About the Louisiana
State Police
Louisiana's first attempt at law enforcement on a statewide level came in 1922 in response to the arrival of
the automobile. Louisiana had 2,700 miles of roadway and an estimated 102,000 vehicles. The Louisiana Highway Commission was
created and given the power to appoint inspectors to enforce laws relating to the highways. The Commission operated with the
state divided into ten districts; sixteen officers patrolled the entire state. During the two year period from 1922 to 1924,
114 serious accidents and 18,918 violations of motor vehicle laws were reported.
In 1992 the department took over a new and much more complex responsibility: riverboat
and video poker gaming. Operating with a small contingency of troopers, the Louisiana State Police began formulating the tough
licensing process for all who either wished to own a river boat casino or operate a video poker franchise. Although the task
seemed overwhelming, experienced "highway patrolmen" quickly adjusted from law enforcers to regulators. The department
began to flourish with new equipment and more manpower as a result of being the chief watchdog of the new gaming industry.
With this newly added equipment and manpower, the department was able to take on a different role in law enforcement, that
of assisting all law enforcement agencies by using the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). AFIS provides law
enforcement with a tool that instantly identifies a person through his fingerprints which are imperative to criminal identification
and arrest. Also, a totally updated 800 megahertz radio system was implemented which allows multi-agency or jurisdiction coordination
among all law enforcement agencies.
As
part of the criminal investigative side of the Bureau of Investigations, the Detective Section is comprised of both Detectives
and the Insurance Fraud Unit. The Insurance Fraud Unit provides a specialized, focused effort towards combating specific types
of crime. The Insurance Fraud Unit works closely in partnership with our state’s insurance industry and focuses their
efforts towards all types of insurance fraud and auto theft. The Detectives are responsible for the investigation of violent
crime, property crime, white collar/economic crime, identity theft, related financial crimes, internet child predators/pornography
as well as cyber-related crimes, and apprehension of criminals and fugitives.
Source:
lsp.org
