Military Police contains information about military police functions in maneuver and mobility support, area security, law and order, internment/resettlement, and police intelligence operations.
Issue link: https://militarypolice.epubxp.com/i/115206
by Captain Joshua K. Frye The setting: A cavalry regiment (brigade), six squadrons (battalions), 29 troops (companies), 4,200 Soldiers, and roughly twice that number of family members—all in a distant and ancient foreign country. And working in support of this organization, tasked to maintain good order and discipline: One military police platoon (42 Soldiers) that is controlled by a provost marshal (PM) cell (three Soldiers). This is an overall 100:1 ratio of general Soldiers to military police Soldiers. Since the establishment of the Àedgling 2d Cavalry Regiment Military Police Platoon in Vilseck, Germany, in mid-2009, the Soldiers of the platoon have experienced much—from the gritty club scene of Nuremberg, Germany, to the open, rugged countryside of Afghanistan. A s in any brigade combat team, the PM cell serves as the repository of military police knowledge for the regiment, coordinating efforts across the gamut of military police functions. With the most recent modi¿ed table of organization and equipment change, a military occupational specialty 31A major no longer occupies the PM position; instead, it is a captain who leads the cell, which is rounded out with an operations sergeant and an internment/resettlement noncommissioned of¿cer (both sergeants ¿rst class). The cell tracks statistics and action reports, advises the chief of staff and regimental commander, and helps guide and prepare military police within the regiment for garrison life as well as the rigors of war—with each of these tasks just as important as the others. The PM must strike a delicate balance between serving as an active member of the regimental commander's special staff and, at the same time, functioning as a member of the military police community. A healthy relationship with the garrison directorate of emergency services and adjacent military police companies and battalions has proven vital. Working with garrison commanders (usually colonels) and garrison PMs (usually lieutenant colonels) while advocating the tenant unit "agenda" creates an interesting dynamic. Without special relationships and a direct liaison between agencies, it would have been impossible to attain the synergistic effects that have been achieved. And the regimental PM's direct interaction with state and federal host nation authorities (in this case, the German Polizei [host nation police]) is just as important. Perceiving 26 the regiment in a holistic, community-wide manner—as opposed to being isolated from the garrison—has led to tangible improvements in the community perception of military police and a reduction in indiscipline, both with direct bene¿ts to the Army. The use of the regiment's organic military police assets remains a struggle. While the Stryker brigade combat team (SBCT) modi¿ed table of organization and equipment indicates that the military police platoon is at the brigade level, commanders have chosen to modify the task organization in various ways. The platoon is often kept below brigade level in training and deployed environments. The platoon has been nestled under various maneuver commanders; and although these commanders provide valuable training to the platoon, their focus is on their own non-military police maneuver assets. The ability of the PM to inÀuence and shape decisions regarding the placement of the military police platoon is greater at some times than at others, but should be carefully tracked and constantly reevaluated. Throughout these iterations, maintaining the distinctiveness of the military police platoon has remained a constant priority. Separate barracks and a separation from subordinate units allow the military police platoon to effectively function as a police force. Maneuver commanders who are in control of military police in garrison can be tempted to use the military police platoon to accomplish tasks outside of their mission set; therefore, it is important to prevent the platoon from becoming just another scout MILITARY POLICE . 19-13-1