Georgia State Patrol

History

The Department of Public Safety was created as Georgia citizens complained about increased traffic fatalities, crime, and a need for a larger law enforcement agency with statewide arrest powers. Georgia lawmakers decided to create the State Patrol. In 1937, Governor E.D Rivers appointed Philip H. Brewster, Sr. as its first permanent commissioner. That summer the first Trooper School was held at Georgia Tech. Eighty troopers graduated the first year. To date, the Georgia State Patrol has graduated 115 Trooper Schools.

In November 2021, Distributed Denial of Secrets released 1.8 terabytes of police helicopter surveillance footage from the Dallas Police Department and the Georgia State Patrol. According to Wired, the footage showed helicopters capturing everything from cars lined up at a drive-through, and people standing in their yards and on the street. Non-profit advocacy group Fight for the Future called the leak "a crystal-clear example of why mass surveillance makes our society less safe, not more safe."

Rank structure

Patrol troops and posts

• Troops (A-I) and Posts (1-52)
  • Troop A - Includes the following counties: Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Dade, Floyd, Gordon, Haralson, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Walker, Whitfield.
    • Post 3 - Cartersville, Post 5 - Dalton, Post 28 - Jasper, Post 29 - Paulding, Post 38 - Rome, Post 41 - LaFayette, Post 43 - Calhoun.
  • Troop B - Includes the following counties: Banks, Barrow, Clarke, Elbert, Dawson, Fannin, Forsyth, Franklin, Gilmer, Habersham, Hall, Hart, Jackson, Lumpkin, Madison, Oconee, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union, White.
    • Post 6 - Gainesville, Post 7 - Toccoa, Post 27 - Blue Ridge, Post 32 - Athens, Post 37 - Cumming, Post 52 - Hartwell
  • Troop C - Includes the following counties: Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett
    • Post 9 - Marietta, (Cobb and Fulton north of I-20 and I-285), Post 47 - Forest Park (Outside I-285), Post 48 - Atlanta (Inside and including I-285), Post 49 - Motorcycle Unit (Metro Atlanta Enforcement), Post 50 - Capitol Hill (Georgia State Capitol Complex), Post 51 - Gwinnett (I-85, I-985, and State Route 316)
  • Troop D - Includes the following counties: Bibb, Butts, Carroll, Crawford, Coweta, Douglas, Harris, Heard, Henry, Fayette, Lamar, Meriwether, Monroe, Muscogee, Pike, Spalding, Talbot, Taylor, Troup, Upson
    • Post 1 - Griffin, Post 2 - LaGrange, Post 4 - Villa Rica, Post 24 - Newnan, Post 26 - Thomaston, Post 34 - Manchester, Post 44 - Forsyth
  • Troop E - Includes the following counties: Baldwin, Columbia, Glascock, Greene, Hancock, Jasper, Jones, Lincoln, Putnam, McDuffie, Morgan, Newton, Oglethorpe, Richmond, Rockdale, Taliaferro, Walton, Warren, Washington, Wilkes
    • Post 8 - Madison, Post 17 - Washington, Post 25 - Grovetown, Post 33 - Milledgeville, Post 46 - Monroe
  • Troop F - Includes the following counties: Appling, Bleckley, Bulloch, Burke, Candler, Davis, Dodge, Emanuel, Evans, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Laurens, Montgomery, Screven, Tattnall, Telfair, Toombs, Treutlen, Twiggs, Wheeler, Wilkinson
    • Post 16 - Helena, Post 18 - Reidsville, Post 19 - Swainsboro, Post 20 - Dublin, Post 21 - Sylvania, Post 45 - Statesboro
  • Troop G - Includes the following counties: Baker, Calhoun, Chattahoochee, Clay, Colquitt, Decatur, Dougherty, Early, Grady, Lee, Marion, Miller, Mitchell, Quitman, Randolph, Schley, Seminole, Stewart, Sumter, Terrell, Thomas, Webster, Worth
    • Post 10 - Americus, Post 12 - Thomasville, Post 14 - Colquitt, Post 39 - Cuthbert, Post 40 - Albany
  • Troop H - Includes the following counties: Atkinson, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks, Crisp, Coffee, Cook, Dooly, Echols, Houston, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Macon, Peach, Pulaski, Tift, Turner, Wilcox
    • Post 13 - Tifton, Post 15 - Perry, Post 30 - Cordele, Post 31 - Valdosta, Post 36 - Douglas
  • Troop I - Includes the following counties: Bacon, Brantley, Bryan, Camden, Charlton, Chatham, Clinch, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, Pierce, Ware, Wayne
    • Post 11 - Hinesville, Post 22 - Waycross, Post 23 - Brunswick, Post 35 - Jekyll Island, Post 42 - Rincon
• Troop J (Safety Education and Implied Consent) - Troop J contains two units:
  • Safety Education Unit - Promotes the safe operation of motor vehicles.
  • Implied Consent Unit - Provides support to the Forensics Science Division of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) by overseeing and maintaining the breath-alcohol program for the State of Georgia.[[File:On the look out 141002-A-WH280-037.jpg|thumb|189x189px|Governor's Task Force in flight]]
• Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) includes the Crisis Negotiations Team (CNT)
• Dive Team
• Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team (SCRT)
• Criminal Interdiction Unit (CIU)
• Crime Suppression Unit (CSU)
• Aviation Unit - Operates 15 helicopters and a Cessna 182 from six locations throughout the State. These are located in Kennesaw, Albany, Gainesville, Perry, Reidsville, and Augusta
• Governor’s Task Force - airborne marijuana eradication unit partnered with the Army National Guard.
• Nighthawks DUI Task Force - 3 DUI Task Forces (Nighthawks North, Nighthawks Middle , Nighthawks South) that patrol during peak DUI related hours in metro areas.[[File:Georgia state patrol Harleys (3755576700).jpg|thumb|185x185px|Georgia State Patrol Motorcycles]]
• Motorcycle Unit - Post 49 - Patrols the Interstate Highways of metropolitan Atlanta with 30 motorcycles.
• Executive Security - The Executive Security Division is, by law, responsible for two distinct functions: executive security and executive protection. The Executive Security Unit provides facility security for the Governor's Mansion and provides personal security for the residents. The Executive Protection Unit provides continual security for the governor, lieutenant governor, the speaker of the House, and the chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court, and their families.
• Honor Guard
• Recruiting Unit
• Training Division

Other divisions of the Georgia DPS

Main article: Georgia Department of Public Safety

Capitol Police

Officers with the Capitol Police Division investigate criminal incidents and traffic crashes; manage street closures for events; patrol the streets on Capitol Square and those adjacent to other state buildings; provide courtroom security for Georgia's Supreme Court and Court of Appeals; conduct security assessments and surveillance detection; and deliver personal safety training for state employees and others.

Commercial Vehicle Enforcement

The Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division (CVE), formerly Motor Carrier Compliance Division (as of July 1st, 2025), performs driver and vehicle inspections of commercial motor vehicles at roadsides, inspection stations, and at carriers' terminals. The inspections range from "full" vehicle and driver inspections—which include mechanical components—to "driver only" inspections. These may also include inspections of vehicles transporting hazardous materials.

This division consists of the following units and programs:

• HOV Unit - responsible for the enforcement of High Occupancy Lane restrictions and communications.
• School Bus Safety Unit - responsible for the annual safety inspection of the state's 17,000 public school buses
• Compliance Review Program/Safety Audit - consists of 20 officers who conduct interstate and intrastate compliance reviews.
• Size and Weight Enforcement - the operation of 19 permanent weight/inspection stations provide enforcement coverage on the interstates and related by-pass routes.
• Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Program - contains five federally funded and required program areas, Driver/Vehicle Inspections, Traffic Enforcement, Compliance Reviews, Public Information and Education and Data Collection.

Equipment

Current equipment

Previously issued equipment

• Glock 45 Gen 5 9mm (2020–2023)
• Glock 17 Gen 4 9mm (2015–2019)
• Glock 37 .45 GAP (2007–2015)
• Glock 22 .40 S&W (1990s–2007)
• Smith & Wesson Model 5906 9mm or Smith & Wesson Model 4506 .45 ACP—troopers choice (early 1990s to late 1990s)
• Smith & Wesson Model 66 .357 Magnum
• Colt Python .357 Magnum

Vehicles

The GSP currently uses Dodge Chargers as the main patrol vehicle which are in the blue and gray scheme, and are currently issuing out Dodge Durangos, Dodge Challengers, Chevrolet Camaros, Chevrolet Silverados, Ford Explorers, and Ford Mustangs. Many of these vehicles are now ordered black in color. They are painted in the traditional blue and grey at the factory with orange decals. However, some are issued in the color black displaying gray decals or black with ghost letters. In addition, they also utilize the Chevrolet Tahoe, which includes vehicles in either black, white, or grey color schemes. When these cars are retired, the decals and emergency equipment are removed from the vehicles before being auctioned off to the public, yet retain the old blue and grey scheme (or as shown on this old 1992 Ford Mustang) the decals can be spray painted over. Former models used were the Chevrolet Caprice, Ford LTD Crown Victoria, Pontiac LeMans, BMW 328i (one still kept by the state), Ford Mustang and Ford Thunderbird.

Fallen officers

Since the establishment of the Georgia State Patrol, 29 officers and 1 K9 have died in the line of duty.

References

https://dps.georgia.gov/organization/about-dps

References

1. [http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/csllea04.pdf USDOJ Statistics] {{webarchive. link. (November 20, 2008)
2. "Population Estimates".
3. "2024 DPS Annual Report". Georgia Department of Public Safety.
4. "History {{!}} Georgia Department of Public Safety".
5. Murney, Michael. "Leaked Dallas Police Helicopter Surveillance Footage Raises Privacy Concerns".
6. Newman, Lily Hay. (November 5, 2021). "1.8 TB of Police Helicopter Surveillance Footage Leaks Online".
7. [https://web.archive.org/web/20210731162832/https://dps.georgia.gov/contacts/commissioners-office/aviation georgia.gov] {{Bare URL inline. (August 2024)
8. (10 March 2016). "Peach State Protectors: The Georgia State Patrol's Glock 43".
9. "State troopers now carrying patrol rifles".
10. (26 April 2013). "Bridging the .45 GAP".
11. "F/T - Glock 22 'Georgia State Patrol'". Forum.gon.com.
12. "PR8452c__85856.jpg".
13. "Georgia State Patrol, GA".