Don’t Stop with a Cop. Unusual Law Enforcement Agencies to Write About by L. A. Kelley

A common occupation for either a hero or heroine in an action novel is law enforcement officer. The profession makes sense. When dealing with the evil aspects of the paranormal, a person needs steely nerves and ready access to firearms. By why stop with a cop when other agencies might do nicely?

NYPD Intelligence Bureau

Did you know an arm of the NYPD is an international intelligence organization? The mission of the NYPD Intelligence Bureau is to detect and disrupt criminal and terrorist activity. Officers and civilian analysts in the Intelligence Bureau collect and analyze data from a variety of sources here and abroad in the pursuit of criminal and terrorist organizations. The Bureau consists of two divisions; the Intelligence Operations and Analysis Section (IOAS) and the Criminal Intelligence Section (CIS).

The objective of IOAS is to thwart potential terrorist plots. The sector uses investigators and civilian analysts to collect and analyze information about individuals or groups engaged in unlawful activity. CIS has a similar function, but concentrates on the criminal realm. A critical component of CIS is the Field Intelligence Officer (FIO) program. FIOs are ranking uniformed officers deployed to each NYPD precinct, where they collect and disseminate criminal intelligence information to support narcotics, firearms and other criminal investigations, ranging from simple short-term cases to complex long-term ones.

While members of the Intelligence Bureau in New York City work closely with federal, state, and local law enforcement, through its International Liaison Program officers are posted in law enforcement agencies around the world. These officers support the NYPD by providing intelligence and working with local police. Nothing is said about hunting down demons that roam the sewers and pose a threat to the good folk of New York City, but one can only hope.

INTERPOL

Need an overseas agent provocateur to handle those pesky gremlins, banshees, rakshasha, and strigoi? Don’t bother looking for a dashing Interpol agent. There aren’t any. INTERPOL’s mission it to train, offer investigative support, collect data and provide communications channels among cooperating law enforcement agencies. INTERPOL also analyzes crime trends and facilitates international police cooperation even where diplomatic relations don’t exist between countries. In other words, no hunky experts in daring-do, just office drones. Agents don't even carry guns. (Although nothing is said on their website about stakes or silver bullets.) It’s more useful to think of INTERPOL as a bulletin board where national police forces around the world post wanted notices and requests for information. Some nations have decided to give these requests binding legal force, but the United States isn’t one of them.

All INTERPOL member countries are connected through a secure communications system known as I-24/7. This gives police real-time access to criminal databases containing millions of records and can alert member countries to fugitives, dangerous criminals, missing persons, or weapons threats. Unfortunately, instead of hunting supernatural menaces through the sewers of Paris, an Interpol is agent is more likely to conduct an online learning course in investigative techniques or an administrative management program for senior police staff.

Texas Rangers

The Texas Ranger Division is the primary criminal investigative branch of the Texas Department of Public Safety. Most functions are common among law enforcement agencies. Rangers investigate murder, robbery, sexual assault, burglary, theft, fraud, threats against state and federal officials, and missing persons.

Unlike standard police forces in the rest of the country though, Texas Rangers also have special duties involving border control. The Ranger Reconnaissance Team is a highly trained tactical force and their primary responsibility is to carry out missions along the Texas-Mexico border region.  They conduct overt and covert operations in remote areas where conventional law enforcement can’t operate. The focus is to gather intelligence and disrupt criminal activity usually associated with drug cartels. According to the official website, one of their duties is to “conduct interdiction” which, if you know what the word “interdiction” means, doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. I prefer to read between the lines and like to think they really mean “benedictions” before pursuing supernatural creatures. Although, the website is sketchy on this subject too, so chupacabras may still run free in the Big Bend National Park. It’s a nice thought.

L. A. Kelley writes fantasy and science fiction adventures with humor, romance and a touch of sass. She is wanted by the Texas Rangers for keeping an unlicensed  chupacabra. His name is Snuffles. Links to her books are on her Amazon Author Page.