Inspector is both a
police rank and an administrative position, both used in a number of contexts. However, it is not an equivalent rank in each police force.
Australia
In Australian police forces, the rank of Inspector is generally the next senior rank from
Senior Sergeant and is less senior than a
superintendent (in the cases of the
Queensland Police and
Western Australia Police) or the rank of
Chief Inspector in the other Australian police forces. Members holding the rank usually wear an epaulette featuring three silver pips, the same rank badge as a
Captain in the
army.
In addition to the general rank of Inspector, some police forces use other ranks such as Detective Inspector and District Inspector.
Austria
In Austria a similar scheme was used as in Germany. At some point the police inspector was completely removed from the list of service ranks. The current police service has an inspectors service track with "Inspektor" being the entry level - it is followed by "Revierinspektor" (precinct inspector), "Gruppeninspektor" (group inspector), "Bezirksinspektor" (county inspector), "Abteilungsinspektor" (office inspector), "Kontrollinspektor" (control inspector) and "Chefinspektor" (chief inspector).
In Austria the "Inspektor" is a colloquial name for any detective which is used independent of the actual rank.
Canada
In most
Canadian police services the rank of Inspector is the first above the
sergeant ranks. It is usually immediately below the rank of
Superintendent. Senior Inspectors are higher ranking administrative rank in Canada's police forces.
France
In the
French National Police, inspecteur is a former rank of members of the Command and Management Corps. There were several grades of ''Inspecteur'', with senior detectives holding the various grades of
commissaire. See
French National Police for current ranks. In the
French customs, inspecteur is the first rank of members of the Command and Management Corps.
Germany
In contemporary
Germany, "Inspektor" is a civil service rank. It is the lowest and therefore the entry rank of the ''gehobener Dienst'' (upper service) requiring a degree from a three-year administrative college. The rank is not used in the German police services; there the equivalent of Inspektor is Kommissar. In earlier times the upper service track was called "Inspektorenlaufbahn" (inspectors service track) ranging from "Inspektor", "Oberinspektor" (senior inspector), "Amtmann", "Amtsrat" to "Oberamtsrat" (senior supervisor).
The title is used on many professional areas that require an inspection service, like "Brandinspektor" (fire inspector in the fire department), "Steuerinspektor" (tax inspector in the financial department) or "Bauinspektor" (building inspector in building control) that are in a supervision position of their department. In many administration parts a corresponding position exists like the "Regierungsinspektor" (government inspector on the federal level), "Stadtinspektor"/"Stadtverwaltungsinspektor" (city administration inspector)), "Kreisinspektor"/"Kreisverwaltungsinspektor" (county administration inspector) that serve in supervision of the department.
In some regions the "Inspektor" is a colloquial name for any detective rank just like in Austria.
Hong Kong
In the
Hong Kong Police Force, inspector (including probationary inspector and senior inspector) is the rank senior to
station sergeant but junior to
chief inspector, leading a sub-unit in day-to-day policing. Rank badge of probationary inspector is one silver pip on his/her epaulette; 2 silver pips for inspector of police; and 2 silver pips and one bar on for senior inspector of police. The epaulettes rank badge of
chief inspector is 3 silver pips. The epaulettes of all inspectors do not show their personal identification number. Plain-clothes detective inspectors have the prefix 'detective' identifying them as having been trained in criminal investigation and being part of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) or Organised Crime Triad Bureau (OCTB).
Customs and Excise Department also have inspector ranking but with bronze stars and bars rank badge instead.
India
In the police forces of
India, an inspector is a non-gazetted police officer ranking above a
Sub-Inspector and below a
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) or an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP). In the Rural areas Inspectors generally (but not always) have jurisdictions over more than one police station (generally under a
Sub-Inspector of Police). However, in many cities, Inspectors would be the Station House Officer (SHO) at every police station. The rank insignia for a Police Inspector is three stars, and a red and blue striped ribbon at the outer edge of the shoulder straps. In rural areas where an inspector is in charge of a police circle (consisting more than one police station) he is also referred to as "Circle Inspector" (CI).
Indonesia
In the
Indonesian National Police, there are four levels of inspector, which are First Police Inspector (''Inspektur Polisi Satu''), Senior Police Inspector (''Inspektur Polisi Dua''), First Police Inspector
Adjutant (''Ajun Inspektur Polisi Satu''), and Second Police Inspector Adjutant (''Ajun Inspektur Polisi Dua''). Those ranks are below the rank of Police Commissioner Adjutant (''Ajun Komisaris Polisi'') and above the rank of Chief Police Brigadier (''Brigadir Polisi Kepala'').
Ireland
In the ''
Garda Síochána'', inspectors are senior to sergeants and junior to
superintendents. Inspectors may be either detectives or in uniform.
Italy
In the ''
Polizia di Stato'', the position of ''Ispettore'' (Inspector) replaced the rank of ''
Maresciallo'' after the 1981 reorganization and
demilitarization of the corps; an ''Ispettore'' is thus a
Sergeant of several sorts, above the rank of ''Sovrintendente'' (
Superintendent, which is somewhat equal to a
Senior Corporal) and under the rank of ''
Commissario''. There are three four different Inspector ranks in the
Polizia di Stato: ''Vice Ispettore'' ("Assistant Inspector"), ''Ispettore'' ("Inspector"), ''Ispettore Capo'' ("
Chief Inspector") and ''Ispettore Superiore'' ("Special Inspector", or "Superior Inspector"), roughly equivalent to the ranks ranging from
Junior Sergeant to
Second Lieutenant. A fifth position, called ''Ispettore Superiore S.U.P.S.'', where the achronym stands for ''Sostituto Ufficiale di Pubblica Sicurezza'' ("Special Inspector - Substitute Public Safety Commissioned Officer"), is used to designate those Inspectors which can act as substitutes to
Commissioners in the chain of command under certain situations, or in Police detachments that are too small to require the presence of a Commissioner; when this happens, the officer is named ''Ispettore Superore - Sostituto Commissario'' ("Special Inspector - Substitute Commissioner"). Inspectors can serve either in uniformed patrol duties, plain-clothed patrol duties, or as detectives. The Inspector ranks are the highest that an Italian Police officer can reach without having a
University degree.
Malaysia
In
Malaysia's police force, the rank Inspector is one step above the Sub-Inspector and one step under Assistant Superintendent. There are three stages: probation inspector (three years probation), inspector and chief inspector. Inspectors are recruited differently from the normal police constable. Their training is also longer. The minimum requirement to join police inspector is a degree.
Poland
In
Poland, inspector (''inspektor'') is a high rank (above ''podinspektor'' and ''młodszy inspektor'', but below ''nadinspektor''), comparable to
colonel of the armed forces.
Romania
In the
Romanian Police, inspector is a rank senior to ''
Subinspector'' and junior to ''
Inspector principal'' and corresponds to the former rank of Police
Lieutenant (''see
Romanian Police Ranks'').
Sri Lanka
In the
Sri Lanka Police Service, Inspector of Police (IP) is a gazetted officer rank senior to ''
Sub-Inspector'' and junior to ''
Chief Inspector''. In many towns, Inspectors would be the
Officer in Charge (OIC) at most
police stations. The rank insignia for a Police Inspector is two stars.
United Kingdom
Within the British police, inspector is the second supervisory rank. It is senior to that of sergeant, but junior to that of chief inspector. The rank is mostly operational, meaning that inspectors are directly concerned with day-to-day policing. Uniformed inspectors are often responsible for supervising a duty shift made up of constables and sergeants, or act in specialist roles such as supervising road traffic policing.
The rank of inspector has existed since the foundation of the Metropolitan Police, formed in 1829, when it was used to designate the rank immediately below that of superintendent, and many Commonwealth police forces also use the term.
Plain-clothes detective inspectors are equal in rank to their uniformed counterparts, the prefix 'detective' identifying them as having been trained in criminal investigation and being part of or attached to their force's Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
The epaulettes of uniformed inspectors, unlike those of constables and sergeants, do not show a divisional or personal identification number. Instead they feature Order of the Bath stars, informally known as "pips", being the same insignia as those of a lieutenant in the British Army.
Newly promoted inspectors currently receive a salary of £46,788 (£48,840 London) rising to £50,751 (£52,818 London).
In the Metropolitan Police, the rank was formerly officially known as Station Inspector to distinguish it from the more senior rank of Sub-Divisional Inspector (abolished in 1949). A Station Inspector wore a single star on his epaulettes until 1936, when this changed to a star over two bars to accommodate the new rank of Junior Station Inspector (wearing a star over one bar).
United States
In the United States, the term inspector can have very different meanings depending on the law enforcement agency.
Municipal police
In the
San Francisco Police Department, inspector was the normal title for a detective, and the investigative branch of the SFPD is called the Bureau of Inspectors, renamed from the Investigations Bureau.
In the Berkeley, California, Police Department, inspector was once the title used for an investigative supervisor who commanded a specific specialized detail, like Homicide, Robbery, or Property Crimes, within the department's Detective Division. They ranked between sergeants and lieutenants and, on the comparatively rare occasions when they wore uniforms, their rank insignia was identical to that worn by warrant officers in the US Armed Forces. The title has since been phased out, and the duties once performed by inspectors are now performed by detective sergeants.
In the Hayward, California Police Department, the rank of inspector is a civil service rank above a detective and below that of a sergeant.
In the New York City Police Department, an inspector is a high-ranking executive position, two grades above a Captain, one grade above a Deputy Inspector, and immediately below a Deputy Chief. Inspectors in the NYPD wear the eagle insignia worn by colonels in both the military and the New York State Police, and their rank may be thought of in those terms. In the LAPD, the rank of inspector, one grade above captain, was changed to commander in 1974, because LAPD senior officers preferred the more military-sounding title.
In the Detroit Police Department, an inspector is the equivalent of a captain in most police forces.
State Police
In the
Wisconsin State Patrol, and others, inspectors are state troopers assigned to the motor carrier safety inspection unit where they enforce trucking laws and regulations.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation's Division of Motor Vehicles License and Theft Bureau uses the title of Inspector for its sworn state Law Enforcement Agents / Investigators. The Inspectors of this agency investigate motor vehicle theft, title and odometer frauds, state issued identification and driver's license frauds, as well as regulate and inspect motor vehicle dealerships, repair shops, tow and storage facilities, and emissions and safety inspection centers. The NC DMV License and Theft Bureau is the state's oldest Law Enforcement Agency and was formed in 1921 to combat vehicle theft with the rising sales of Ford's Model T. The agency has kept the title designation of Inspector for traditional purposes.
Federal Police
In the
FBI, an inspector is a
special agent whose main duty is inspecting local Field Offices and Resident Agencies to make sure they are operating efficiently. Since FBI Inspectors are not tied to any particular Field Office, they have, in the past, also been used as trouble-shooting investigators on major cases.
Joseph Sullivan, the model for Inspector Lew Erskine, the fictional character played by
Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in the 1965-1974
ABC TV series ''
The FBI'', was perhaps the best-known of the Bureau's Major Case Inspectors.
The United States Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement administration employ a similar positions, but they primarily serve as internal affairs investigators.
In the Postal Inspection Service, inspector is the name given to 1811 Criminal Investigators, better known as special agents in most other Federal Law Enforcement Agencies.
Administrative law
In American
administrative law, an inspector is an official charged with the duty to issue permits, such as a
building inspector or
sanitation inspector, and to enforce the relevant
regulations and
laws. These positions are commonly known as the Fire Inspector or Building Inspector. The duty it act is based on the adopted building or fire code in the municipality. A government agency may also have an
Inspector General responsible for preventing internal
fraud, waste, abuse and other agency deficiencies.
See also
Police rank
Detective
Investigator
Special agent
References
Category:Detectives and criminal investigators
Category:Police ranks
Category:Police ranks in the United Kingdom
Category:Law enforcement
Category:Administrative law
ca:Inspector (rang policial)
de:Inspektor
eo:Inspektoro
fr:Officier de police (France)
it:Ispettore
lt:Inspektorius
nl:Inspecteur (politie)
ja:警部
pl:Inspektor Policji
ru:Инспектор
tr:Komiser
uk:Інспектор
zh:督察級
