Problem with our uniform looking like the police.

[ChuckyZ73]

Well I guess I should start with some background and descriptions. The local police agency (Austin Texas Police Department) currently uses all blue uniforms with red stripes down the pants. The patch is blue with a red border and the state capitol building on it. The badge is a tiny(1 1/2 in) eagle top shield badge.



The owner of the company I work for is from LA where he was a police officer (Unk department) for around 15 years. Our uniform shows that in the design with all blue with a large oval shield with a star in the center with large grey patches that have the company information on them in the same general design of what is common out in that part of the country. No stripes on the pants.
Our badge is the same basic design but more professional looking.

I cant find a good example of our style of patch.

These with the exception that they are both blue don't sound very similar. Here is the problem, the new chief of police is CHP and he was also from LA and he has decided "changes" are going to be made. This is what the new uniform will look like. All blue no stripes on the pants. Change the red in the patches to grey. Change the tiny eagle top badge to a large oval shield badge with the impression of the capital building on it.

I know they are not copying us exactly or even at all its because both head honchos are from LA where things are a certain way and I am worried the police will think we are copying them.
the new patches have been given to several people and they are a little more 3d looking and all red is replaced with grey and they are narrower at the bottom. the new badges have not been seen publicly that I am aware of. however the basic design will be as follows.

[Ewfr 'Gomulee]

I think that Security Officers looking like cops is a good thing, people will think twice before committing an offence.

HOWEVER! I realise also that people may mistake the Security Officer for the Police and call them over using terms such as Officer to get their attention.
That is where it gets complicated, especially in this country where looking like police is severely frowned upon.

I think that looking like the police is a good thing but like the police you should have SECURITY printed on your back, and on the front of you along with your security firm's badge on your arm and on your chest also.

The badge I mean can be seen in my Sig'.

[Guest]

Chucky

I used to work for SWP Austin and I don't know of anybody that looks more like the police than we did. Brown pants/BDU's and tan shirts. The badge was even the star shape and our patches were all, coincidentally, the same shape as those of the T-Co. Sherriff's Dept. The law down here states that it only looks like police if it says "police."

[EMTGuard]

Our company dresses us however the client specifies. We used to wear light blue shirts and black pants. We changed to black shirts because the client wanted us to more closely resemble the Sheriff's Department which provides police protections to the city where we work. The client WANTS us to look like cops so our company dresses us that way.

[Guest]

In Texas

Clients usually don't have that authority. We have to have our uniforms approved and registered with TXDPS...

[davis002]

http://www.austinpolice.com/pdfs/EquipmentChanges.pdf

It seems they are changing everything from uniforms to cars. And yes... you can tell the chief was from Cali

[Ewfr 'Gomulee]

I used to work for SWP Austin and I don't know of anybody that looks more like the police than we did. Brown pants/BDU's and tan shirts. The badge was even the star shape and our patches were all, coincidentally, the same shape as those of the T-Co. Sherriff's Dept. The law down here states that it only looks like police if it says "police."

That's what I love about your country.
If you claim to be a cop and you're not THEN you're committing a crime... over here it's ''look like a cop... spend the night in the cells.''

When I was in School my School uniform sweater closely resembled a Police sweater
Image shown below resembles my old sweater:


here, also, resembles what police wear:


I was actually arrested for Police impersonation by an over zealous newbie police officer.
I guess he was new to the area... musta felt real stupid when the local Sergeant came and released me and apologised for his probationer's wrongful arrest.

[Guest]

Ewfr 'Gomulee

Believe it or not, they still believe people have common sense in the States. That's why the law is like that...

[NRM_Oz]

Thanks Dougo - you beat me to it in your last post.

Here you come within a bee's pecker of impersonating a cop and you are gonski ............ I have an Olympic Security Police shirt from the 2000 Sydney games (actually a polo shirt) and a cop who got mean thought he would pull me out during a traffic stop. In 1/2inch letters it says OLYMPIC SECURITY over the logo and his Sergeant during the RBT told him to get some glasses as I explained to him it is a shirt - a shirt as dress wear.

There are good and bad points when people confuse you with the police from a distance but it can also be against as you when some fruitloop decides to go for a driveby shooting or revenge attack (has happened before in Australia). I had my company staff in all black as it always hid the sauce and coffee stains but found it really looked professional when we all lined up for muster and they were deployed for duty en mass.

[FireEMSPolice]

Ive been pissing and moaning about this to my company since I got there. I hate white uniforms and it makes us look too much like the local police. Everytime I go in to a store, some employee says "a police officer is here to see..." not knowing the difference. The company says it makes us more visible. I say so do black uniforms and they make us look cleaner and more professional as opposedto our stained white uniforms.

[Guest]

Uniforms

Boo on the white uniforms. All black tactical is the way to go. Nothing better than looking like a bunch of mall ninjas storming around.

[NRM_Oz]

White ? Only Scientists, Painters and Inspectors wear white.

The white uniform shirts with 1 company made us look like Ambulance staff which was not a bad thing but white shirts and dirty building sites with the constant need to open and close shirt pockets gives you 2 black "headlights" marks. I pushed for dirty sites and supervisors to go to dark blue as this distinguished between general sites and team leaders.

[ValleyOne]

Clients usually don't have that authority. We have to have our uniforms approved and registered with TXDPS...

Some folks might be scared as hell to loose any client, especially one that paye well.....

[ValleyOne]

A similar scene happened in Reno NV, RPD decided to change their uniforms to something that was bold and badass. Then after a little while of wearing their new duds around a few of them noticed the a certain large hotel/casino's security staff also wore the exact same uniform-sans the shoulder patch.

Of course RPD started gripping almost immediately and it went as far as court. The judge decided that there is nothing illegal with RPD cops dressing up as casino security officers, after all the casino designed and implemented the design and style first. Like a working trademark, or what not. <sry long day my brain is dead>

[Guest]

Valley

Quote:
Originally Posted by dougo83
Clients usually don't have that authority. We have to have our uniforms approved and registered with TXDPS...

Some folks might be scared as hell to loose any client, especially one that paye well.....

Smart companies are more likely to be scared of DPS and their massive fines/jail times for violations. Also, once an S/O knows the law, he won't violate it if he has a brain...