Patrol Procedures and Officer Safety
What the exam tests
Patrol Procedures and Officer Safety tests how you plan a contact, control the scene, and avoid preventable harm. ND questions often use domestic disturbances, high-risk stops, and building searches because those calls mix unknown threats with legal duties.
Core rules
- Gather and broadcast: location, nature, weapons, number of people, and approach route. Request cover early; do not handle it alone because it seems minor.
- Contact and cover: one officer talks, one watches hands and surroundings. Never both focus on the same person.
- Position of advantage: use distance, cover, and light. Cover stops bullets; concealment only hides.
- High-risk stop: initiate from a controlled position, give clear sequential commands, and have a plan for the driver and passengers. Do not approach a vehicle with unsecured occupants.
- Domestic calls: separate the parties, identify the primary aggressor, check for weapons, and document injuries and statements. ND law allows warrantless arrest in domestic violence under specified conditions.
- Building searches: contain, announce, move deliberately, and use team tactics; clearing alone is a last resort.
Worked example
A 2 a.m. call reports a man with a knife in a driveway. The first officer parks out of sight, broadcasts, and waits for a second unit. They approach with cover, illuminate the man, and give one voice clear commands while the cover officer watches the man's hands. The man drops the knife but keeps his hands in his pockets. The contact officer does not close distance until the hands are controlled; the cover officer provides lethal cover. The arrest follows only after the hands are secured.
Traps
- Calling any stop routine: many ambushes occur at ordinary contacts.
- Crossfire and positioning: standing beside your partner in the line of fire.
- Failing to broadcast your location and status.
- Letting a person retrieve an ID from a pocket without controlling the movement.