How to enforce the law and maintain a civil environment.
as written by Victoria Vile
Preface I have written this guide to make the Military Police roles more accessible and because I've witnessed many officers shrug off procedure or treat prisoners improperly. This guide can change at any time to account for any kind of changes within the game, corrections or additions done by the members of this community or myself. There is no one way to do things and this guide is aimed at either people who have yet to try a role within the Military Police pool or who are new to these roles.
Marine Law and Server Rules
Members of the Military Police are held to a high standard and must be very familiar with the Rules as they act as the first line of defense against griefing and actions that may negatively influence others.
Marine Law is the law that governs everything that happens within the USCMC. It's enforced by the Military Police personnel aboard the Almayer and contains a list of the illegal actions and crimes that are to be restricted within the USCMC. What this means is that you, as part of the Military Police, are to make sure that everyone aboard the ship and within the area of operation respect these laws and, should they break them, apply the correct punishment.
No one is above Marine Law, not the Commander, not the Chief of Military Police and not the Corporate Liaison. The only individuals who may act above Marine Law are dispatched officials from High Command or executives sent by Weyland-Yutani that fall under the blanket of diplomatic immunity. While on the subject, the Commander is allowed to perform battlefield executions, provided he announces the reason afterwards. Should any member of the Military Police deem the reason unsuitable for a battlefield execution, they are to contact USCM High Command through the fax machine in the Chief of Military Police's office.
It is important to try and memorize the crimes listed within Marine Law so that you may spot them with greater ease. It's also recommended that you keep the Marine Law page open, as a member of the Military Police would likely know the entire book word for word in character. Marine Law already does a fine job of describing the crimes and has guidelines for the punishments that should be administered.
All members of the Military Police are under commissioned officers in ranking and as such, if you are ordered by an officer to arrest a marine or a non-commissioned officer, you must do so. You may detain the person for a maximum of 10 minutes while you investigate and gather evidence. If the person is proven innocent then the arresting officer is to be charged with False Arrest. You must follow all commands and orders given to you by any officer as long as they do not break Marine Law.
You must NEVER break Marine Law as a member of the Miltiary Police. NEVER! This becomes an OOC issue fast and not an IC issue and you make yourself a viable target for a jobban if you do so intentionally or willingly. I can not stress how important this is. You can not break the law because you are the law, any attempt to break Marine Law is likely to end in your punishment by the staff, do not do it!!!
Members of the Military Police
- Military Police Officer (MP)
The standard Miltiary Police Officer is ranked a Staff Sergeant, which is the same rank as all the squad leaders and means that they outrank all the marines outside of the squad leaders. Your job is first and foremost to listen to the Chief of Military Police and Command, as they both outrank you and will likely direct you towards what you have to do. While you have the equipment to diffuse any kind of situation that can occur with the marines, it should be noted that your mere presence can deter anyone from breaking Marine Law, so try and stick around large groups of marines initially. It's highly likely that unless you're sent to watch over one of the two checkpoints, you'll be assigned to watch over the Requisition line. Once more, your mere presence can keep marines from getting too rowdy. Should you not receive any kind of orders, you're best off patrolling the ship, making sure that the law remains unbroken after the marines deploy and always being ready to respond should you be called upon.
- Chief of Military Police (CMP)
The Chief of Military Police holds the rank of Warrant Officer, which allows him to outrank all the non-commissioned officers while being outranked by everyone in command. As the Chief of Military Police, your task is to delegate orders to your Military Police Officers and enforce Marine Law. Always try to make sure that you know what your Military Police Officers are doing. While Military Police Officers should always behave and act accordingly, it's your duty to make sure that standard procedures are followed and that prisoners are treated fairly. The task of interpreting and responding to appeals also falls onto your shoulders, as you are the ultimate judge and arbiter of the law. It is best that you play CMP only after you have played some other form of leadership role as well as the role of the Military Police Officer.
Military Police Equipment
- M2 Pattern MP Armor
The basic armor members of the Military Police start with. It's quite similar to its marine counterpart and offers good protection as well as a source of light.
- M276 pattern military police rig
A belt that all members of the Military Police start with. It can hold the regular equipment a member of the Military Police uses to detain others alongside shotgun shells in case of emergencies.
- Radio
You have access to both the command and the Military Police channel (.p)
- Taser Gun
This is an impressive gun that can stun any human at distance and keep them down for quite a bit. This weapon has the potential to subdue anyone in one shot and it can hold quite a few shots before needing a recharge at the recharging station within the Brig Office. This weapon should be used should a suspect attempt to flee or fight back, as it is both a non-lethal and effective manner of detaining someone. Using it is quite simple, as it fires like a regular handgun.
- Stun Baton
This is the melee counterpart to the Taser Gun, able to stun someone with only one tap. It is important to remember to both turn it on and remain on Help Intent, as Harm intent will turn the light stunning tap to a harsh bash with what can be described as an electrically charged mace.
- Flash
This nifty device will allow you to blind and disable someone for a short duration in melee range. Excessive use is potentially dangerous to the target's eyes,
so it's best used for moments when you need a short, temporary disable.
- Handcuffs
A pair of handcuffs that can restrain someone and allow them to be dragged around. These should be your main method of keeping someone from running away or retaliating after detaining them with a non-lethal method. Simply use them on someone you wish to handcuff.
- Flashbang
This grenade will stun and deafen everyone within a radius. It's good practice to hold on to one in case of an emergency, though they should be used sparingly and only when other means of non-lethal detainment aren't available as they cause collateral damage, stunning everyone around them and causing confusion.
- HUDSunglasses
This wonderful pair of sunglasses protects your eyes from flashes and flashbangs, all while allowing you to see everyone's job and criminal status directly. Examining someone allows you to also read their criminal records.
- Riot Gear
This is comprised of the riot suit and the riot helmet. This is equipment that should only be used in case of emergencies. Riot gear protects against most forms of damage better than regular armor, but slows the wearer down quite a bit, so it's best used when defending a location or moving out in a group, as to not get outmaneuvered.
- MK221 Tactical Shotgun
This shotgun, alongside ammunition for it, is available within the armory and is to only be used during emergency situations. It's a semi-automatic shotgun that does not require pumping, unlike the normal shotgun that marines have access to.
- M4A3 Service Pistol
These pistol are available within the Security Equipment Closet. They are useless and illegal to carry on Green alert and as such they should only be relegated to being used by a firing squad during an execution.
- Shoulder Holster
This shoulder holster goes on your uniform and allows you to stow a handgun in it. It can also hold a taser gun, which it should. Do NOT carry an M4A3 in it during Green alert level as that is illegal.
- Recommended Equipment: Firstaid Pouch
These pouches can be found in the vendors in every squad's preparation, which you have access to, and are amazing to have on you. They contain the needed medical equipment to treat light wounds and can easily be restocked at any nanomed.
Checkpoints, Patrolling and SSD There are two checkpoints aboard the Almayer, the South and the North ones and they separate the cryo chambers and briefing area from the hangar bay on the lower deck of the Almayer. They contain shutters for both the checkpoint doors and the hangar shutters, which should be opened at the behest of an officer of under certain rules. More often than not you will be informed for whom to open by your superiors, as medics might want to head to the medbay to load up before an operation begins.
When patrolling, think of places where Marine Law may be broken. While you may freely patrol as you wish when told to do so, try and keep an eye on places marines or other possible criminals would break Marine Law, such as Medbay, Engineering, the hangar bay, requisitions and their preparation zones.
When encountering someone who is SSD(Space Sleep Disorder), your best bet is to announce it over the Military Police channel by relaying their location, name and role. You might want to stick around them for a minute or two, try and shake them up, play it as if attempting to wake them up. If that doesn't work, you ought to take them to cryo and stuff them in a pod. You may at this point send a message to the staff telling them about this. A normal marine going SSD isn't exactly something noteworthy, but the Specialist of a squad going SSD is something they might want to know, as that role would be locked up had you not found them and taken them to cryo.
Standard Detaining Procedure
First and foremost, it is important to react according to what the crime is and to the intent of the perpetrator by gauging how much of a threat they are initially. Make sure that they are set to "Arrest" by examining them and changing their criminal status. If the suspect is not deemed a threat and they do not pose a direct physical threat to the Military Police Officer detaining them, then they are to be informed of their crimes and ordered to lie down on the ground. Should they comply, the officer is to walk over to them, handcuff them and then take them to the brig, making sure they are standing as it is uncivilized to drag someone like a sack.
If the suspect attempts to flee or fight back, the officer is to employ any of the several non-lethal methods they have of detaining them and taking them in.
If the suspect is armed and using a form of lethal weaponry against the Military Police Officer, or is deemed a lethal threat towards the Military Police Officer attempting to detain them or any other individual around them, then they are to employ a method of taking them down non-lethally while attempting to minimize collateral damage.
Observation: Should the detaining of a subject be impossible with the use of non-lethal weaponry, the Chief of Military Police or the acting Commander may approve of the use of lethal force in subduing them.
Remember, do not use unnecessary force! If the suspect is willing to comply and come down peacefully, then detain them peacefully. Unnecessary use of force when apprehending a criminal leads to unrest and distrust of the Military Police staff. Such behavior should not be tolerated within the ranks of Military Police!
Standard Brigging Procedure
Once you have detained the suspect and managed to bring them in to the brig, the first thing you must do is tell them their charges once more, making sure that they are well aware of them. If there is a Military Police Officer overseeing the brig, make sure that they also know what charges are levied against the criminal. Decide on the duration of their sentence, set the timer and start the timer on an empty cell. Their time is now counting down, whether they are in the cell or not. Remember to set your suspect to "Imprisoned" status by examining them. Any contraband or illegal equipment is to be placed within the evidence chamber south-west of the Brig Office.
With that out of the way, your next objective is to gauge the health of the suspect within the safe confines of the brig. Are they injured? If the answer is yes, then you have two options:
- If the detained individual has sustained minor injuries that can be treated with gauze, ointment and/or a tricordazine injector, then you are to treat them yourself within the brig. Remember, the brig has its own nanomed vendor in the hallway.
- If the detained individual has sustained severe damage and requires professional medical assistance, you are to take them to the medbay and allow a doctor to treat them and operate on them at once. You are to stand close and oversee these operations as to ensure the doctor's safety and make sure the criminal does not escape.
- If the initial punishment time was lower than 30 minutes, undress the prisoner fully save for their radio, making sure to check their uniform and boots for knives or hidden equipment in uniform webbing before dressing them back up in heir uniform and boots. Always remember to empty pockets as well.
- If the initial punishment time was equal to or higher than 30 minutes, undress the prisoner fully save for their radio and dress them up in the orange outfit, making sure to empty their pockets as well.
Once that is done, you must always remember to change the prisoner's records or ask someone else to do so if you are unable to leave your post for a few moments. It's important to keep track of a person's crimes and as such you must always remember to set their crimes. What you set the crimes under is at your own discretion, as Assault can fall in both Minor and Major crimes, depending on the severity.
Important: If you are the only officer in the brig, you must remain there to observe the prisoner. There must always be at least one member of the Military Police observing the prisoners to ensure that they do not hurt themselves and that they do not attempt to break out.
If a prisoner attempts to hurt themselves, tell them to stop it.If this was not an accident and they are attempting to really hurt themselves, you are to immediately rush in and use the wall mounted flash through the timer console. After this, you are to enter their cell and handcuff them and then deter to your CMP for judgement on this. It would be wise to grab a straightjacket and restrain the prisoner to keep them from hurting themselves once you treat their wound, bucklecuffing them for their own safety.
If a prisoner appears mentally unstable, call over a doctor for a psychiatric examination.
Any prisoner attempting to break their cell glass is to be told to stop several times and then flashed. Chances are it will take them ages to break the reinforced glass. If they however persist, you may flash them once more and restrain them with handcuffs, deterring to your superiors for further action. The prisoner is to be charged with "Jailbreak" crime and judgement must be made if they are to be sent to permanent confinement or not.
Once a prisoner has served their time, they are to be allowed to grab their equipment and allowed to leave the brig by having an officer open the doors for them. They are to also be set to "Released" through the examination menu.
A prisoner may appeal their sentence with the Chief of Military Police, the Commander or anyone he sends, who may commute their sentence to a lower one should they deem it so.
A prisoner's safety is as important as everyone else's safety and it is the Military Police's job to make sure that even during emergencies, prisoners are safe.
Treat all prisoners with civility and respect unless given reason not to. If a prisoner is not insulting the officer or actively resisting, treat them with the same respect you would treat a fellow officer with. Unearned disrespect of a prisoner is to not be tolerated within the Milirary Police staff! Prisoners are still human! Remember that! Any unethical treatment, uncouth remarks at or hostility towards a prisoner or a detained suspect should not be tolerated!
Permanent Confinement.
If a prisoner's punishment exceeds 60 minutes, the Chief of Military Police may give special permission to send the prisoner to Permanent Confinement. They are to be stripped of everything they own save for their clothing, boots and radio and secured within the permanent brig south-west of the brig office. These isolation chambers are only for the most dangerous or unstable of prisoners and should be used sparingly.
Executions The gruesome topic of executions now comes up. If a prisoner has committed atrocious crimes have an execution as a possible punishment or their timer exceeds 60 minutes that, then the acting Commander or the Chief of Military Police may request their execution. The two must both agree on the execution for it to happen.
Once it has been agreed for an execution to happen, the Chief of Military Police or the acting Commander must make a ship-wide announcement with the details of the execution.
With that out of the way, the prisoner is to be brought in the execution chamber with the one who issued their execution present. They are to be allowed their last words, through the radio if they wish, and then an execution method is to be selected.
The prisoner may either be executed by a firing squad of Military Police Officers or a lethal injection administered by the Chief Medical Officer.
Observation: Battlefield executions do not count as regular executions and are left to the Commander's discretion. Should a member of the Military Police deem the Commander's reason for a battlefield execution inadequate, they are to send a fax to High Command regarding it.
Emergency Situations and Special Situations Mutiny A mutiny is a highly unlikely event in which the lower ranks of the USCMC aboard the Almayer seek to overthrow the higher ranking officers and take over the ship for themselves. Should a mutiny actually happen, it is extremely important for the Military Police Officers to act fast and decisively to minimize damages done to the ship and the crew. How this happens is left to the discretion of the Chief of Military Police, but it would be best to try and gather those who do not wish to rebel and tell anyone who is innocent to lie down on the floor when sweeping rooms for mutineers.
Unless the situation is dire and a vast majority of the marines are joining the mutiny, you must not use lethal weapons. If non-lethal approaches are impossible then the Chief of Military Police may approve the use of lethal weaponry against the mutineers. The safety of the Command Staff is of the utmost importance during a mutiny.
All member of the Military Police are NOT allowed join in on a mutiny. Doing so is an OOC issue and not an IC issue and will open you for possible punishment by the staff.
Boarders In the event of a boarding party aboard the Almayer, Code Red will likely turn up and an emergency state will be introduced by the command staff. When fighting any form of hostile boarding party or foreign bodies aboard the Almayer, Military Police are authorized to equip and use any means they see fit to keep the crew safe, including lethals. If an opponent can be detained and later interrogated then that would be advised, but during such states of emergency and high threats to the safety of the entire ship, members of the Military Police are allowed to use lethal weaponry against enemies of the USCMC.
The prisoners are to be secure during this entire duration and may be taken with you wherever you need to go. It falls upon the Chief of Military Police to deem if a prisoner is allowed to be released during such an emergency situation as all hands may be needed on deck.
Incompetent Command Staff As the case may be, the commanding officers of the Almayer may prove unfit to hold the reigns. The Chief of Military Police may fax High Command for a warrant for the arrest of a commanding officer and their replacement with the next person in the chain of command should a demotion be necessary. Armed with a warrant from the Provost Marshal office or a notice from the Admiral, you may detain and remove anyone deemed unworthy and unfit to lead from their position in the chain of command.
Arresting someone who is not aboard the Almayer Marines may sometimes break Marine Law in the operation area and not aboard the Almayer or they may try to flee to the operation area to escape punishment. It is the Chief of Military Police's call whether they send a member of the Military Police down to detain the marine or they wait for the marine to return to the ship. A Military Police Officer may not leave the Almayer without the Chief of Military Police's explicit permission and that of the acting Commander.
Marines interfering with a legitimate arrest Marines are allowed to verbally protest against a legitimate arrest and show disgruntlement with your enforcement of the law upon their buddies as much as they want as long as they do not interfere with the arrest. If you have trouble with Marines disarming, taking the prisoner away from you to let them escape or attacking you, it's best you ahelp the situation. If it's something minor and it's only one person attempt to screw with you, you may charge them with Interfering with an Arrest, but if you're swarmed, it's always best to leave a staff member inform you of the appropriate course of action.
Any member of Military Police breaking Marine Law Your best bet is to ask a member of the staff on how to proceed as this can turn into an OOC issue that they might want to be aware of. You may be told to fax High Command regarding it, but an MP breaking Marine Law is often something that can be punished outside of character due to its ramifications and the rules.
Afterword I will likely embellish this guide and add more to it as time goes by. I hope this was helpful and I'm looking forward to seeing some new faces in the Military Police aboard the Almayer. Until then, this is Warrant Officer Victoria Vile, awaiting my commendation from the Marshal Provost office.
Joakim 'Mook Sundberg some meme aka BIG DOG.
Bakuub R'ka some pred.