 Most people know this man in the familiar everyday jobs that are routine on an army post. Often the routines might take him a long way from home, like Alaska or the tropics. Some of his assignments may be less familiar, such as harbor security, that is the safeguarding of valuable army cargo. He is trained to fight as an infantryman when the need arises, or he may be privileged to be a member of an honor guard, paying tribute to men who have served their country with distinction. Sometimes he lends a helping hand to some very important people. You might say he has many things to many people. He's an MP, a military policeman, in the United States Army. What's it like being a military policeman in today's army? Well, to begin with, it takes a lot of preparation. It all starts here in the training brigade at Fort Gordon, Georgia, where they learn the ABCs of being an MP. They've got to be ready to meet all of the old challenges that go with the job, and a lot of new ones. In the MPs, readiness begins with physical fitness. Two basic throws that are utilized in all these centers are taught at Fort Gordon. The first basic throw you'll see will be the basic shoulder throw. At normal speed, it looks like this. Recover. I will break this technique down by the numbers and show you how it is executed. You'll note my demonstration. On the count of one, man executing a technique will step with his right foot directly toward his opponent's right foot, leaving four to five inches. Reach out with the left hand, grab the thumb, and bump the right elbow. You'll drop slightly knees for speed and balance. This is count one, take two. Per one. The official title of the course is Unarmed Defense. Actually, it's a combination of judo, karate, and a sharp eye for what your opponent might come up with. All policemen have to be prepared to protect themselves against personal attack. They get intensive training in this arc through the entire eight-week training program in the brigade. Whether it's a roundhouse right that's coming at you or a strong left jab, you can stop it cold if you've studied your lessons. You nail more of a pivot than your hand below your chin. Then you break it slightly to your side. Until he begins classes in traffic control, an MP trainee never realizes what a problem the traffic cop faces. In the Army, control of traffic is a key assignment, whether the job is in keeping cars moving through the streets of a military post or directing the flow of vehicles in a combat area. A training maize provides the MP with a chance to put his instruction into practice. And as you can see, your local expressway is a breeze compared to this. But on these roads, there are no traffic tie-ups, thanks to students and supervisors who know how to keep things moving. Each man gets a chance at directing traffic. While the others operate the vehicles. Whether you're in the vehicles or at the corner giving the signals, it's valuable training and busy traffic maneuvers. Better not count on buying anything in this store or in any of the others in this town. These are dummy buildings, and this street doesn't lead anywhere. It's all part of a training exercise called MP City. The idea is to provide a realistic setting for trainees to get acquainted with some of the actual problems they might run up against in their job as a military policeman. Gentlemen, we have already discussed in class the basic freedoms and rights As military policemen, they must know how to handle large crowds. A lawful demonstration by protesting citizens may change quickly into a riot. A group of orderly citizens into an unruly mob. MPs may be called upon to disperse such a mob if it endangers the life and property of other citizens. Two squads forming the wage and two squads in general support. Control of unlawful gatherings calls for carefully developed plans to avoid hurting anyone unnecessarily. The trainee learns pretty early in the game to use only as much force as he has to in order to do his security job. This is another situation which he must know how to handle. Yes! Not only can anything happen in MP City, it's made to happen. You might call this a training exercise in how to break up a bar room brawl. It's one situation where that training in the judo pit may come in handy. A critique follows all exercises in MP City. This lets the trainee know what he did right and what mistakes he made. Divided into groups for the various MP City exercises, each member of the brigade gets a turn at military police duties. It's hard to tell the practice military police station from the real thing. Trainees are graded for attitude, accuracy of observation, proper procedure and other principles of good police work. One of the things he has to be sure of is that no accusations are made against anyone without sufficient proof. In the practical training program at MP City, the trainee learns how to handle a great variety of situations similar to ones he might have to deal with in army installations anywhere in the United States. As a military placement, you must always be outstanding in your parents' while on duty, either on a gate or on patrol. You are a representative. In addition to their role in law enforcement, they've got to know how to cooperate with the civilian community near army installations. The army tries to be a good neighbor. Many problems faced in living side by side involve both soldiers and civilians. The MP is given thorough instruction on community relations and the importance of assisting local authorities when required. Law enforcement personnel are capable, hardworking, conscientious and honest men. The chief of police is a capable professional man with many years of experience in dealing with people, law enforcement and their problems. Military police must have a cooperation with these people because you're the people that's going to be on patrols. In these areas, you must know their problems also. The program marshal works very close in coordinating with the civilian authorities in a given town. Permanently arranged recs or crash scenes are used for training him and reporting accidents. In MP city, training is adapted to suit each individual's ability to learn. During the week of practical exercises here, they become familiar with the details of military police assignments. They learn to move fast, observe accurately and handle each situation according to its needs. Military maneuvers involving hundreds or thousands of troops must be planned and executed carefully if they are to be effective. Commanders must know exactly the location of their forces through the maneuvers. As a truck convoy reaches a military police checkpoint, its progress is reported. Charlie Papa Bravo, this is Bright Tory, over. Bright Tory, this is Charlie Papa Bravo. Request permission for the convoy to enter the TAC area. This is Bright Tory, you want to resist, grant it over. That is affirmative. Charlie Papa Bravo, Roger, out. This is Bright Tory, Roger, out. Clearance is given for the convoy to proceed. In order to qualify for the Corps, a trainee must pass a series of military police field tests relating both to the service and combat support missions of the MP Corps. Basically, today's MP is a professional soldier policeman who has to be ready to go into action in many types of situations. The assignment could be the occupation of a command post area, a tactical motor march, operation of a field communication center in a combat area, an exercise in techniques against enemy ambush. Whatever the job is, they work as individuals. They work as a team. They work as a unit of many teams. For most, it adds up to a feeling of deep personal commitment to the MP and to the nation he serves. Sonogad is a motion detection device. The sound you hear when I first turned it on is running at about 6,000 Hz per second, well within the human hearing range. The device I showed you previously, the ultrasonic, working at 19... An important course at the military police school deals with physical security. Large army and army-related facilities, such as defense plants, offer a ready target for the professional saboteur and pilfer and for political action groups. We have a fence line around a special weapon storage area. Each one of these little boxes will contain a mercury switch. We place one of these at approximately every third fence post. When the device is activated, anyone trying to climb the fence would cross-shake the pole and give a warning to the God for us that some type of movement is taking place. Building five, for example, being our communication center. Here we have movement probably 24 hours a day. Through the use of a model of a typical city complex, which may contain key installations such as an army depot, a communication center, or a weapons center, MPs learn the sensitive areas which may pose security problems. They learn the likely places where bombs may be concealed, how to handle a bomb-threat telephone call, and how to clear the area. Recording the scene of a crime just as it was first observed by the investigator is a vital part of military police work. A class in the criminal investigation course at the Military Police School emphasizes the role of investigative photography in crime detection. Modern police techniques call for a high degree of precision in detection procedures. Very often the successful prosecution of a criminal case will depend entirely upon clues and evidence collected at the scene of the crime. In an automobile accident, for example, this may include the position of the vehicle, the type and extent of damage, the position and condition of the driver, and the location and characteristics of tire tracks. Students are taught how to use cameras to make a photographic record of physical evidence. The casting and molding of footprints and tire tracks, and similar evidence, are taught in a specialized course at the school. The professional investigator must be skilled in a great variety of processes and methods which are essential parts of criminal investigation. Another highly specialized class at the school studies the marijuana plant and various microscopic and chemical tests for identifying it. Classes are broken down into small working groups for instruction purposes. The use of the equipment is explained, and all students get an opportunity to perform laboratory experiments for the positive identification of marijuana. A unique program at the MP School trains specially selected dogs to assist the military policeman in discovering hidden marijuana or any derivatives of the plant. Once the dog has become familiar with the scent, he is given a series of practical problems in searching out the plant. An MP who has taken the specialized marijuana training works with the dog and its handler in retrieving the unlawful material. A constant alert is kept by the military police for the presence of narcotics in camps, military warehouses, or army-related industrial facilities. Attached to U.S. Army military police installations around the world are criminal investigation laboratories. They process physical evidence needed in court in the investigation of criminal offenses concerning military personnel and U.S. government property. Fort Gordon's crime lab, staffed by experts, is provided with the most advanced training and scientific aids. At the firearms laboratory, weapons and ammunition are studied for identification purposes in criminal investigations. In the chemistry division of the crime lab, blood samples on clothing or other articles are analyzed. The highly sophisticated detection methods used in army criminal investigations demand an equally high capability on the part of the military policeman. All MPs will not become criminal investigators, but all are provided with the basic fundamentals of criminal investigation and a knowledge of the expertise they can call upon when needed. Hunting down the perpetrator of unlawful acts or thwarting the would-be criminal on government property is often accomplished by the combination of a military policeman and a dog. Like their counterparts who search out marijuana, the sentry dog is trained in a very special way to go after his objective. Training programs at various army bases develop strict coordination between the dog and his handler. The use of the sentry dog in conjunction with the military police guard has proved a successful protective measure of the best installations, both at home and abroad. We're going to use students. One student will act as counselor, the other as a prisoner. Each episode will be TV... An increasingly important activity of today's military police is the correctional treatment of military offenders. The purpose of the program is to return as many military prisoners as possible to active duty with improved attitudes and motivation toward honorable service. These men at the military police school are receiving training as correctional specialists. When they have completed their course of instruction, they may be assigned to correctional duties at any of the army's correctional facilities. How would you conduct yourself under these circumstances? 3-3-1-4-0-7-7-1-6. This problem, mine, is my car. It's back in the company area. Wait a minute. Let's finish this form here first. It's been a while. I'm having to take the model wheels. Well, as soon as this is done, will you take care of my problem? We'll get to it. Now hold it right there. Consider the first step in our model. What did the counselor do wrong? Specialist McBride, you are now the counselor. How are you today, PFC Young? My name is Specialist McBride, and I'm the correctional counselor at this facility. Short-term prisoners usually receive correctional treatment in facilities located on military installations, such as this one at Fort Lewis in the state of Washington. More serious offenders are confined at the United States disciplinary barracks Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Here, military prisoners receive more intensive academic and vocational education. A staff of highly trained correctional personnel, many of them graduates of the military police school, provide guidance and instruction, aimed at strengthening confidence and character. Paroles are selected on the basis of exceptional attitude and conduct. It is the highest status that can be achieved as a prisoner, and is a goal for all prisoners. At Fort Riley, Kansas, the Army, through the office of the U.S. Army Provo Marshall General, has developed a highly successful correctional training program. Eligible prisoners are transferred here from installation confinement and from the Fort Leavenworth disciplinary barracks. Absent from active military training for a length of time, they now receive intensive training directed at improving military skills and attitudes and developing confidence in the individual prior to his return to a regular military unit. Music Discussions on social and legal services and other areas of concern to the prisoners help restore hope for another chance. A number of morale-building activities are arranged, as the men progress toward the goal of once again becoming useful members of society. Music Counselors are available to help the men solve personal problems, to answer questions concerning their future in the Army, and to assist them in adjusting to their new place in the Army team. A continuous evaluation of MP concepts keeps the military policemen abreast of latest developments in equipment, doctrine, and technology. Material required by the Military Police Corps is under constant study for possible improvement. Music In their new and expanded combat support role, the MPs must plan equipment and systems suitable for complex field operations. Under study is a Mobile Police Information Storage and Retrieval Center. In this van, tape banks will record a variety of combat intelligence, which will help the military police in carrying out their security mission in the combat area. Some items, already in the equipment inventory, will undergo rigorous testing under field conditions to determine the need for any improvement. As a means of swift military police deployment, the armored car has already proved itself to be useful in Vietnam combat operations. MPs must move by water as well as by land and air if they are to perform their many new duties for combat security actions. Whatever his needs, the military policeman can be certain that he will have the best possible support to help him do his job efficiently. That job may take him wherever United States troops are maintaining political stability. Wherever he may be sent, he is trained and ready to handle the assignment, whether it be patrolling a road on the lookout for enemy ambush or engaging the enemy in a firefight to ensure the safe passage of a convoy. While he has always been a soldier prepared for combat, the MP is now recognized as a member of a combat support element and an integral part of the U.S. Army combined arms team. Though his role as soldier policeman has widened the scope of his activities, today's MP carries on in the tradition of a distinguished corps. His forebearers perform security assignments in the Revolutionary War, Civil War, and World War I. World War II challenged his skill and stamina as never before, as he helped bring a massive army of men and vehicles safely to battle. In the Korean conflict, an important assignment was processing and guarding prisoners of war and patrolling the demilitarized zone. The Berlin crisis of the early 1960s called for a critical U.S. Army alert on the east-west border. Again, the military police filled a vital security role. The United States mission in Vietnam posed new and complex security problems. In a war with constantly shifting battle fronts, no one knows where the enemy may strike. Military policemen in Vietnam sharpen their skills in detecting the presence of hostile forces and guarding against sabotage. Today as never before, the United States military policeman faces new challenges. The Army, in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, has assured him the best training, equipment, and motivation to meet these challenges in the finest traditions of the soldier policeman.