The North Dakota Highway Patrol 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

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

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. J ...

anywhere within the state. It is a division of the

North Dakota State Cabinet The North Dakota State Cabinet is part of the executive branch of the Government of the U.S. state of North Dakota, consisting of the appointed heads of the North Dakota state executive departments. The State Cabinet has evolved into a major part ...

. Colonel Brandon Solberg has been serving as the 17th

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 July 1, 2018. North Dakota Highway Patrol established in 1935 by the

North Dakota Legislative Assembly The North Dakota Legislative Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Dakota. The Legislative Assembly consists of two chambers, the lower North Dakota House of Representatives, with 94 representatives, and the upper North ...

. ''"The mission of the North Dakota Highway Patrol is to make a difference every day by providing high-quality law enforcement services to keep North Dakota safe and secure."'' North Dakota

state troopers State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdiction o ...

, when hired, attend th
Law Enforcement Training Academy
in Bismarck. It is
22-week program
in which the recruits learn all

Peace Officer Standards and Training In the United States, certification and licensure requirements for law enforcement officers vary significantly from state to state.Jeffrey S. Magers, "Police Officer Standard and Training Commissions (POST Commissions)" in ''Encyclopedia of Law ...

as well as advanced traffic information. Troopers are assigned to many different post locations within the four regions upon graduating from the Academy. Major activities of the State Patrol include: traffic enforcement, crash investigation, reporting road conditions, and enforcement of laws where state property is involved. A major duty of a North Dakota state trooper is the ability to work independently and exercise good judgement accordingly. This may differ from other peace officer agencies where operations are teamwork oriented.

Regions

The state is divided into four regions. Each region is commanded by a regional commander and contains two offices located in the major cities of the region. * Northeast Region:

Grand Forks Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the state of North Dakota (after Fargo and Bismarck) and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 59,166. Grand Forks, along with its twin city o ...

and Devils Lake * Southeast Region: Fargo and Jamestown * Southwest Region: Bismarck and Dickinson * Northwest Region:

Minot Minot ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Ward County, North Dakota, United States, in the state's north-central region. It is most widely known for the Air Force base approximately north of the city. With a population of 48,377 at the 20 ...

and Williston Troopers work within their regions, however they have equal

throughout the state.

Highway Patrol symbol

The North Dakota Highway Patrol symbol is a profile of Red Tomahawk, a Teton Dakotah ( Sioux)

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

who lived on his land near the Cannonball River on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near

Mandan, North Dakota Mandan is a city on the eastern border of Morton County and the eighth-largest city in North Dakota. Founded in 1879 on the west side of the upper Missouri River, it was designated in 1881 as the county seat of Morton County. The population w ...

and who is famous for shooting Sitting Bull in the head. The North Dakota Highway Patrol officially adopted the profile of Red Tomahawk as the patrol vehicle door emblem and department symbol in 1951.

Rank structure

The North Dakota Highway Patrol uses a paramilitary rank structure and has the following ranks:

Special Assignments

Troopers can serve in special roles including the following: *

Aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot a ...

(Manned and Unmanned)
Crash Reconstruction Team
(CRT)
Cultural Liaison Officer
* Dignitary Protection * Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) *

DUI Driving under the influence (DUI)—also called driving while impaired, impaired driving, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, operating while intoxicated (OWI), operating under the influence (OUI), operating vehicle under the infl ...

Enforcement Team
Emergency Response Team
(ERT)
Honor GuardK9 Program

Superintendents of the North Dakota Highway Patrol

Fallen officers

Since the organization was established, one North Dakota Highway Patrol officer has died while on duty.The Officer Down Memorial Page
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Vehicles

Current and historical patrol vehicles used by the North Dakota Highway Patrol. File:NDHP Tahoe Black.jpg File:North Dakota 052a.jpg File:NDHP Crown Victoria.jpg

References

External links

North Dakota Highway Patrol website
{{authority control State law enforcement agencies of North Dakota Government agencies established in 1935 1935 establishments in North Dakota