Bermuda
| Author | George Kurian |
| Pages | 218-219 |
Page 218
Official country name: Bermuda
Capital: Hamilton
Geographic description: Group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean
Population: 65,365 (est. 2005)
The island was first settled in 1609, and the settlers tried a number of police systems borrowed from their home country of England. These included parish constables and a town watch. The first islandwide police force was instituted in 1879.
For operational purposes the headquarters in Hamilton consists of four divisions: Operations, Eastern, Western, and Central. Headquarters is responsible for administration, finance, provost marshal, general stores, Criminal Investigative Division (CID), prosecutions, recruitment, training, crime prevention, and public relations. The three territorial divisions are responsible for general duties, personnel, parish constables, and CID. The Central Division is also in charge of the Marine Section and the Women Police. The Operations Division is in charge of Traffic Section, Information Branch, Motorcycle Patrol, Driving School, Radio Section, and Beach Squad. The administrative divisions are led by chief inspectors and the territorial divisions by inspectors. There is a reserve constabulary of 300.
In descending order, the principal ranks are:
Commissioner
Deputy Commissioner
Chief Superintendent
Superintendent
Chief Inspector
Inspector
Sergeant
Constable
Training for all ranks is provided by the Police Training School in Hamilton.
There are two basic uniforms, one for summer and another for winter. The summer uniform consists of a light-blue (white for officers) short-sleeved, open-neck shirt, a black webbed belt, navy-blue shorts, navy-blue long hose, and black shoes. The winter uniform is basically identical to that worn by British
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policemen except that it is lightweight. Plain flat black caps are worn by all ranks, with the exception of beat personnel, who wear helmets. Police personnel are unarmed.
Total Police Personnel: 382
Population per Police Officer: 171
The government respects the constitutional...
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