The so-called 'ten codes' were developed in the early days of police radio communications. Many times, in those days, the first part of a transmission would be lost due to equipment vagaries, while the length of the transmissions and their clarity was improved by assigning numbers to the most common messages. Therefore, the '10' was used to alert the listener that a message number was to follow. This system has remained in use, and seems likely to do so for the foreseeable future.
10-2 Good Signal, usually used to mean simply 'good'
10-4 Acknowledged, frequently used to indicate agreement
10-5 Relay
10-6 Busy (as in doing cop work), often used as a 'do not disturb' sign on the radio
10-7 Temporarily Out of Service (as in lunch)
10-8 Back in Service
10-9 Repeat
10-10 Fight
10-13 Weather and Road Conditions
10-16 Domestic Case
10-20 Location
10-21 Telephone, as in 'ten-twenty-one the office'
10-22 Disregard
10-23 Arrived at Scene
10-24 Assignment Completed
10-25 Report in Person to Meet, usually used simply as 'meet'
10-27 Operator's License Information
10-28 Vehicle Registration Information
10-29 Check Records for Stolen, modern usage also means 'warrant' or 'wanted'
10-32 Suspect with Gun, also used in reference to knives and other devices
10-33 Emergency
10-46 Disabled Vehicle
10-50 Motor Vehicle Crash
10-51 Wrecker 10-52 Ambulance
10-55 DWI
10-56 Intoxicated Pedestrian
10-61 Personnel in Area, frequently used to indicate that a civilian can hear the radio
10-70 Fire
10-76 En Route
10-78 Need Assistance
10-79 Notify Medical Examiner, also used to indicate a deceased subject
10-80 High-Speed Pursuit
10-96 Mentally Disturbed Subject
As an example, if you as an officer were to suddenly encounter an armed suspect, shots were fired, you needed help, and thought somebody had been injured, you might transmit:
'ten-thirty-three, ten-thirty-two, need ten-seventy-eight, and get me a ten-fifty-two, this is ten-thirty- three!'
(Note the use of 10-33 twice, which officers tend to do when emphasizing dire straits.) An excellent dispatcher will get the whole picture, and may merely try to discover your position by saying 'ten-four, ten-twenty?' As with any system, the clarity and usefulness depends entirely on the quality of the personnel involved. An excited officer may be merely garbled, and the transmissions result in a 'ten-nine?' An inattentive dispatcher may 'tune in' halfway through the message, and receive incomplete data. This, too, can lead to additional risk and hazard.
This is only one example of why the retention of your top-notch people is so important.
Acknowledgments
To Dr. Peter Stevens, I wish to express my great appreciation for his great knowledge of pathology, his enthusiastic advice, and his support of my efforts. I would like to express my gratitude to the Officers, Dispatchers, and Staff of the Clayton County Sheriff's Department, for their continued cooperation and assistance, and for the work they do every day and every night. I would like to thank my friends 'on the boat,' who explained some complex things to me. I thank my wife, Mary, without whose support and encouragement I would not be able to write; and my daughter, Erica, who provides honest and constructive criticism in the early stages of each book.
About the Author
DONALD HARSTAD is a twenty-six-year veteran of the Clayton County Sheriffs Department in northeastern Iowa, and the author of the acclaimed
