CPD SealA Brief Chicago Police Department Tutorial



Due South takes place in the Area 7 Detective Division, 27th District. Elaine Besbriss left to patrol a beat in the 31st District in the third season. However, the real Chicago Police Department is divided in 279 beats, 25 districts, and 5 areas. A beat is a geographic area assigned to specific officers for patrol. A district is similar to precincts in other cities. An area is a group of five police districts which share a detective unit, a youth investigation unit, and male and female lock-up facilities.



A detective is a sworn member (a member of the CPD who takes an oath to support the U.S. and Illinois constitutions and has the authority to make arrests and carry firearms) of the Department responsible for the follow-up investigation of crime. A probationary police officer is a sworn member who has been employed as a police officer for less than one year, also known as a rookie. An assistant state's attorney (ASA), acting on behalf of the state's attorney, represents the state in criminal proceedings; in Cook County, an ASA must review all felony charges before they are approved.



Sworn ranks in the CPD are listed below:

RankUniform Insignia
Superintendent of Police4 Silver 5-pointed Stars
1st Deputy Superintendent3 Silver 5-pointed Stars
Deputy Superintendent2 Silver 5-pointed Stars
Chief1 Silver 5-pointed Star
Asst. Deputy SuperintendentSilver or Gold Spread Eagle
Deputy ChiefSilver Oak Leaf
CommanderGold Oak Leaf
CaptainTwo Silver Bars
Lieutenant/Inspector1 Silver Bar (Lt. only)
Sergeant3 Chevrons
Police Officer assigned as Detective, Police Technician, Patrol Specialist, Investigator, Gang Crime Specialist, Police Agent, Traffic SpecialistNone
Police OfficerNone




The following table lists the 25 districts of the CPD.

1stCentral14thShakespeare
2ndWentworth15thAustin
3rdGrand Crossing16thJefferson Park
4thSouth Chicago17thAlbany Park
5thCalumet18thEast Chicago
6thGresham19thBelmont
7thEnglewood20thFoster
8thChicago Lawn21stPrairie
9thDeering22ndMorgan Park
10thMarquette23rdTown Hall
11thHarrison24thRogers Park
12thMonroe25thGrand Central
13thWood


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