The Brief: Military-Civilian Partnerships to Enhance Crime Prevention

The U.S. military relies upon the partnership and cooperation of our civilian law enforcement counterparts as a support network for law enforcement activities, off-post investigations, and support for safeguarding our service members (SMs) and families.

The Secretary of the Army recently stated, “Whether it is defending the country at home or overseas, our nation counts on the United States Army to be the first line of defense.”1 This first line of defense on U.S. military installations are Army law enforcement—the military police and the Department of the Army Civilian Police who protect and serve the military community residing on and off U.S. Army installations. To be successful in the mission to “Assist, Protect, Defend,” military police (MP) rely upon the partnership and cooperation of the civilian law enforcement counterparts. Learning and sharing with civilian law enforcement partners are key to developing creative solutions to some of the Army’s pressing issues.