10-4 no more
Police drop radio codes to speak same language
By MARK AGEE
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER
"Signal 16" means a sexual assault to police in Southlake, but in Hurst it means a dog bite.
The code "10-12" means "No one is around and I can talk freely" in Hurst, but in several other Tarrant County cities it means the exact opposite: "The subject is near and I can't talk freely."
Fearing mass confusion and miscommunication in the event of a large-scale disaster requiring several departments to work together, federal officials are encouraging police departments to drop codes in favor of plain English.
Many agencies in the area are complying, including Hurst, which will begin changing to plain talk in the next few weeks.
"It's going to be a gradual thing," police spokesman Sgt. Craig Teague said. "It's kind of like training old dogs. We've got officers here who have been talking in the same codes for 25 years. It's going to take a while for them."
As part of its disaster preparedness plans, the federal government requires local agencies to use plain language instead of "10" and "signal" codes during events involving multiple jurisdictions as a condition of receiving Homeland Security grant money.
Federal officials are recommending, but not requiring, that police begin using plain language in their day-to-day internal communications as well.
"We believe that it is important to practice every day the terminology and procedures that will be used in emergency incidents and disasters," said Ashley Small, a Federal Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman in Washington.
"There needs to be no misinterpretation, no one looking up codes and no second-guessing," said Brian Ellis, a coordinator for the National Incident Management System.
Relic from another era
Codes were devised to save time on the radio when channels were scarce, said Fred Keithley, an emergency preparedness coordinator with the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
"Technology has sort of remedied that, for the most part, and clear communications are the priority," Keithley said.
The problem with codes is that they vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and across the country.
Some examples are trivial, but others could cost lives. A "10-13" means "weather information" in North Richland Hills, but "officer down" in many jurisdictions.
The use of codes has persisted for two reasons: habit, and the desire to keep communications secure from criminals who could be listening to a scanner.
"If you listen for a while you can figure them out anyway," Southlake police spokeswoman Lt. Rhonda Moore said. "It's more important to know what each other are talking about. A breakdown in communication would cause much more of a security hazard than people listening to a scanner."
North Richland Hills police made the switch to plain talk in August because of the federal recommendations, police spokesman Larry Irving said.
A communication from North Richland Hills dispatch that used to sound like "10-3 the Signal 2" is now "Disregard the major accident."
A welcome change
Some agencies across the nation have resisted the switch, but police in the area -- especially in Northeast Tarrant County, where the small cities have mutual-aid agreements -- are embracing it.
Irving, Haltom City and Grapevine have officially used plain language for some time. Arlington has been using it since the 1980s. Euless also made the switch about 20 years ago, Assistant Police Chief Harland Westmoreland said.
"When we went to it, there wasn't a whole lot of talk about interoperability like there is today," he said. "We went to it because it was easier. It gets tough trying to remember 60 or 70 different signal codes. So when they started recommending that we change things, we were already there."
Keller police switched to plain talk last month because the department is merging communication operations with Southlake's, Keller Lt. Brenda Slovak said.
Others, such as Southlake, still have some codes, but they aren't used much.
"We use a few codes for simple things that everyone understands, but plain talk is really the best way to go," Moore said. "So much of our stuff is interagency anyway. A lot of us don't have the resources to handle a major incident by ourselves. We all help each other out, and we've learned how to talk to each other."
In Fort Worth, officers are trained in federal protocols but still use many codes, police spokesman Lt. Dean Sullivan said.
"We definitely have interoperability; that's not an issue," Sullivan said. "Our computer dispatch system is based on signal codes, so I don't see us going away from it completely any time soon. But, if you listen to our radio chatter, there's a lot of plain talk anyway because it's easier."
POLICE CODES
Federal officials are encouraging police to drop the use of codes because they vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Here are some examples of codes, some of which have already been dropped.
Signal 5
Sexual assault in Fort Worth, Hurst, Keller and North Richland Hills
Burglar alarm in Southlake
Signal 28
Drive-by shooting in North Richland Hills
Meet ambulance in Hurst and Fort Worth
Found property in Keller
Criminal mischief in Southlake
SOURCES: Police departments
Mark Agee, 817-685-3821
rmagee@star-telegram.com
Police drop Radio codes to speak same language
Linear Mode
