The UMBC Police run a VHF radio repeater on campus on 155.550 MHz, under the FCC callsign of KIL428. The dispatchers announce this callsign every hour or more by FCC regulations.

As a citizen you have the right to listen to public service officers at work on open radio channels. You cannot directly publish any incident you hear on the radio without verifying it with the police department either in person or over the telephone. You can't use a radio scanner in the commission of any other crime. Just use your head on this one.

The police department is aware that they are being monitored and have restricted the amount of information that goes out on the air in sensitive situations such as domestic violence, assault and fatal vehicle accidents on campus.

The department shifts run from 0700 to 1500, 1500 to 2300, and 2300 to 0700. Every shift is divided into an officer for each "sector", or area of UMBC. They are numbered 101 through 104, corresponding to which area they are covering. The shift supervisor, usually a Corporal or Sergeant, goes by number 100.

Other three digit identifiers you'll hear are the 300s, 600s, 700s and 800s. 300 units are Residental Patrol Officers, hired by Residental Life and working under the Police Department every night from 2300-0700. 600 units are Student Marshals. 700 units are Trident Security officers, usually working full shifts in an academic building or the Technology Resource Center. 800 units are Trident event security. Usually only the leader of the Trident officers will be given a police radio and 800 number.

Two digit identifiers are badge numbers, used when one officer or another can't remember which region their fellow officer is covering that night, but remembers their badge, or when an officer is on overtime for an event and not assigned a region. Badge numbers are assigned in numeric order of arrival on the force.

Officers arrive on the scene and call 10-23, then 10-24 when the assignment is completed.

Those familiar with CB lingo will recognize the fairly common numbers of 10-20 and 10-25, which mean location and a meeting respectively. Often two officers will arrange a "twenty for a twenty-five", which is a location for a face to face meeting.

Units will go on break or special assignment by calling busy, or 10-6. They return into regular patrols and service by calling 10-8.

Other important terms include a 10-50, which is an accident, and CDS which is "Controlled Dangerous Substance" or some manner of drugs. Resident Life often calls for "Suspicious smell, possible CDS" in the dorm areas. It's usually false, but listen carefully when you hear one just in case it might be something interesting.

A written warning is just what you'd think it is. An RO or ERO is an Equipment Repair Order, issued for broken headlights and the like. A State Citation is a ticket. A 10-28, DL check or check by Soundex is a Driver's License lookup. A tag is a license plate, always proceeded by state, as in "Maryland tags, Boy Lincoln Ida Six Oh One" would be MD BLI601. If you hear the words "running radar" or "radar stop" before you leave, drive slow.

Foot patrols are fairly common, as are alarm responses. That'll be the primary nature of the traffic on the frequency. It's likely that after time you'll easily be able to identify the important and the not-so-important messages over their repeater.

As of a few months ago, full names and complete student ID (social security) numbers of alarm code holders were still regularly read unencoded over the air by foot patrols to verify a student or faculty member's identity with the dispatcher on duty. The department policy has since changed to read only the last four digits.

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