Union Pacific Police Department

The Union Pacific Police Department is the law enforcement agency of the Union Pacific Railroad. Its headquarters is in Omaha, Nebraska and its current Chief of Police is Dennis Jenson.

Jurisdiction and duties

Union Pacific maintains a functioning police department staffed with officers given the title of Special Agent with jurisdiction over crimes against the railroad. Like most railroad police, its primary jurisdiction is unconventional, consisting of 54,116 miles (87,091 kilometers) of track in 23 western U.S. states. Railroad police are certified state law enforcement officers and have investigative and typically have arrest powers both on and off railroad property if authorized by the state they are operating within. They also have interstate authority pursuant to federal law (Title 49, United States Code, Section 28101. Under Public Law 110-53 SEC. 1526. (RAILROAD SECURITY ENHANCEMENTS), Railroad police powers' have been expanded to include railroads other than the officer's employing agency. All of the states in Union Pacific's 23 state system authorize full police authority, except for Minnesota and Wyoming, which do not grant authority to railroad police at all.

Special Agents typically investigate major incidents such as derailments, sabotage, grade crossing accidents and hazardous material accidents and minor issues such as trespassing on the railroad right of way, vandalism/graffiti, and theft of company property or customer product. In accordance with their duties, Special Agents have the ability to access the FBI's NCIC database to run suspects and vehicles for wants and warrants, as well as criminal history checks.

Special Agents often coordinate and liaise with local, state, and federal law enforcement on issues concerning the railroad and are dispatched nationally through the "Response Management Communications Center" (RMCC) in Omaha, Nebraska. The Union Pacific Police Department and the title "Special Agent" were models for the FBI when it was created in 1907.

Railroad emergencies

The Union Pacific Police Department can be contacted for railroad emergencies on Union Pacific tracks or right of way at 1-888-UPRR-COP (888-877-7267).

Line of duty deaths

Since 1878, the Union Pacific Police Department (and other railroad police departments absorbed by UP) has suffered 41 deaths of Special Agents in the line of duty, with the most recent line of duty fatality occurring on May 7, 2008. [http://www.odmp.org/agency.php?agencyid=3935]

External links

* [http://www.9-1-1magazine.com/magazine/1998/1198/feas/24larton/index.html 911 Magazine article on UP Police] (note: UP's Police Dispatch/RMCC is no longer located in St. Louis)