Phoenix Police Glossary of Terms

HQ - Headquarters (100 W. Washington St.)

Crime Lab - The Phoenix Police Department's Crime Laboratory is located at 621 W. Washington St.

PPD - Phoenix Police Department

Property Management Unit - Responsible for managing unclaimed property located at 100 E. Elwood St.

Public Records - The Phoenix Police Department's Public Record & Services Unit (PRSU) is in headquarters at 100 W. Washington St. 1st floor.

Precinct - A geographical area supported by a contingent of uniformed patrol officers dedicated to responding to emergency and non‑emergency calls.

200- Black Mountain Precinct 33355 N. Cave Creek Rd.

400 - South Mountain Precinct 400 W. Southern Ave.

500 - Central City Precinct 1902 S. 16th St.

600 - Desert Horizon Precinct 16030 N. 56th St.

700 - Mountain View Precinct 2075 E. Maryland Ave.

800 - Maryvale Estrella Mountain Precinct 6180 W. Encanto Blvd.

900 - Cactus Park Precinct 3435 W. Pinnacle Peak Rd.

Crime Analysis and Research Unit (CARU) - Collects, analyzes, and disseminates police data.

Community Engagement and Outreach Task Force (CEOTF) - Objective to engage and collaborate with the community enhancing police relations through dialogue and partnerships.

Community & Employee Resources Bureau (CERB) - Made up of 3 units relating to employee services the department has made available along with focusing on community engagement services.

Community Response Squad (CRS) - Personnel assigned to this unit maintain an ongoing relationship with various community groups, these relationships improve dialogue with the police and community.

Community and Police Trust Initiative (CPTI) - Formed in 2015 to review police and community relations.

Crime Scene Response (CSR) - Assist with processing of an active crime scene.

Employee Assistance Unit (EAU) - Responsible for providing assistance to employees in time of emotional or psychological need.

Fugitive Apprehension and Investigations Detail (FAID) - Personnel assigned to this unit are tasked with locating and arresting fugitives and violent felons.

Family Investigations Bureau (FIB) - Investigates cases of domestic violence, sexual abuse, unidentified persons, and crimes against children.

Laboratory Service Bureau (LSB) - Also known as the Crime Lab where experts evaluate and analyze evidence, interpret results, and provide testimony related to the full spectrum of physical evidence recovered from crime scenes.

Information Technology Bureau (ITB) - The bureau responsible for managing the City's technology infrastructure.

Neighborhood Enforcement Team (NET) - Two net squads are assigned per precinct with the purpose of crime prevention efforts.

Patrol Division - Responsible for providing 24-hour frontline law enforcement services to the community.

Police Communications Bureau (COM) - Is the primary answering point for the City of Phoenix for both Police, Fire and DPS for 911. The Communications Bureau answers both 911 and non-emergency (Crime Stop) calls from the public and will route to either Fire or DPS depending on the nature of the call.

Public Affairs Bureau (PAB) - Responsible of facilitating high quality communication to internal and external customers, promoting positive awareness of the department, and proactively support the department’s crime suppression goals.

Public Records and Services Bureau (PRSB) - The division supports transparency, accountability, and efficient access to information within the police department.

Professional Standards Bureau (PSB) - Personnel assigned to this bureau are tasked with investigating misconduct on the part of police employees.

Public Safety Response Team (PSRT) - Provides direction for the Crisis Intervention Team, Community Response Squad, and other community centric units.

Property Crimes Bureau (PCB) - Enhance the overall quality of life in our community by addressing property related crimes through community awareness, education, and the utilization of quality based investigative techniques.

Special Assignments Unit (SAU) - Those assigned to this unit serve search warrants and handle barricade situations they use special tactics and have a specialized negotiator assigned to the unit.

Traumatic Incident Intervention Resources (TIIR) - Their purpose is to enhance connectivity of resources to community members who witness or were directly involved in a Phoenix Police Department critical incident.

Traffic Bureau (TFB) - Made up of motor officers patrolling the community with a focus on street driving safety.

Tactical Support Bureau (TSB) - Officers with specialized training in large crowd demonstrations

Violent Crimes Bureau (VCB) - Specialized investigation unit relating to homicide, robbery, sexual assault, and aggravated assault.

Vehicular Crimes Unit (VCU) - Investigates both criminal and non-criminal collisions including fatal, serious-injury and felony hit and run incidents.

For a complete list of radio codes click here

963 - Accident - fatality

961 - Accident - no injuries

962 - Accident with injuries

245- Aggravated assault

211 - Armed robbery

240 - Assault

459 - Burglary

900 - Check welfare

901H - Dead body

415 - Domestic violence

390 - Drunk driver

962H - Hit & run accident with injuries

451 - Homicide

998 - Officer involved shooting

999 - Officer needs help urgently

301 - Prostitution

240R - Resisting arrest

261 - Sexual assault

901G - Shooting

418T - Trespassing

927 - Unknown trouble

*in alphabetical order* (for a full list of all city of phoenix positions click here)

A/C - Assistant Chief

AD - Assistant Director

Beat - A specific area within a precinct designated the assignment of patrol officer.

CAO - Community Action Officer

Chain of Command - Arrangement of positions within this department by level of duty or responsibility

CHF - Chief

CIT - Crisis Intervention Team

CMDR - Commander

Command Staff - Staff members of the rank Commander or above

CSS - Crime Scene Specialist

DET - Detective

Dispatcher - 911 operator/dispatcher

FTO - Field Training Officer (assigned to train newly graduated officers)

K9 - Canine Unit

LT - Lieutenant

OFC - Police Officer

OIT - Officer in Training

PA - Police Assistant

SGT - Sergeant

Squad - One or more employees with special functions or responsibilities and is subordinate to a division or unit.

SRO - School Resource Officer

XO - Executive Assistant Chief

Police Chief - The Police Chief heads the Police Department and is the ultimate authority and decision maker within the Police Department .

Executive Assistant Chief - The Execuitve Assistant Chief is charged with running the day-to-day operations of the entire department.

Chief of Staff - Key executive staff member who assists and advises the Chief in leading the Department and is responsible for the execution and management of Department programs while working with internal and external stakeholders.

Assistant Chief/Assistant Director - Each AC/AD is a member of the executive team and runs a division of the Department. A division may include multiple bureaus, precincts, and special programs, i.e. the Patrol Division, the Technical services Division, etc. (department organizational chart). This may include a number of commanders and/or administrators under their chain for command.

Commander/Administrator - Commanders/Administrators have oversight of either a precinct or bureau. These middle managers supervise second level supervisors such as lieutenants or professional staff supervisors within their chain of command. They are responsible for the overall direction of a precinct or bureau.

Leuitenant - This is the second level supervisory rank of the Department. Lieutenants can supervise between three to five sergeants and their squads. They act as a commander after hours or in the absence of a commander.

Sergeant - This is the first supervisory rank of the Department. Sergeants can supervise officers and/ or detectives. Their squad size varies from unit to unit depending on their area of responsibility.

Officer/Detective - This is the first rank of the rank structure. Officers are Typically reffered to as "first responders" and respond to community calls for service. Detectives are the same rank however, their primary function is to conduct follow-up investigation to crimes.

Professional staff members - These are professional members of the department and serve as experts in support of the Department’s public safety mission. Examples of professional staff include Communications Operators, Crime Scene Specialists, Police Assistants, Forensic Scientists, Administrative support staff, etc.

ABIS - Automated Biometric Identification System

BWC - Body Worn Camera

CAD - Computer-Aided Dispatch

CFS - Call for Service

CLIPS - Statewide information sharing platform.

CODIS - Combined DNS Index System

CopLogic - The department's online reporting system that allows community members to file eligible non-emergency reports electronically without officer response.

CR - Case Report

CrimeStop - The Phoenix Police Department's non-emergency phone line used by the public to report incidents, request officer contact, or provide information that does not require an immediate emergency response.

Data Integrity - Ensuring accuracy, completeness, and consistency in data entry.

Disposition - How a call for service was closed.

FI - Field Interview

GangNet - A gang intelligence database

IR - Incident Report

LeadsOnline - A nationwide pawn and secondhand-dealer database that helps track stolen property.

LEARN - A license plate reader (LPR) analysis platform.

LIMS – Laboratory Information Management System

NIBIN - National Integrated Ballistic Information Network

NIBRS - National Incident-Based Reporting System

P1 - Motorola Premier One

RMS - Records Management System

SRS - Summary Reporting System

SQL - Structured Query Language (used to extract and analyze data)

SW LInX- A regional law enforcement information-sharing system

T-SQL - Transact SQL (Microsoft's extended version of SQL used in RMS databases)

ABIS Hit: A link between friction ridge detail in a latent print impression against a biometric database (local, state, or federal database) that provides a potential association to a specific individual's fingerprint or palmprint record. An ABIS hit does not equal source identification. All ABIS hits are manually compared by a trained examiner and then verified before being reported as an identification.

Arrest - Legal action of taking a person into custody based on probable cause.

ARS - Arizona Revised Statues

ATTC - Arizona Traffic Ticket and Complaint

BOLO - "Be on the Look Out"

Booking - The formal jail intake process where a person is photographed, fingerprinted, and entered into the jail system after an arrest.

CBA - Cleared by Arrest

CCTV - Closed - Circuit Television

Citation - A written notice charging a person with an offense and directing them to appear in court.

CLD - Citation in Lieu of Detention

CODIS Hit: A link between two or more DNA profiles in the CODIS database. This can occur when a DNA profile from evidence in an unsolved case links to the DNA profile form a convicted offender, or arrestee, or when evidence form one unsolved case links to another unsolved case.

CSI - Crime Scene Investigation

DNA - Deoxyribonucleic Acid (biological evidence)

DUI - Driving Under the Influence

DV - Domestic Violence

FCBA - Field Cleared by Arrest

FEL - Felony

FOJ - From other Jurisdiction

FTA - Failure to Appear

JCBA - Juvenile Cleared by Arrest

MISD - Misdemeanor

MO - Modus Operandi (method of operation)

NIBIN Hit: Two or more pieces of firearms evidence that have been reviewed and designated as a "hit" by trained NIBIN personnel. If confirmation is required, a formal microscopic comparison can be conducted by a trained firearms examiner.

NIBIN Lead: This is an unconfirmed potential investigative association between at least two pieces of firearms evidence that have been linked through processes in the system by trained NIBIN personnel.

OIS - Officer Involved Shooting

PC - Probable Cause

PGP - (Point Guns at People) tracking the number of times officers point their gun at people. This data tracks the number of times officers de-escalated a situation which did not result in an Officer Involved Shooting.

POI - Person of Interest

RO - Registered Owner

Subject Stop - Brief detention of a person based on reasonable suspicion, allowing officers to identify the individual and investigate further.

Traffic Stop - Temporary detention of a driver or vehicle based on a traffic violation or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.

Turndown - When a case is turned down by the prosecuting agency.

UNF - Unfounded

Use of Force (UOF) - Any action taken by an officer to gain compliance or control of a subject, ranging from psychical restraint to higher levels of force. All use of force incidents require documentation and supervisory review.

XCLR - Cleared by Exceptional Means

Administrative Analysis - Analysis that supports internal management needs such as staffing, budgeting, workload distribution, and resource planning.

Hotspot - A geographic area with a high concentration of incidents.

Intelligence Analysis - The collection and evaluation of information to identify criminal networks, threats, and relationships between people, places, and events.

Link Analysis – Identifying relationships between people, places, vehicles, and events.

Modus operandi (MO) - A Latin term for "mode of operating," referring to the specific, learned, and evolving techniques a criminal use to commit a crime. Police use this consistent behavioral pattern to link separate crimes, identify repeat offenders, and distinguish between different suspects.

Operational Analysis - Analysis that helps optimize deployment, scheduling, and patrol operations by examining call loads, response times, and geographic demand.

Pattern - A group of related incidents linked by shared characteristics (such as location, time, or method) but not tied to a single identifiable offender, often reflecting broader opportunity-based or seasonal crime increases.

Series - A set of related incidents linked by similar characteristics and believed to be committed by the same offender, based on consistent M.O., behavior, or other identifying factors.

Strategic Analysis - Long-term, big-picture analysis that identifies trends, emerging problems, and future risks to guide policy and organizational strategy.

Tactical Analysis - Short-term, actionable analysis that supports immediate investigations, offender identification, and day-to-day crime suppression efforts.

Temporal Analysis - Examining when crimes occur to identify time-based patterns.

Below are the top 10 adult arrest charges the Phoenix Police Department has made from September 2025 to June 2026. For more information on crime stats click here.

To search specific ARS codes please visit Arizona Revised Statutes.

• 13-901 | Probation Violation
• 13-15 | Criminal Trespass
• 13-1203 | Assault
• 13-3415 | Drug Paraphernalia-Possess/Use
• 13-3407 | Drug Offense-Dangerous Drug
• 13-3408 | Drug Offense-Narcotic Drug
• 13-1204 | Aggravated Assault

• 13-16 | Criminal Damage
• 28-13 | DUI
• 13-1805 | Shoplifting