The Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP) is the

highway patrol A highway patrol, or state patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is prima ...

agency for

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

and has

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. Jur ...

all across the state. It is a division of the

Missouri Department of Public Safety The Department of Public Safety of the State of Missouri, commonly known as the Missouri Department of Public Safety (DPS), is a department of the state government of Missouri. The agency is headquartered at 1101 Riverside Drive in Jefferson Ci ...

. Colonel Eric T. Olson has been serving as the 24th

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

since March 15, 2019. In 1992, MSHP became the 10th state law enforcement agency to receive accreditation from the

Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies The Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA) is a credentialing authority (accreditation), based in the United States, whose primary mission is to accredit public safety agencies, namely law enforcement agencies, trai ...

(CALEA).

Purpose

State laws pertaining to the Highway Patrol including its creation, powers, structure, mission and duties are specified in Chapter 43 of Missouri Revised Statutes (RSMo). According to Chapter 43.025 RSMo: "The primary purpose of the highway patrol is to enforce the traffic laws and promote safety upon the highways. In addition the Missouri State Highway Patrol has responsibility in criminal interdiction which involves the suppression of

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

, and narcotics on the state's roads and highways including the Missouri Interstate System. As near as practicable all personnel of the patrol shall be used for carrying out these purposes." The MSHP has a criminal investigation division that investigates crimes statewide such as murder, robbery, burglary, rape and financial crimes. Missouri State Highway Patrol officers (circa 1910)

Missouri State Highway Patrol officers (circa 1910)

Organization & Troops

General Headquarters (GHQ) and the Law Enforcement Academy are located in Jefferson City, Missouri, the state capital. The state is divided into nine Troops, with Troop headquarters and communications centers located in the following cities: * Troop A: Lee's Summit (Kansas City) * Troop B: Macon * Troop C: Weldon Spring (St. Louis) * Troop D:

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

* Troop E:

Poplar Bluff Poplar Bluff is a medium city in Butler County in Southeast Missouri, United States. It is the county seat of Butler County and is known as "The Gateway to the Ozarks" among other names. The population was 16,225 at the 2020 census. The Poplar B ...

* Troop F:

Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the principa ...

* Troop G: Willow Springs * Troop H:

St. Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers ...

* Troop I: Rolla In addition, three of the Troops maintain service centers: * Troop C: Park Hills * Troop D:

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classi ...

* Troop E:

Sikeston Sikeston is a city located both in southern Scott County and northern New Madrid County, in the state of Missouri, United States. It is situated just north of the "Missouri Bootheel", although many locals consider Sikeston a part of it. By way ...

* Recruiting & Community Outreach Division is housed in the MSHP General Headquarters in

Jefferson City, Missouri Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the princip ...

Badge and rank structure

The Missouri State Highway Patrol is one of only five State Patrol forces that do not wear a badge on their uniform shirts. The Missouri State Highway Patrol uses a paramilitary rank structure and has the following ranks: State Trooper (Recruit) is the initial rank of oncoming Missouri State Highway Patrol, held while undergoing training at the Missouri State Highway Patrol Law Enforcement Academy.

Vehicles

Police Car Missouri Highway Patrol (15177420427)

The MSHP utilizes a variety of vehicles, including but not limited to, the Dodge Charger, Ford Police Interceptor Utility (Explorer), Ford F-150 and 250 series,

Chevrolet Tahoe PPV The Chevrolet Tahoe, and its badge engineered GMC Yukon counterpart, are full-size SUVs from General Motors, offered since 1994 and 1991, respectively. Since 1982, Chevrolet and GMC sold two different-sized SUVs under their 'Blazer' and 'Jim ...

, and the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and 2500 series. Both fully marked and semi-marked vehicles are used frequently. Colors include but not limited to: white, tan, blue, silver, black, gray, and maroon.

Weapons

Lethal Options: *

Glock Glock is a brand of polymer- framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military and police service by 1982 after it was th ...

17 GEN 5 9mm (As of late 2018) *

Glock 22 Glock is a brand of polymer- framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military and police service by 1982 after it was the ...

.40 S&W (phased out as of late 2018) *

Colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

AR-15 An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation d ...

A1 (M16A1) 5.56x45mm *

Remington Model 870 The Remington Model 870 is a pump-action shotgun manufactured by Remington Arms Company, LLC. It is widely used by the public for shooting sports, hunting and self-defense, as well as by law enforcement and military organizations worldwide. Dev ...

12 Gauge Less Lethal Options: *

Pepper Spray Pepper spray, oleoresin capsicum spray, OC spray, capsaicin spray, or capsicum spray is a lachrymatory agent (a compound that irritates the eyes to cause a burning sensation, pain, and temporary blindness) used in policing, riot control, cr ...

(OC Spray) * ASP Baton *

Taser A taser is an electroshock weapon used to incapacitate people, allowing them to be approached and handled in an unresisting and thus safe manner. It is sold by Axon, formerly TASER International. It fires two small barbed darts intended to ...

Fallen Officers

31 Troopers have been killed while on duty since 1931 with one Highway Patrol member dying in World War II. The members are as follows:

Superintendents

The Missouri State Highway Patrol is headed by the Superintendent of the Highway Patrol, who is nominated by the

Governor of Missouri A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political_regions, political region, ranking under the Head of State, head of state and in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of ...

and confirmed by the

Missouri State Senate The Missouri Senate is the upper chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 34 members, representing districts with an average population of 174,000. Its members serve four-year terms, with half the seats being up for election every two yea ...

. The Superintendent of the Highway Patrol commands more than 1,356 troopers and 1,87 civilian support staff who help provide a full range of policing and public safety services to Missourian on behalf of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

References

External links

Missouri State Highway Patrol web site

Missouri Department Of Public Safety
*Publications by or about th
Missouri State Highway Patrol
at Internet Archive. {{DEFAULTSORT:Missouri Highway Patrol State law enforcement agencies of Missouri Government agencies established in 1931 Law enforcement in Missouri 1931 establishments in Missouri Downtown St. Louis