Police lingo

Common abbreviations and jargon used in the programme.

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Abbreviations/Acronym		Meaning
A
ABH	=	Actual Body Harm
APB		All Points Bulletin
ALCO
AMIP	=	Area Major Incident Pool
ANPR	=	Automatic Numberplate Recognition
APPO	=	Area Press and Publicity Officer
ARB	=	Accident Report Book
ARV	=	Armed responce vehicle
ASP	=	Extendable Metal Baton
B
Banged Up	=	Locked in a cell (at a prison or police station)
The Big House	=	Crown Court
Bin	=	Cell (eg: "Shall I put him back in the bin, Sarge?")
Black Rat	=	Traffic Patrol Officer
Blag	=	Robbery
Bleeder	=	Female officer
BLO	=	Borough Liaison Officer
Blue-on-blue	=	Accidental shooting/injury of a police officer by a colleague during a siege or other incident. Also used by NATO armed forces for friendly fire casualites.
Blues and Twos	=	the lights ("blues") and siren ("twos" - from two-tone horn) on a police car
Body, A	=	A person (eg: "I've nicked a body")
Brains Dept.	=	C.I.D. (as referred to by Uniform)
BTP	=	British Transport Police
Button Mob	=	Uniform Officers (as referred to by C.I.D.)
C
CAD	=	Computer Aided Dispatch (Room)
caution (1)	=	A formal warning by the police, used as an alternative to a full prosecution for minor offences. More fully known as a police caution or simple caution.
caution (2)	=	A statement made to a suspect when they are arrested, informing them of their basic right to silence. In the UK prior to 1994 this was: "You have the right to remain silent, but anything you do say will be taken down and may be used in evidence". Since 1994 it is now: "You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence". Once this has been read out, the suspect is said to be "under caution" while being questioned thereafter, and may be reminded of this later (eg: if transferred from the street or a car to an interview room).
CCTV	=	Closed Circuit Television
CIB	=	Complaints Investigation Bureau
CID	=	Criminal Investigation Department
CIS	=	Crime Infomation System (replaced crime sheets)
Civvies	=	Police Officers in civilian clothes
CO	=	Central Operations
Corres	=	Correspondence / paperwork
Cough	=	confess (eg: "Has he coughed to those burglaries yet?")
CPS	=	Crown Prosecution Service
CPT	=	Child Protection Team
CrimInt	=	Criminal Intelligence
CRIS	=	Crime Report Information System (replaced crime sheets)
CS spray	=	An immobilising spray
CSE	=	Crime Scene Examiner
CSG	=	Crime Support Group
CSU	=	Community Safety Unit
D
Dancers	=	To run away i.e. "He was on his dancers"
DC	=	Detective Constable
DCI	=	Detective Chief Inspector
DI	=	Detective Inspector
Dipper	=	Pickpocket
DPS	=	Directorate of Professional Standards
Drum	=	House (eg: "We'll give his drum a spin" - search his house)
DS	=	Detective Sergeant
DSE	=	Divisional Scene Examiner
DVU	=	Domestic Violence Unit |- ! style="text-align: left" | DMV | style="text-align:center" | = | Dead motor vehicle |- ! style="text-align: left" | |- | height="15" | |- | colspan="3" |==E==
Equipped, Going equipped	=	In possession of equipment (eg tools, weapons, masks, gloves, etc) with intent to commit a crime, especially a burglary or robbery.
ESSO	=	Every Saturday and Sunday Off
ETA	=	Expected Time of Arrival
F
Factory	=	Police Station
FATACC / Fat'Ac	=	Fatal Accident
Fence	=	Person to whom stolen goods are sold
Filth	=	Derogatory term for the police used by criminals, etc
FLO	=	Family Liaison Officer
FME	=	Forensics Medical Examiner
G
GBH	=	Grevious Bodily Harm
Going Up The Road	=	Refers to Crown Court
GP	=	General Purpose (used for unmarked vehicle)
Grass	=	An informant, or the act of informing on someone
H
Handling	=	Handling Stolen Goods
Have It On Your Toes	=	Run away
HORTI	=	A request to produce driving documents derived from form HORT/1 (aka a "Producer" - see below)
I
IBO	=	Integrated Borough Operations (Suite)
IC	=	Identification Codes: Visual Classification Self-Classification Police National Computer Census Four-Point System Census Nine Point System IC1 White European White skinned european appearance White White IC2 Dark European Dark skinned european appearance IC3 Afro–Caribbean African/Caribbean appearance Black Black Caribbean Black African Black Other IC4 Asian Asian appearance Asian Indian Pakistani Bangladeshi IC5 Oriental Chinese/Japanese appearance Other Chinese IC6 Arab Arabian/Egyptian appearance Other
ID	=	Identification
Index	=	Vehicle Registration Number
India 91	=	Traffic Helicopter
India 99	=	Police Helicopter
Insp.	=	Inspector
IR	=	Information Room (also see MP)
IRB	=	Incident Report Book (also used for arrests)
IRV	=	Incident Response Vehicle
J Job			=	A crime, especially a robbery (eg: "He did that job at the post office last week")
Job, The	=	Working with the police service (eg: "Her husband's in the job too")
Junkie	=	Drug addict
K
K9	=	Dog Unit
L
Lag	=	Prison inmate
LIO	=	Local Intelligence Officer
LEO	=	Local Enforcment Officer
M
M2MP	=	Full call sign for main set channel for Information Room
MisPer	=	Missing Person
MIT	=	Major incident team
MP	=	Metropolitan Police information room (Scotland Yard)
MSS	=	Message Switching System
N
NCPA	=	No Cause for Police Action
NCS	=	National Crime Squad (aka British FBI)
NDIU	=	National Drugs Intelligence Unit
NDP	=	Notice to Detained Persons
NFA	=	No Further Action
NIB	=	National Identification Bureau
Nick	=	To arrest someone (eg: "you're nicked, son")
Nick, The	=	Police station (eg: "we'll question him back at the nick")
Nonce	=	Sex offender, especially one guilty of underage or child sex offences - can also be used as a general insult these days!
Non-Descript	=	Observation Vehicle (or "Nondy")
NSY	=	New Scotland Yard
O
OB	=	Occurrence Book
OBBO	=	Observation
OP	=	Observation Point
OPPO	=	Mate (someone you're paired with for specialist tasks)
OSCAR	=	Call sign for Traffic Control on main set
OTS	=	Over The Side (seeing someone for a bit of hanky panky!)
P
PACE	=	Police and Criminal Evidence Act (Act of Parliament)
Panda	=	Non-pursuit police car
PARS	=	Particulars of an occurrence
PC	=	Police Constable
Phonetic Alphabet A Alpha N November B Bravo O Oscar C Charlie P Papa D Delta Q Quebec E Echo R Romeo F Foxtrot S Sierra G Golf T Tango H Hotel U Uniform I India V Victor J Juliet W Whiskey K Kilo X X-ray L Lima Y Yankee M Mike Z Zulu
Pimp	=	Someone living off earnings from prostitution
PIT	=	Precision Immobilisation Technique Manoeuvre (vehicle debilitation technique)
Plonk	=	Women Police Officer
PNC	=	Police National Computer
PolAcc	=	Police Accident
Ponce	=	Someone living off earnings from prostitution - also used as a derogatory term of insult (I.E. a "big girl's blouse")
PR	=	Police/Personal Radio
Process	=	Anything to do with reporting and logging an arrest or offence
Producer	=	A notice issued to a driver when a police officer has requested to see driving documents and the driver does not have them on hand. Usually issued after the driver is stopped for minor traffic offence(s). Officially, the form is known as a HORT/1 notice. Once a HORT/1 has been issued, the driver has seven days to produce the required documents at their elected police station. Failing to do so can lead to prosecution.
PT17	=	(Armed T.S.G.) Former name of SO19 (CO19)
Q Q Car - Undercover unit with Blue lights and Sirens R
Refs	=	Canteen break(s) (refreshments)
Ringer	=	A car that is made up of parts from different stolen cars or has its identity changed.
RTA	=	Road Traffic Accident
RTC	=	Road Traffic Collision
Rule 43	=	Segregation in prison (now known as Rule 45). This is for the safety of prisoners considered vulnerable - sex offenders, mentally ill, grasses, those with in-prison debts, convicted police officers or prison staff, etc.
Run In	=	Yard where stolen goods/vehicles are housed
S
S Call	=	A call to Police that is graded as soon response
Sarge	=	Sergeant
SC	=	Special Constable
SCD	=	Specialist Crime Directorate
SCG	=	Serious Crime Group
Sgt.	=	Sergeant
Shout	=	Call-out, incident put out over the radio (eg: "I was at that shout on Regis Street")
Sierra 1	=	Sun Hill's (Sierra Oscar) Area Car
Skip	=	Sergeant
Sierra Oscar (SO)	=	Call sign for Sun Hill Police Station
Slag	=	Promiscuous woman
Snout	=	Police Informant
SO	=	Specialist Operations
SOCA	=	Serious and Organised Crime Agency
SOCO	=	Scenes Of Crime Officer
SPG	=	Special Patrol Group (now abolished)
Spin	=	Search
Stretch	=	Prison sentence (eg: "He's doing a ten stretch in the Scrubs" - a ten year sentence)
Superstars	=	C.I.D. (as referred to by Uniform)
T
T Call	=	An urgent call to police that is graded as Immediate Response
TADA or TDA	=	Theft of a motor vehicle. Abbreviation for "Taking and Driving Away". Since superceded in police lingo in England and Wales by the term TWOC.
TC	=	Traffic Collision
TI	=	Trainee Investigator
TIU	=	Telecoms Intelligence Unit
TOA	=	Time of Arrival
Toerag	=	Mild form of abuse for someone useless, worthless. (Nineteenth century term referring to strips of torn cloth that convicts wrapped around their feet as a poor substitute for socks while in prison.)
Tom	=	Prostitute
Tooled up	=	Carrying a weapon - esecially a firearm - with intent to commit a crime
Trojan Unit	=	Armed Police
TSG	=	Territorial Support Group
TWOC	=	Illegal removal of a vehicle. Abbreviation for "Taking Without Owner's Consent". This term has replaced the former TADA/TDA in police lingo in England and Wales, as TWOCking (verb form) can apply to the taking of any vehicle (not just cars, but boats, etc), and does not necessarily need to involve the intent to permanently deprive the owner of it (theft). Came to prominence in the 1990s with the rise of joyriding.
U
UCO	=	UnderCover Officer
V
VIN	=	Vehicle Identification Number
VRN	=	Vehicle Registration Number
W
W	=	womman
WDC	=	Woman Detective Constable
WDS	=	Woman Detective Sergeant
Wheels	=	Motor Vehicle
Woodentops	=	Uniform Officers (as referred to by C.I.D.)
WPC	=	Woman Police Constable
X
X	=	x-ray
Y
Yard, The	=	New Scotland Yard
Z
Zulu	=	Phonetic alphabet for "Z" commonly used for call signs and number plates