Houston Police Department General Order 100-03 PDF - Definitions of Terms

# General Order **Houston Police Department** **SUBJECT: DEFINITIONS OF TERMS** ISSUE DATE: July 31, 2019 NO. 100-03 REFERENCE: Supersedes all prior conflicting Circulars and Directives, and General Order 100-03, dated July 28, 2015 ## POLICY All department directives shall conform to the follow...

# General Order **Houston Police Department** **SUBJECT: DEFINITIONS OF TERMS** ISSUE DATE: July 31, 2019 NO. 100-03 REFERENCE: Supersedes all prior conflicting Circulars and Directives, and General Order 100-03, dated July 28, 2015 ## POLICY All department directives shall conform to the following terminology and definitions, unless a different definition is provided with the directive. This General Order applies to all employees. ## 1 GRAMMATICAL USAGE **Gender.** Use of a specific gender is inclusive of all genders. **Plurality of Words.** The singular includes the plural and the plural includes the singular. **Tense of Words.** The present tense includes the future tense. ## 2 ACRONYMS AND INITIALISMS The following acronyms and initialisms are commonly used in department jargon. | Acronym | Definition | | ------- | -------------------------------------- | | ADR | Alternative Dispute Resolution | | APC | Administrative Personnel Committee | | AVL | Automated Vehicle Location | | AWOL | Absent Without Leave | | AWOP | Absent Without Permission | | B&F | Office of Budget and Finance | | B&T | Burglary and Theft Division | | CAD | Computer Aided Dispatch | | CED | Conducted Energy Device | | CFS | Call for Service | | CIO | Central Intake Office | | CJIS | Criminal Justice Information Services | | CODIS | Combined DNA Index System | | COH | City of Houston | | CPTED | Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design | | CSL | Compensable Sick Leave | | CSMART | Court System Management and Resource Technology | | CSU | Crime Scene Unit (in the Houston Forensic Science Center) | | DA | District Attorney | | DIMS | District Attorney Intake Management System | | DNA | Deoxyribonucleic Acid | | DOJ | U.S. Department of Justice | | DPS | Texas Department of Public Safety | | DRT | Differential Response Team | | ECD | Emergency Communications Division | | ERC | Employee Representative Council | | FBI | Federal Bureau of Investigation | | FMLA | Family and Medical Leave Act | | FTE | Full Time Equivalent | | GPS | Global Positioning System | | HCSO | Harris County Sheriff's Office | | HEC | Houston Emergency Center | | HMEPS | Houston Municipal Employees Pension System | | HPD | Houston Police Department | | HPOPS | Houston Police Officers' Pension System | | HRISC | Houston Regional Intelligence Service Center | | IAD | Internal Affairs Division | | ID | Identification | | IOD | Injured on Duty | | MCD | Mobile Computing Device | | METRO | Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas | | MSP | Modified Sick Leave Plan | | NCIC | National Crime Information Center | | N-DEx | National Data Exchange | | NIBRS | National Incident-Based Reporting System | | NIMS | National Incident Management System | | NLETS | National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System | | NOCC | Narcotics Operations Control Center | | NPC | NeuroPsychiatric Center | | P-Card | Purchasing Card | | PD | Personal Day | | PHRS | Personal Hours | | PIP | Protective Interaction Program | | PPS | Police Personnel System | | PRD | Personal Radiation Detector | | PRE | Police Roll Call and Equipment | | PTO | Paid Time Off | | RDO | Regular Day Off | | RMS | Records Management System | | SAP® | Systems Applications and Products | | SETCIC | Southeast Texas Crime Information Center | | SI | Supervisory Intervention | | SOP | Standard Operating Procedure | | SOSP | Strategic Officer Staffing Program | | SRG | Special Response Group | | SWAT | Special Weapons and Tactics | | TCIC | Texas Crime Information Center | | TCOLE | Texas Commission on Law Enforcement | | TDL | Texas Driver License | | TLETS | Texas Law Enforcement Telecommunications System | | TMS | Talent Management System | | TXDOT | Texas Department of Transportation | ## 3 DEFINITIONS AND TERMINOLOGY **Assistant Director.** A civilian supervisor equivalent to the rank of an assistant chief. **Assistant Manager.** A civilian supervisor equivalent to the rank of a lieutenant. **Beat.** An area within a district assigned to officers for patrol purposes. **Bilingual Officer.** Officers who have obtained department bilingual certification. **Business Day.** For department purposes, any day in which normal business operations are conducted at Houston City Hall. This is considered to be Monday through Friday and excludes weekends and City Council declared holidays. Hours vary, but typically cover the period from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. **Calendar Days.** All days in a given time period including weekends, holidays, and days off. **Calendar Year.** A twelve-month period starting with January 1 and ending with December 31, and which has 365 days in non-leap years and 366 days in a leap year. **Central Police Complex.** The Police Department buildings and property located at or adjacent to 61 Riesner Street. **Chain of Command.** The line of authority extending from the Chief of Police through a single subordinate at each level of command. **Citizens.** Persons not employed by the Houston Police Department. **City.** There are two common ways of referring to the city of Houston. When the word City is capitalized, it refers to the entities that govern the city (e.g., City of Houston Legal Department, City Council, City property). When the word city is in lower case, it refers to the city of Houston as a geographic location. **Civil Service Commission.** For classified employees, this term refers to the Police Officers' Civil Service Commission of the City of Houston. For civilian employees, this term refers to the City of Houston, Municipal Employees' Civil Service Commission. **Civilian.** A civilian employee or that which pertains to a civilian employee. **Civilian Employee.** An employee of the Houston Police Department who is classified as a municipal employee of the City of Houston. **Classified Employee.** An employee of the Houston Police Department who is classified as an officer in accordance with Chapter 143 of the Texas Local Government Code. **Command Staff.** An advisory board to the Chief of Police consisting of all members of the Executive Staff and all division commanders. **Commander.** An employee holding the rank of commander or higher (or civilian equivalent) and supervising a detail, unit, division, office, or command. **Commanding Officer.** An officer assigned to exercise authority over one or more organizational units of the department. **Department.** Unless otherwise noted, when used as a stand-alone word, "department" (lower case) refers to the Houston Police Department. **Deputy Director.** A civilian supervisor equivalent to the rank of executive assistant chief. **Designee.** All mid managers and above can appoint an official acting position or a designee to perform in their stead when they are unavailable. The term is assumed with these positions and therefore does not need to be stated. **Detail.** A group of employees assigned a specified mission; usually a group within a larger organizational unit of the department. **Dispatcher.** An employee assigned to Emergency Communications Division with responsibility for receiving and assigning calls for service. **District.** A geographic area within the city limits containing police beats. **Division Commander.** An employee holding the rank of commander (or civilian equivalent) and supervising a division. **Employee.** Without any limiting word or phrase, employee refers to both classified and civilian employees of the Houston Police Department. **Employee Performance Rating.** A supervisor's evaluation of a subordinate employee's ability to perform assigned tasks. **Executive Staff.** An advisory board to the Chief of Police consisting of all executive assistant chiefs; all assistant chiefs; the directors of the Offices of Legal Services, Budget and Finance, Public Affairs, Technology Services, and Planning & Data Governance; the Chief of Staff; and the HPD City Council Liaison. **Exempt Employee.** Employee designated by the City of Houston Human Resources Department as exempt from overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act. **Extra Employment.** Any employment engaged in while off duty. This definition includes unpaid police-related work done for a charitable or nonprofit organization. A.k.a. extra job. **Incident Report.** An official written account of an incident, offense, or situation (either brought to the attention of or seen by an employee) that is assigned a unique incident number by the department. **Incident Report Title.** The identifying title of an offense, complaint, or incident used in an incident report. **Indefinite Suspension.** Involuntary removal of an employee from employment with the department and the City of Houston after the probationary period. **Inspection.** The regular or periodic examination of personnel regarding appearance, uniforms, equipment, duties, or operations according to standards established by General Orders or standard operating procedures. **Intranet.** The internal computer network linking department microcomputers to each other and to the department mainframe computer. This is a closed system accessible only through department computer terminals. This is not to be confused with the Internet. See General Orders 400-13, Police Computer Systems and 400-19, Microcomputer Regulations. **Intranet Portal.** The department's internal website for accessing applications, division web pages, department directives and forms, and other data and information available on the department's local/wide area computer network, the contents of which are proprietary. The use of this network or its contents is regulated by various department General Orders and other policies concerning computer access and use of information. **Jail.** A place for the confinement of persons accused or convicted of a crime. **Length of Service.** The time calculated from the date of employment by the City of Houston. Previous City of Houston service shall be added when calculating length of service. See General Order 300-03, Seniority, for additional information. **Longevity.** The elapsed time a person has been an employee of the City of Houston. **Longevity Pay.** An amount of compensation based on years of service and as authorized by state law, City Council, and/or the applicable Meet and Confer Agreement. **Manager.** A supervisor holding the rank of commander or civilian equivalent. When used as a job title denotes civilian status. **Marked Vehicle.** A police vehicle with recognizable police decals displayed and exposed emergency equipment. **May.** When appearing in written policies or procedures in a directive or instructive statement, the word indicates a permissive or discretionary course of action. **Medical Examiner.** The person empowered by state law to investigate and determine the cause of death of a person. **Mid Manager.** A supervisor holding the rank of lieutenant or civilian equivalent. **Minimum Staffing Levels.** The staffing levels below which operation of the department would create an undue burden to on-duty staff and jeopardize the delivery of necessary police services. **Nonexempt Employee.** An employee who is eligible for overtime compensation. This includes either a civilian employee whose job classification is covered by FLSA overtime rules and has been designated as such by the City of Houston Human Resources Director and the Civil Service Commission, or a classified employee who holds the rank of sergeant or below. **Off Duty.** The status of employees when they are free of the responsibility to perform their routine duties. **Office.** An organizational unit of the department supervised by a deputy director. **Officer.** An employee who is classified in accordance with Chapter 143 of the Texas Local Government Code. Without any limiting word or phrase, officer refers to any or all classified employees of the Police Department. **Official Identification.** Written identification issued by the department containing the employee's name and photograph. **On Duty.** The status of an employee who is scheduled and present for department duties. **Order.** A written or oral instruction or directive issued by a supervisor to a subordinate. **Out of Service.** The status of an employee not available for service calls. **Out on Traffic.** The status of an officer who is temporarily engaged in a traffic stop but is maintaining radio communication. **Overtime Compensation.** Compensation in the form of pay or time off for time worked in excess of an officer's regular shift or a civilian employee's workweek and in accordance with federal and state statutes, the City of Houston Code of Ordinances, and the applicable Meet and Confer Agreement. This does not apply to exempt employees. **Paid Time Off (PTO).** For officers, PTO incorporates and replaces the sick and vacation leave banks and specifically excludes the compensatory time off bank and holiday leave. **Pay Period.** A 14-calendar-day period beginning at 0500 hours on the Saturday in the week before a department payday Friday and continuing through 0459 hours on the Saturday in the week following that payday Friday. **Permanent Extra Employment.** Extra employment lasting more than 30 calendar days. **Personal Day (PD).** Incentive leave for officers, carrying no cash value, given under the department's Meet and Confer Agreement. **Personal Hours (PHRS).** Incentive leave for officers, carrying no cash value, and given under the department's Fitness and Training Program. **Personal Leave.** A general term that refers to any and all types of leave for employees. **Personal Leave Hours.** Specific leave hours granted as a special incentive to civilian CSL participants who used no more than 16 hours of sick time during the preceding full benefit year. See General Order 900-01, Absence from Duty - Civilian, for more information. **Phase Down Program (PDP).** A program with varying options for retirement in which officers who are eligible for retirement extend the payment of their accrued leave. See also General Order 300-35, Phase Down Program and the Meet and Confer Agreement. **Plainclothes Officer.** Generally refers to an officer who is not normally required to wear a department uniform while on duty. **Police Headquarters.** The Houston Police Department Edward A. Thomas Building and property located at 1200 Travis Street. **Police Officer.** This is a term interchangeable with the words peace officer and officer. **Police Station.** A facility serving as the command center for a patrol division or patrol related function. **Police Storefront.** A neighborhood or business park location staffed by patrol division personnel who provide police services to the community. **Police Work Room.** An area in a nonpolice facility where officers may complete paperwork. **Positive Discipline.** Department discipline requiring approval by the Chief of Police in which an officer may elect to forfeit accrued hours from his PTO bank instead of receiving a disciplinary suspension. The number of hours forfeited must equal the number of department work hours in the time period of the disciplinary suspension based on the officer's regular assigned shift. **Post.** A fixed location an employee is assigned for duty. **Posting.** Publication of a job vacancy or an anticipated job vacancy on the Employee Services Division's or City's job posting announcement. **Primary Division.** The HPD division responsible for investigating the most serious offense involved in a criminal investigation. When multiple offenses occur that are of equal offense classification according to the Texas Penal Code, the primary division shall be determined by which offense occurred first. **Proactive.** Used to describe an investigator or a group of investigators who work covertly in response to complaints of criminal activity. Investigations conducted in this manner are considered proactive and are usually conducted by undercover investigators. **Probationary Period.** The period of time officers are evaluated on their ability to perform the duties for which they were employed in accordance with Chapter 143 of the Texas Local Government Code. Also, the period of time civilian employees are evaluated on their ability to perform the duties for which they were hired in accordance with City of Houston civil service regulations. **Procedure.** A method of carrying out a specific function. **Promotion.** A change in the employment status of an employee to a position of higher classification. **Rank.** An employee's classification or job title. **Reactive.** Used to describe an investigator or a group of investigators who react to deal with a situation, violation, or offense. Investigations conducted in this manner are considered reactive. **Red Book.** City issued calendar used to record personal leave for employees and to document minimum staffing levels for each particular day and shift. **Regular Assigned Division.** The division to which an employee is regularly assigned according to the Employee Services Division's records. This does not include a temporary assignment. **Regular Day Off.** Any of the days in a given week an employee is not regularly scheduled to work. **Relieved of Duty.** The status of an employee who is not required or permitted to perform regular assignments. **Resignation.** Voluntary departure of an employee from employment with the department and the City of Houston prior to retirement. **Responsible Division.** The HPD division responsible for investigating a particular type of offense (e.g., Homicide Division is responsible for murder investigations and Vehicular Crimes Division is responsible for traffic fatality investigations). **Retirement.** The status of an employee who has ended employment with the department and the City of Houston and who is eligible to receive a pension. Eligibility varies based on the employee's pension system and number of years of service to the City of Houston and, in some cases, the employee's age. **Secondary Division.** An HPD division, other than the primary division, responsible for part of a criminal investigation. **Selection.** The process of choosing an individual to fill a vacant employment position. **Senior Executive Staff.** An advisory board to the Chief of Police consisting of all executive assistant chiefs. **Senior Police Officer.** An officer who is classified as a Grade IV officer. **Shall.** When appearing in written policies or procedures in a directive or instructive statement, the words will or shall indicate a mandatory or required course of action. The words will or shall carry the same power as a direct order. **Shift.** The working period of a group of employees scheduled to be on duty during approximately the same time of day. Also, a period of time an individual employee is expected to be present for duty. A regular assigned shift is usually 8 or 10 hours in duration. **Shift Commander.** This term usually refers to a lieutenant in charge of a shift. However, this definition may include a sergeant in charge of a shift when the lieutenant is absent. **Should.** When appearing in written policies or procedures in a directive or instructive statement, the word should indicates a strong suggestion of a course of action and a concerted effort ought to be made to complete the task, but it is not mandatory. **Specialized Unit.** An HPD unit requiring unique training and having a primary responsibility other than responding to calls for service and designated as such by the Chief of Police. This includes, but is not limited to, Mounted Patrol, Patrol Canine Detail, Bomb Squad, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Detail, and Marine Unit. **Straight Time.** A wage-rate calculation including base and longevity pay only. **Supervisor.** An employee having supervisory responsibilities, either temporarily or regularly, over another employee. **Supervisory Intervention (SI).** A nonpunitive corrective action as defined in the department's current Corrective Action Manual. **Supplemental Incident Report.** A report made in addition to and relating to an original incident report. A.k.a. supplement. **Suspension.** The status of an employee temporarily relieved of duty for disciplinary reasons. **Temporary Assignment.** An assignment outside an employee's regular assigned division normally lasting 30 calendar days or less unless otherwise approved. **Temporary Extra Employment.** Extra employment spanning 30 calendar days or less. **Termination.** Involuntary removal of an employee from employment with the department and the City of Houston during the probationary period **Tour of Duty.** The period of time an employee is assigned to a regular duty assignment while remaining in the same rank. **Undercover.** Used to describe an investigator or a group of investigators who use an assumed name or other identity disguise to gain the trust of a suspect for the purpose of obtaining information about illegal activity in order to effect an arrest. **Uniform Standards Catalog.** A catalog of equipment and uniforms approved by the Chief of Police. **Uniformed Division.** A division in the department in which all or a portion of the officers are required to wear the department's official classified uniform during normal on-duty operations. **Uniformed Officer.** An officer required to wear a recognizable police officer's uniform while on duty. **Uniformed Services.** All uniformed divisions excluding the administrative and support personnel assigned to such divisions. **Unmarked Vehicle.** A police vehicle with no recognizable police decals and no exposed emergency equipment. **Unscheduled Leave.** A leave event is unscheduled, regardless of leave type, if the leave is requested less than 24 hours prior to the start of the leave being requested unless there is an open position in the Red Book or approved by a supervisor. **Wagon.** A marked police unit, truck, or van used to transport arrested persons from one location to another. **Wagon Call.** An assignment issued for a police officer to convey or move individuals or property from one place to another. **Will.** When appearing in written policies or procedures in a directive or instructive statement, the words will or shall indicate a mandatory or required course of action. The words will or shall carry the same power as a direct order. **Work Card.** A form on which officers record their daily work activity (e.g., tickets issued, arrests made, and investigations carried out). **Workday.** For department purposes, when referring to an employee this typically refers to one of the days of the week that is not one of the employee's regular days off and not an observed City Council declared holiday. Workday can also refer to the number of hours in an employee's assigned shift. When referring to an organizational unit of the department workday refers to any day in which normal operations for the unit are conducted. **Wrecker.** A vehicle designed and equipped to tow another vehicle from one location to another. Art Acevedo Chief of Police