Plain Talk Eases Police Radio Codes Off The Air

Police radio can sound like an algebra class, with all those 10-4s and 187s. But more and more departments are trying a radical approach: asking officers who need backup or want to report a robbery to do so in plain old English. Coded police talk came about during the 1920s and '30s, when radio channels were scarce. Officers needed to get on and off the air quickly. They created what are called 10 codes, and then later signal codes. Police also thought the codes would keep things less public. The real push to plain English came after Sept. 11, followed by Hurricane Katrina, when dozens of neighboring police responded to New York City, Washington, D.C., and New Orleans only to be met by utter confusion on the radio. Three years ago, the Department of Homeland Security asked police agencies to voluntarily make the switch.