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The Division of the Florida Highway Patrol ( FHP ) is a division of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and the law enforcement agency charged with ensuring the safety of the highways and roads of the state.

History

The Department of Public Safety was created in 1939 and later in 1970 was reorganized and renamed the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. On November 23, 1931, at the request of the Chairman of the State Road Department (Florida Attorney General Cary D. Landis) to Governor Doyle E. Carlton, ruled it shall be the duty of the State Road Department to maintain the state roads and enforce the laws enacted to preserve its physical structure. The road department hired 12 weight inspectors who were placed under the supervision of the division engineers because of the ruling. This was the beginning of state law enforcement in Florida.

In January 1934, a Division of Traffic Enforcement was created as a result of an Attorney General's opinion indicating the division could enforce the motor vehicles laws. As a result, E. A. Shurman was appointed Traffic Inspector. The division was given a distinctive military style uniform, forest green in color.

In July 1936, Chairman C. B. Treadway appointed Army Major H. Neil Kirkman, Chief of the State Road Department's Traffic Division due to his experience in the Armed Forces associated with traffic and his background in engineering. Army Major Kirkman was the engineer supervising the construction of the Palatka Memorial Bridge over the St. Johns River.

When Fred P. Cone was elected Governor in 1937, as an economic move, he abolished the traffic enforcement division of the State Road Department even though it performed valuable service to the citizens of Florida during the years of service.

The American Legion and the Jaycees strongly supported the idea of establishing a highway patrol to serve the needs of the motoring public. Richard (Dick) W. Ervin was the attorney for the State Road Department and his supervisor was Arthur B. Hale, Governor Cone's Chairman of the State Road Department.

In 1939, the Florida Legislature created the State Department of Public Safety with two divisions; the Florida Highway Patrol and the Division of State Motor Vehicle Drivers Licenses, under the control of Governor Fred P. Cone and Chairman of the State Road Department, Arthur B. Hale.

The legislation authorized 60 officers to patrol the public highways and to enforce all State laws in effect, or hereinafter enacted, regulating and governing traffic, travel and public safety upon the public highways, and providing penalties for violations thereof, including the operation, regulation and licensing of motor vehicles and drivers thereof, and other vehicles thereon, with full police power to bear arms and to arrest persons violating said laws. The beginning salary was $1,500 per year for a highway patrolmen and each year thereafter the salary would be increased $120 a year until a maximum of $2,000 a year was reached.

Funds for the operation of the Department were to come from the sale of driver licenses.

Organization

The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is a state government agency which reports to the governor of Florida and the Florida Cabinet. The DHSMV is headquartered at the Neil Kirkman Building in Tallahassee, the state capital. Julie Jones is the executive director of DHSMV. David Westberry is deputy executive director.

The director of the Florida Highway Patrol holds the rank of colonel. The organization has five bureaus

The Bureau of Investigations is commanded by a major, while the other four bureaus are each commanded by a deputy director, a lieutenant colonel. Nine field troops are commanded by personnel with the rank of major, which are divided by regions geographically located across the state. A tenth troop handles the Florida Turnpike operations.

Troops are subdivided into 30 district headquarters, each commanded by a captain. Florida Highway Patrol officers are called State Troopers (not Highway Patrolman, as in some states).

The FHP and its troopers are state law enforcement officers (LEOs), and as such are considerated police officers. They have the power to enforce Florida state law and make arrests. Still, they are not state police: the Florida Constitution stipulates that the chief law enforcement officer of a Florida county is that county's sheriff.

The function of the FHP is to the safety of State Roads, U.S. Highways, and Interstate Highways in Florida. Florida has an investigative department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, analogous to the FBI,

In addition to the FHP, Florida's highways are patrolled by the Florida Department of Transportation's Office of Motor Carrier Compliance (MCCO), a state law enforcement agency responsible for commercial vehicle laws in the state.

The FHP was created in 1939 with 60 uniformed officers.

There have been 41 state troopers killed in the line of duty since its founding: 19 died by gunshot, 17 in automobile crashes, five in aircraft crashes, and one in an explosion. The authorized strength of the FHP is 2360: 1813 sworn, 547 non-sworn.

The FHP Reserve consists of 110 volunteer members who have the authority to bear arms and make arrests but receive no compensation.

The FHP Auxiliary consists of 500 volunteer members who are armed and wear uniforms who assist troopers throughout the state but do not have arrest power and receive no compensation.

Special functions