Police Slang and Codes
The following is a listing of slang that might be used by police officers, extracted from the Brooklyn South FAQ, and modified somewhat for the Mutant Chronicles campaign setting, with a few additions specific to the Mutant Chronicles universe.
| Word | Explanation |
| Ape | derogatory reference to Capitol law enforcement, specifically riot control ("Capitol Armed Interdiction Police"), but sometimes broadened to refer to any Capitol law officer who is especially rough on civilians. "Going Ape (AIP)" is a term used for a law officer roughing up a civilian. |
| Big Brother | a Brotherhood representative, pulling rank on officers involved in a case |
| boss | term for senior officers from lieutenant to captain, deputy inspector, inspector, and commissioner |
| bus | ambulance |
| by the boke | operation in which perps are gassed out, usually using the Capitol-manufactured crowd control gas known as "boke" |
| Cape | "CAIP" - more polite reference to Capitol Armed Interdiction Police (riot police), but sometimes used as an allusion to rough behavior by a police officer |
| Central | Central Dispatch, which coordinates Dawn Alert's agents in the field and off it. |
| DA | Dawn Alert Civilian Protection Service |
| dee wee | "driving while intoxicated" |
| DOA | "dead on arrival"; any dead person, murdered or otherwise |
| DT | street slang for a detective |
| go down | get arrested |
| gun run | search for a weapon reported sighted in the hands of a "perp" |
| hit | tactical assault on a criminal location |
| the house | the stationhouse, home base. Dawn Alert maintains just its headquarters and sends its agents out in the field, but some larger police agencies have multiple stationhouses to minimize the transit time for cops to travel to their local beats. |
| hump | a term for the derriere; e.g., "he's gonna bust my hump over this crime," or "that stupid hump dented my car". |
| job | service in the agency; e.g., "I've been on the job five years." |
| juice | influence, often "good ol' boys" network-style; e.g., a corporate executive has "lots of juice" as far as headquarters is concerned, or veteran cops might have "juice" with their co-workers. |
| loo | affectionate slang for "lieutenant" |
| OC | "organized crime" |
| open carrier | police officer or vehicle with an open radio; indicates that conversation should be guarded for the sake of those who may be listening in |
| perp | perpetrator, criminal |
| puzzle palace | police officer's term for headquarters; usually indicates that their orders are a source of mystery |
| rat squad | officers and detectives assigned to the Internal Affairs Bureau |
| rip | loss in pay due to a disciplinary infraction such as unauthorized moonlighting |
| sector | subdivision within a precinct, which covers several blocks; a sector car is assigned to protect the area |
| skels | "skeletons" - what most drug users wind up looking like; derogatory term used to describe low-life junkies; also refers to homeless vagrants. |
| squad | short for "detective squad", attached to the specific precinct |
| up, catching | a baseball metaphor is often used to describe the process in which people are assigned cases; e.g., "Duffy caught that murder in the Maze because he was up." |
| white shirts | term for lieutenants and above, who wear white uniform shirts; generally, "office types", the "upstairs management" who aren't blue-collar like the average policeman |
Radio Codes
There is a long list of radio codes which are listed below for reference's sake; however, it's doubtful that we'll want to use the codes extensively, as the logs would become opaque very quickly. It's suggested that radio codes be followed by the English equivalence, either verbally spoken (as part of the pose or dialogue) or in brackets.
The exception would be 10-4, which has become widely accepted slang for "Gotcha, over and out."
So, to report a fire, a dispatcher might say, "We have a 10-59 on 255th and Ashby; a warehouse is burning, a trauma team and a fire control team are en route," for instance.
Common Codes
| Code | Explanation |
| 10-1 | Call Your Command |
| 10-2 | Return To Your Command |
| 10-3 | Call Dispatcher By Telephone |
| 10-4 | Acknowledgement |
| 10-5 | Repeat Message |
| 10-6 | Standby |
| 10-7 | Verify Address |
| 10-10 | Possible Crime (prowler, suspicious person/vehicle, shots fired, etc.) |
| 10-11 | Alarm (specify type) |
| 10-12 | Police Officer/Security Holding Suspect |
| 10-13 | Assist Police Officer |
| 10-14 | License Plate Check - Occupied & Suspicious - Verify If Stolen |
| 10-15 | License Plate Check - Verify If Is Stolen - Occupied or Not |
| 10-16 | Vehicle is Reported Stolen |
| 10-17 | Vehicle is Not Reported Stolen |
| 10-18 | Warrant Check Shows An Active Warrant |
| 10-19 | Warrant Check Negative |
Crime Codes
| Code (Past) | (In Progress | Crime |
| 10-20 | 10-30 | Robbery |
| 10-21 | 10-31 | Burglary |
| 10-22 | 10-32 | Larceny (specify: auto, from person, other) |
| 10-33 | Explosive Device or Threat | |
| 10-24 | 10-34 | Assault (specify) |
| 10-25 | 10-35 | Child Abuse |
| 10-29 | 10-39 | Other Crime (specify) |
Rapid Mobilization Codes
| Code | Explanation |
| 10-45 | 4 sergeants, 20 officers |
| 10-46 | 1 lieutenant, 8 sergeants, 40 officers |
| 10-47 | Additional lieutenant, 8 sergeants, 40 officers |
| 10-48 | Unscheduled response as directed by officer in charge |
| Level One | Responding Borough Task Force |
| Level Two | Task Force - City Wide |
| Level Three | Local Borough Precinct Personnel |
| Level Four | Precinct Personnel - City Wide |
Non-Crime Incident Codes
| Code | Explanation |
| 10-50 | Disorderly Person/Group or Noise |
| 10-51 | Roving band (specify direction of travel & number in group) |
| 10-52 | Dispute (specify) |
| 10-53 | Vehicle Accident (specify) |
| 10-54 | Ambulance Case (specify type) |
| 10-55 | Ambulance Case No RMP required |
| 10-56 | Verify if Ambulance Needed |
| 10-56 O | Outstretched Person (used in transit, condition needing verification) |
| 10-57 | 2nd Call for Ambulance - verify |
| 10-58 | Assist Ambulance (specify type of assist) |
| 10-59 | Alarm or Fire (specify type) |
| 10-60 H | Research (disabled vehicle) |
| 10-60 I | Broadcast (chase/pursuit) |
Administrative Codes
| Code | Explanation |
| 10-61 | Precinct Assignment (give condition and location) |
| 10-62 | Out of Service - Mechanical (give condiiton and location) |
| 10-63 | Out of Service - Meal |
Other Condition Codes
| Code | Explanation |
| 10-65 | Utility Trouble (specify nature and if ESU responding or not) |
| 10-66 | Unusual Incident (train derailment/collision, plane crash, building collapse) |
| 10-67 | Traffic/Parking Condition (specify) |
| 10-68 | See Complainant re: (specify) |
| 10-69 | Other Non-Crime Incident (specify) |
| 10-75 P | Park, Walk, Talk |
| 10-75 V | Vertical Patrol |
| 10-75 D | Directed Patrol |
Mobilization Codes