The Georgia Department of Public Safety was created in 1937 and oversees the day-to-day operation of the Georgia State Patrol (GSP), Capitol Police and the Motor Carrier Compliance Division (MCCD). GSP troopers investigate traffic crashes and enforce traffic and criminal laws on the state's roads. Capitol Police officers prevent and detect criminal acts, and enforce traffic regulations throughout Capitol Hill. MCCD officers conduct safety inspections of commercial motor vehicles and inspect highway shipments of hazardous materials.
"Wisdom, Justice and Moderation" has been the motto of the Georgia State Patrol since its inception in March 1937. It was the motoring public who first advocated the need for the Department of Public Safety. Traffic fatalities, increased crime, and a need for a larger law enforcement agency with statewide arrest powers, led Georgia lawmakers to create the State Patrol. In the summer of 1937, the first Trooper School was held at the campus of The Georgia Institute of Technology and graduated 80 Troopers. The first Headquarters for the Georgia State Patrol was founded in the Confederate Veterans' mansion on East Confederate Avenue in Atlanta, Ga. The facilities were moved to the newly constructed Headquarters Building next door in the mid-1950s. This building still houses the offices of all command staff members, personnel, supplies, motor pool/garage and the Metro-Atlanta Communications Center, or "Troop C" as it is known. Prior to the construction of the Georgia Public Safety Training Center in Forsyth, Ga, Headquarters was also the site of GSP's "Trooper School". Later in this period, driver training was conducted at the "Atlanta International Raceway", or "Atlanta Motor Speedway" as it is known today. To date, the Georgia State Patrol has graduated 97 Trooper Schools.
Since its beginnings, the Georgia State Patrol has been one of the leading law enforcement agencies in the country with regards to new technology and innovations. Georgia State Patrol was the first agency to equip all of its patrol cars with dash-mounted cameras. Each trooper on patrol in Georgia has specialized training in the Pursuit Immobilization Technique (P.I.T.). This method allows Troopers to end pursuits quickly by putting the fleeing vehicle in a controlled spin.
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 - , 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.
Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) includes the Crisis Negotiations Team (CNT)
Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team (SCRT)
Commercial Motor Vehicle - Criminal Interdiction Unit (CMV-CIU)
Aviation Unit - Operates 15 helicopters and a Cessna 182 from six locations throughout the State. These are located in Kennesaw, Gainesville, Augusta, Albany, Reidsville, and Perry.
Nighthawks DUI Task Force - A 10-member DUI Task Force which patrols Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties during peak DUI related hours.
Motorcycle Unit - Post 49 - Patrols the Interstate Highways of metropolitan Atlanta with 30 motorcycles.
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.
The Executive Security Division is, by law, responsible for two distinct functions: executive security and executive protection.
Executive Security The Executive Security Unit provides facility security for the Governor's Mansion and provides personal security for the residents.
Executive Protection Operating under the Lt. Colonel, this unit provides continual security for the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker of the House and their families.
The Motor Carrier Compliance Division (MCCD) 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 includes 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 provides 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.
Glock Model 17 GEN 4 9mm- standard issue
Glock Model 43 9mm- backup weapon
Remington 870 "Police Magnum" 12 gauge- patrol shotgun
AR-15 5.56x45mm NATO- patrol rifle
Glock Model 37 .45 GAP- 2007-2014
Glock Model 22 .40 S&W- 1990's-2007
Smith & Wesson Model 5906 9mm or Smith & Wesson Model 4506 .45 ACP (troopers choice)- early 1990's to late 1990's
Smith & Wesson Model 66 .357 magnum
Colt Python .357 magnum
Since the establishment of the Georgia State Patrol, 26 officers have died in the line of duty.
