PERSONAL SAFETY Columnist Steve Rose explains how to talk the talk when police communicate

Know how to talk the talk when police communicate

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Steve Rose is a retired Sandy Springs Police Captain, veteran Fulton County police officer and freelance writer. He is the author the book “Why Do My Mystic Journeys Always Lead to the Waffle House?” and the column “View from a Cop.”

Last evening, I watched an episode of “T.J. Hooker,” a TV cop show from the 1980s. The show was not produced as a comedy, but it was one of the funniest things I’ve watched in weeks. Nothing in that show was accurate, and I found myself critiquing it as if I were writing a review.

Maybe I’ll do that in a later column. This episode did, however, get me thinking about how police agencies communicate and how they project that language to the public, usually via the media.

Most of you probably get police information from media sources. After Sept. 11, 2001, most police departments revamped internal communication standards, moving from signals to “plain talk.”

The reason was simple, if we had a catastrophic event requiring several agencies to work together, we needed a common language. For example, my “Signal 75” may mean “car accident.” Yours may be the signal for dinner break. Still, documentation to the public remains somewhat official.

Police reports are official. Over the years, the language has evolved into the use of words that, to me, are, well, overly official.

When a crime is committed, the players within the incident fit into one of four categories. 1. Victim 2. Subject 3. Person of Interest 4. Suspect 5. Perpetrator

A “victim” is universally known as the one who got the raw end of the deal. The word “subject” is a catch-all in police reports. A “subject” can be anyone.

A “subject” can be subject to an upgrade to “suspect” or “perpetrator.” A “person of interest” is usually what we call someone who we’re not sure, but we have a hunch, was up to something or involved somehow. Suspect and perpetrator, or “perp,” are close cousins and could be interchangeable in the police report. So, you would not say, “The ‘person of interest’ shot the store owner.” He definitely would be a suspect or perp. It can be confusing.

Media sources came up with their own language when reporting crimes. The police report may read, “The suspect pulled the gun on the store owner.” The media will say, “The suspect brandished a weapon.” It appears the only thing you can brandish is a weapon. You don’t brandish your fists, nor do you brandish

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