a second-floor room and barricaded the door. When the cops came knocking, he jumped out of the window (right into the arms of some other cops who were waiting there). One of the cops told another cop (or maybe he told the dispatcher): “Suspect did a gravity check.” But whatever a cop says or does, just be sure _never_ to refer to black people as “[gorillas in the mist](http://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/12/us/judge-says-remarks-on-gorillas-may-be-cited-in-trial-on-beating.html)” > [@New York Times](#): > > A judge has ruled that a police officer’s comments likening a domestic dispute among blacks to the movie “Gorillas in the Mist” may be used as evidence against four white officers charged in the beating of a black motorist. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/46 "2013-03-19T23:04:46Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > At least in the last 15 years that I have been doing this we have been taught to get away from this stuff. Our speech may be a bit stilted with precise wording but we are supposed to write and talk like humans. It works better in court. In years past reports were written in the third person. “This officer” or “The above named officer arrived..” I was taught from the beginning to write in the first person. > > The was how I was taught all the way back in the academy run by the state. My department might be a little ahead on such things. We rarely use number codes or jargon on the radio and speak in clear English. Lucky you. My agency writes reports about a particular person, not an incident. The name only appears in the heading. After that it’s " The subject …" . And it’s bled over into other forms of written communication. I don’t get emails that say " I have reviewed the draft policy and ..“. It’s always " This writer has reviewed the draft policy and…” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/47 "2013-03-19T23:07:17Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > But whatever a cop says or does, just be sure _never_ to refer to black people as “[gorillas in the mist](http://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/12/us/judge-says-remarks-on-gorillas-may-be-cited-in-trial-on-beating.html)” In fact, don’t say this even if you aren’t a cop. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/48 "2013-03-19T23:17:51Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > This is at least part of it. A big part of the job of law enforcement that rarely makes “Wildest Police Video” is professional witness. Use of professional jargon has a legitimate use in increasing precision, succinctness and accuracy in communication, and a byproduct of that is that the use of professional jargon adds credence to the image that the witness is a professional. Any old shmoe can walk up to a car, but the police officer _approaches the vehicle_. And it’s not just professional image, either. Take a small SUV. I might call it a truck, or a car or an SUV. Which is fine in 90% of my life. Except when I’m writing a report. Although I’m not a police officer, I’ve spent a lot of time testifying. And I really, really don’t want to use one term in a report and a different one when I’m testifying. Even though it probably doesn’t matter what type of vehicle it is , it’s easy for the opposing attorney to use against me. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/49 "2013-03-19T23:37:29Z")
Then, of course, there is the other end of the spectrum - [The Arcata (CA) Eye Police Log.](http://www.arcataeye.com/2013/03/arcata-police-log-expediency-and-self-centeredness-guide-majority-of-human-behavior/) ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/50 "2013-03-20T01:01:22Z")
Perhaps this only occurs on TV cop shows, not IRL, but I have oft wondered why cops say “GSW” instead of “gunshot wound,” when “gunshot wound” is faster to say than the abbreviation. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/51 "2013-03-20T01:08:50Z")
> [@freckafree](#): > > Perhaps this only occurs on TV cop shows, not IRL, but I have oft wondered why cops say “GSW” instead of “gunshot wound,” when “gunshot wound” is faster to say than the abbreviation. I’d guess because it’s a lot shorter to write and they have to read a lot of things that other cops wrote, so eventually it just sticks. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/52 "2013-03-20T02:22:05Z")
On a related note, I have heard the term “perp” (short for perpetrator) used by all of law enforcement (real life, TV, and movies) for decades. The only other word I ever noticed as a substitution was “suspect.” Last year, I watched an episode of a cop show (Blue Bloods, perhaps?) with my wife, and they were all saying “do-er.” Did they make that up for the show, or is it replacing “perp”? I’ve never heard it anywhere else. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/53 "2013-03-20T02:31:05Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > But even if the Police do use it thusly, and even if the word IS changing it’s US definition due to that usage, it’s a bad idea. It perpetuates a “us vs them” where “them” is the tax-paying, voting, law abiding citizenry, the very “them’ the police should feel a part of. That makes zero sense. Do you realize that the military is also part of the tax-paying, voting, law abiding citizenry? You don’t give up your citizenship when you join the military. So why is that ok in your mind. On one hand you have an armed uniformed force with military rank structure, military discipline and the camaraderie that comes from facing danger together. On the other hand you have the armed forces. But since I’ve spent 24 years in the active duty army and the army national guard your just a damn civilian to me and there is nothing you can do about it:D ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/54 "2013-03-20T02:31:31Z")
This thread is reminding me of _Fargo_: “He’s fleeing the interiew! He’s fleeing the interiew!” ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/55 "2013-03-20T02:39:40Z")
[quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:52, topic:653358”] On a related note, I have heard the term “perp” (short for perpetrator) used by all of law enforcement (real life, TV, and movies) for decades. The only other word I ever noticed as a substitution was “suspect.” Last year, I watched an episode of a cop show (Blue Bloods, perhaps?) with my wife, and they were all saying “do-er.” Did they make that up for the show, or is it replacing “perp”? I’ve never heard it anywhere else. [/QUOTE] Was it possibly “Cold Case” you were watching ? That’s the only time I’ve ever heard do-er ( either TV or IRL)- I always wondered if it was Philadelphia-specific. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/56 "2013-03-20T02:56:24Z")
> [@NitroPress](#): > > Joseph Wambaugh, _The Choirboys_: “Don’t hassle me about using long words, Roscoe. It was the academy that taught me long words like hemorrhage and defecation.” My own theory about old time police jargon is that in the last century police officers were not well educated or well paid. In order to not have them sound like complete idiots they were taught to speak that way. Things have changed. Most departments require college. We have quite a few people with advanced degrees. We are paid well enough to have a lot of competition for jobs. That 1950s police jargon isn’t as prevalent these days but some remains. > [@Inter\_Alia](#): > > I read a police report once where the officer, talking about a combative man he was trying to arrest, wrote that he “escorted [the man] to the ground.” > > My friends and I now jokingly threaten to escort each other to the ground. See to me that means something specific. Being escorted to the ground means getting put into a restraint hold like an arm bar and being guided in a controlled manner to the ground. If there was a dog pile or a violent take down I would not use that language. > [@doreen](#): > > Lucky you. My agency writes reports about a particular person, not an incident. The name only appears in the heading. After that it’s " The subject …" . And it’s bled over into other forms of written communication. I don’t get emails that say " I have reviewed the draft policy and ..“. It’s always " This writer has reviewed the draft policy and…” That is awful. Luckily I was never taught that way. Even in the academy many moons ago we were told to stay away from that style. > [@freckafree](#): > > Perhaps this only occurs on TV cop shows, not IRL, but I have oft wondered why cops say “GSW” instead of “gunshot wound,” when “gunshot wound” is faster to say than the abbreviation. To me GSW is more of an emergency medicine term rather than a cop term. I have never used the term in a report and I’ve have heard it much more from paramedics than from cops. [quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:52, topic:653358”] On a related note, I have heard the term “perp” (short for perpetrator) used by all of law enforcement (real life, TV, and movies) for decades. The only other word I ever noticed as a substitution was “suspect.” Last year, I watched an episode of a cop show (Blue Bloods, perhaps?) with my wife, and they were all saying “do-er.” Did they make that up for the show, or is it replacing “perp”? I’ve never heard it anywhere else. [/QUOTE] The NYPD is a whole other animal. There are 40,000 of them. They have their own culture. Whenever we have had to deal with them they love to throw the NY cop talk at us. It’s like talking to Andy Sipowitz. It’s like they are all caricatures. Eta I have never heard anyone I work with use the term perpetrator in an unironic way. I’ve only used and heard “suspect”. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/57 "2013-03-20T03:24:37Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > Was it possibly “Cold Case” you were watching ? That’s the only time I’ve ever heard do-er ( either TV or IRL)- I always wondered if it was Philadelphia-specific. It could well be. I don’t watch many TV shows and there are so many police procedurals out there I get them mixed up – especially if I’ve only seen the show once or twice. > [@Loach](#): > > The NYPD is a whole other animal. There are 40,000 of them. They have their own culture. From what little I’ve seen, their cultural appears less law enforcement and more military than any police department I’ve had personal experience with. I’ve known police chiefs in cities ranging from 2,300 people up to about 210,000, and I have never seen officers saluting the chief or someone yelling TEN-HUT when he walks into the room, but that’s how the NYPD is often depicted. Is that accurate? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/58 "2013-03-20T04:25:54Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > That makes zero sense. Do you realize that the military is also part of the tax-paying, voting, law abiding citizenry? You don’t give up your citizenship when you join the military. So why is that ok in your mind. Exactly, it makes no sense, thus it’s not OK. The police are Citizens & Civilians, just like the people they are protecting and work for. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/59 "2013-03-20T04:27:18Z")
[quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:52, topic:653358”] On a related note, I have heard the term “perp” (short for perpetrator) used by all of law enforcement (real life, TV, and movies) for decades. The only other word I ever noticed as a substitution was “suspect.” Last year, I watched an episode of a cop show (Blue Bloods, perhaps?) with my wife, and they were all saying “do-er.” Did they make that up for the show, or is it replacing “perp”? I’ve never heard it anywhere else. [/QUOTE] I read police reports and talk to them. Never heard “do-et”. Suspect & Perp, but mainly “scumbag” etc if it’s not a written report. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2013, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358/60 "2013-03-20T13:30:08Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Exactly, it makes no sense, thus it’s not OK. The police are Citizens & Civilians, just like the people they are protecting and work for. As are the military. But for some reason you feel that separating them is just fine. I don’t get it. If you are a language purist, fine. That’s your option. I don’t quite understand that either myself. The language purists I run into seem to want the language to stop right at the time they grew up. But for some reason they have no problem with the fact that we don’t speak Middle English. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-jargon-and-why-dont-they-use-everyday-expressions-for-describing-their-work/653358.md?page=4)