A police radio code is a brevity code used by law enforcement in the United States to communicate quickly over police radio. Common examples include 10 codes like 10-4 meaning "acknowledged," as well as incident and response codes. Codes vary widely by agency and region, often differing even within the same city, which can complicate interagency communication. While some agencies adopt plain language for clarity, debates continue due to concerns about brevity, consistency, and operational security advantages provided by coded messages.
Examples
| Code | Description |
|---|---|
| 2 | No lights or sirens |
| 3 | Lights and sirens |
| 4 | Disregard |
| 121 | Priority on the air |
| 122 | Priority on silence |
| 123 | Sick or injured person |
| 124 | Operation completed |
| 125 | Operation continue |
| 126 | Intercept suspects |
| 127 | Proceed with caution |
| 128 | No siren, no flashing |
| 129 | Request back up |
| 130 | Emergency |
| 131 | Shooting |
| 132 | Armed robbery |
| 133 | Possibly dangerous person |
| 134 | Kidnapping |
| 135 | Escape |
| 136 | Hold of hostages |
| 137 | Riot |
| 138 | Bomb alert |
| 139 | Air disaster |
| 140 | Murder |
| 141 | Accident |
| 142 | Unlawful assembly |
| 143 | Hit and run |
| 144 | Impaired |
| 145 | Prisoner transport |
| 146 | Breaking and entering (vehicle or residence) |
| 147 | Suspect armed |
| 148 | Brawl or family feuding |
| 149 | Ascertainment |
| 150 | Theft |
California
The Hundred Code is a three-digit police code system.3 This code is usually pronounced digit-by-digit, using a radio alphabet for any letters, as 505 "five zero five" or 207A "two zero seven Alpha". The following codes are used in California. They are from the California Penal Code, except where noted below.4[better source needed]
In the 1970s, the television show Adam-12 was considered so authentic in its portrayal of Los Angeles PD officers and their procedures that excerpts from the shows were used as police training films nationwide.5 This led to the widespread use of California Penal Codes as radio codes.
| Code | Description |
|---|---|
| 187 | Murder |
| 505 | Kidnapping |
| 207A | Kidnapping attempt |
| 211 | Robbery |
| 211A | Robbery alarm |
| 211S | Robbery alarm, silent |
| 212 | Illegal use of drugs |
| 213 | Use of illegal explosives |
| 214 | Kidnapping and murder |
| 215 | Carjacking |
| 216 | Child abuse |
| 217 | Assault with intent to murder |
| 218 | Sexual activity with a minor |
| 219 | Cutting or stabbing |
| 240 | Assault |
| 241 | Impaling |
| 242 | Battery |
| 243 | Battery with dangerous weapons |
| 244 | Throwing acid with intent to disfigure or burn |
| 245 | Assault with a deadly weapon |
| 246 | Shooting at inhabited dwelling |
| 261 | Rape |
| 261A | Attempted rape |
| 273A | Child neglect |
| 273D | Domestic violence – felony |
| 288 | Lewd conduct with a minor |
| 311 | Possession of obscene material |
| 314 | Indecent exposure |
| 374B | Illegal dumping |
| 390 | Drunk |
| 390D | Drunk, unconscious |
| 415 | Disturbance |
| 417 | Person with a gun |
| 417K | Person with a knife |
| 417B | Person with bomb |
| 419 | Dead human body |
| 428 | Child molest |
| 444 | Officer-involved shooting |
| 459 | Burglary |
| 459A | Burglar alarm |
| 459S | Burglar alarm, silent |
| 470 | Forgery |
| 480 | Hit and run – felony (great bodily injury or death) |
| 481 | Hit and run – misdemeanor |
| 484 | Theft (definition) |
| 486 | Major theft (value < 10,000) |
| 487 | Grand theft (value > $950, or certain livestock) |
| 488 | Petty theft (value < $950) |
| 501 | Drunk driving – felony (great bodily injury or death) |
| 502 | Drunk driving |
| 503 | Auto theft |
| 504 | Tampering with a vehicle |
| 505A | Reckless driving |
| 507 | Public nuisance |
| 510 | Speeding or racing vehicles |
| 586 | Illegal parking |
| 594 | Malicious mischief |
| 604 | Throwing object |
| 647 | Lewd conduct (various subsections) |
| 653M | Threatening phone calls |
| 998 | Officer involved shooting |
500 codes and similar
"500" codes are only radio codes that substitute for other code sections. For example, a "503" is not Penal Code section 503 (embezzlement). All of the "500" codes, generally, involve vehicles and are thus grouped together (except 594, which is an actual Penal Code section). Additionally, "390" and variants are also radio codes only (CPC 647(f) is the legally enforced section "public intoxication").
In California, some radio codes in the 400–599 range that refer to vehicle violations are left over from the California Vehicle Code (CVC) which was revised in 1971. Some agencies, such as the California Highway Patrol (CHP) use the current vehicle code numbers while municipal and county police agencies, especially the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) still use the 500 series.
| Old | New | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 480 | 20001 | Felony hit and run |
| 481 | 20002 | Misdemeanor hit and run |
| 501 | 23151 | Felony drunk driving |
| 502 | 23152 | Misdemeanor drunk driving6 |
| 503 | 10851 | Stolen vehicle (also a penal code section, 487A) |
| 504 | 10854 | Tampering with a motor vehicle |
| 505 | 23103 | Reckless driving |
| 510 | 23109 | Speed contest / racing |
| 586 | 22500 | Illegal parking |
See also
External links
- "Police Scanner Codes Site". PoliceCodes.org.
- "Radio and Identification codes". Mendosa.com.
- "Police Codes". PoliceCodes.net.
References
"Police 10 Codes". copradar.com. Retrieved 2022-10-20. https://copradar.com/tencodes/ ↩
"Police 10 codes vs. plain language: The history and ongoing debate". Police1. Retrieved 2022-10-20. https://www.police1.com/police-products/communications/articles/police-10-codes-vs-plain-language-the-history-and-ongoing-debate-zFVa5Fkggm8NKBPM/ ↩
"SQLSTATE Return Codes", SQL Clearly Explained, Elsevier, pp. 421–431, 2010, ISBN 978-0-12-375697-8, retrieved 2025-04-29 978-0-12-375697-8 ↩
Dansker, Zack. "Police Radio Codes". stanford.edu. Retrieved 25 March 2022. https://web.stanford.edu/~reneeb/bill/n.radio.code.html ↩
"How the TV series 'Adam-12' helped the LAPD sell the 'good cop' image". kpcc.org. Retrieved November 28, 2023. We had a technical advisor working with us every day that we shot the show. Once we left the car, they'd say: You do the approach this way, to this automobile where there's this suspected felon. Interestingly enough, during the whole run of "Adam-12," episodes of the show were being bicycled all over the country to police departments to be used as training videos. https://www.kpcc.org/show/the-frame/2016-09-16/how-the-tv-series-adam-12-helped-the-lapd-sell-the-good-cop-image ↩
A drunk driver is often referred to as a "deuce". This comes from the "2" at the end of the original code, "502", which subsequent codes have retained. /w/index.php?title=Deuce_(DUI)&action=edit&redlink=1 ↩