Posted on Feb 8, 2017
SGT Mechanic
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I was in the National Guard as an MP. Other than AIT I got very little to no training as a garrison MP. What is it like being an MP on active duty in garrison?
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LTC Operations Officer (Opso)
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SPC Brady Allen
SPC Brady Allen
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Over here is Germany, that is how people tend to do it. I mean, heck its only 30 Km on post that is like 19 MPH. You can literally be pulled over for going 30 MPH which is slow as none other. lol. SAD.....but true. :/.
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SPC Infantryman
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Whenever I go on Fort Wainright I encounter very aggressive MP's too, they just seem eager to do anything haha.
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SSG Aircraft Mechanic
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That's probably because in Alaska there's nothing else to do.
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SSG Michael LeGrand
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Don't get caught up in the whole "garrison" MP and "field" MP thing because the concept is not the same as it use to be 10-15 years ago. I was in 1st Armored Division in Wiesbaden Germany and we did Law Enforcement just as much as we trained out in the field. Because of OIF and OEF we catered more to the "field" aspect of being an MP because the chances of deployment rose rapidly. It just depends on what unit you go to. You'll have alot of guys tell you "I hate being in garrison" and "I'm not a garrison MP" when 90% of them initially joined just so they could do the law enforcement aspect of it. Alot of MPs forget that there are two sides of the coin of what we do.
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SGT Mechanic
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I was wondering because I was in the National Guard before. I never got any garrison training outside of AIT. I pretty well know being a field MP so I should be able to help whichever unit I go to out a lot when in the field. I worked in a prison while I was in the guard but that's the closest I've come to garrison work.
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SGT Military Police Team Leader
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Agreed
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MSG Johnathan Mathes
MSG Johnathan Mathes
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Retired mp here... law enforcement.. is a extention of exactly what you do in the field.. there are a few tasks that are different but the root of it all is law enforcement..
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LT Naval Aviator
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Edited >1 y ago
I can't answer your question 100% as I am not a full MP. I'm just a FAP (Fleet Assistance Program) Marine. Meaning I was temporarily loaned out to PMO at my station for 6 months due to manning agreement. All our contracts would allow us to do was to guard the gates and help out with special event security. Mostly checking ID's, logging commercial vehicles, issuing temp passes at night, and watch out for BOLOs. From my friends who are full MP's, there's Traffic, SRT, K9 units, and CID. They do everything from issuing tickets, responding building alarms, to securing crime scenes (if the need arises).
Every unit has different hours and shifts.

We also have Civilian officers that work with us, but half of them are reservists and the other half are prior service.
Usually, if there's not a whole lot going on you'll get set up with some really good training.
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What is it like being an MP in garrison?
SSG Military Police Instructor
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Well let's see. You're basically just doing regular law enforcement duty. Pretty basic. But you WILL come across people that hate you for doing your job, officer and enlisted. You have to deal with the public on everything from directions to traffic stops. YOU must maintain 100% professionalism while the people you're dealing with can act like morons if they want to. Ummmm, you will get bored. Very bored. That's no excuse to pull people over for 5 over though. 10 over was always my rule.
Also, keep in mind that even though people screw with MPs all the time, in the end, we are there to keep them safe. Whether they appreciate it or not.
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SPC Mark Hocker
SPC Mark Hocker
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You forgot drag racing the cars if they even had any power to them or chasing each other around night shift
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SPC Johnney Abbott
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Garrison wasn't too bad. But you get tired of the road after a while. Of your unit is worth a crap they'll do field training. Those are skills that will keep you alive when you deploy.

But I found strictly garrison boring.
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SGT Mechanic
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My guard unit did absolutely no garrison training as we would never be doing garrison work. All of the training I have is for a deployment. Route clearance, detainee ops., that sort of stuff.
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SGT David Billings
SGT David Billings
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White hat duty was so routine that one gets bored and may become lathargic in duties,then I found that ,garrison duties are hindered by post politics,such as, rank and positions,examples are, you cannot ticket senior ranking enlisted or officers because it may ruin there careers,but when it comes to a lower enlisted soldier , you can throw the book at them. If your a combat mp/ field duty mp , you don't have that problem of ,oh this guy might be of untouchable status due to his rank or position, there's no time for the "small town politics", wrong is wrong, you break the umcj code and you get punished, no bulls__t.
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CPL Keith Briggs
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Combat mp all the way.
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SPC Tim LaFountain
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After MWD school I spent a year doing Physical Security in Korea, it wasn't until I went to my next duty station at FT Polk did I do garrison duty. It was relearning everything I was taught in AIT all over again, but I enjoyed the interaction with the military community that the job afforded.
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SGT Military Working Dog Handler
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What years were you in Polk ?
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SPC Tim LaFountain
SPC Tim LaFountain
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SGT (Join to see) I was there from May 79 - Aug 80
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SSG Chris McKee
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It's like having an agency full of nothing but rookies itching to write a ticket
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SSG (ret) William Martin
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Being an MP in garrison is just like any MOS except for when you are conducting LE duties. When you're not conducting LE duties there are taskings, inventories, room inspections, weapons cleaning and inspections, paper work for Soldiers, etc.
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MAJ Ronnie Reams
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I would say it depends on the garrison. If there a lot of MP units there then not much to do unless the TOE MPs deploy, then it Katie bar the door. Bragg, for instance has/had the 58th MP Co as the Garrison MPs. HOWEVER, there was also, the 82dMP Company, the 118th MP Company and the 503rd MP Bn. These guys do the bulk of LE duty. 82d was very provincial and ran its own desk, etc. 82d did use the MP LOACHes from main post and when the weekend brawls got started at the Hilltop(?) NCO club, yelled help. LOL The 58th had the stockade and the Game Warden MPs (they had nice cabins out in range areas for quarters). When the TOE MP units went to riots, Dominican Republic, etc the 58th Cdr had to deputize cooks, clerks and jerks to ride the roads. LOL If you like the outdoors, and in a Garrison Company, the Game Warden MP is the way to go you have to go to USFW school and are deputized as a USFW agent. Your family would have to like living in the "sticks" LOL
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LTC Hardware Test Engineer
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If you enjoy responding to domestic calls only to be attacked by the caller because she didn't want you to arrest her man, she just wanted you to make him stop beating her, then garrison MP is the job for you.....
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SPC Ruben Marin
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It depends on the organization's MTOE. If their mission, training, and equipment reflect field work, you will do very little road work. You may have a month rotation of working the road while the other platoons train for the field. If you get stationed with a detachment like I did, you might as well forget about the field bc it basically doesn't exist. The unit is run like a civilian law enforcement. You may do PT on your own, work details, be assigned to a section, and you will patrol everyday, except on your scheduled days off. You will conduct some field training bc it's the Army and you have to be ready for everything, but there won't be much of it. I hope this helps.
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CPL Chris Goodson
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Good luck with that DA6 lol
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MSG Micheal P Floyd Jr
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.... An assignment to a Garrison is the "Best" Tour an M.P. could ever have. There is an "Active" array of encounters from RAs and their desire to do something entertaining is the focus point of this assignment. Have fun, because all of those you encounter will be having fun in getting arrested.
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SPC Soldier
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I went to Germany for three weeks with my last unit, and we were covering down for an active unit so they could go field train for a few weeks. Be prepared for stupid calls and lots of wrecks in the winter
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PV2 Ricardo Friedman
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It's like civilian police work but in a fort
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LTC Hardware Test Engineer
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the best part is when you respond to a domestic call and then the caller gets mad at you for arresting "her man". She didn't want you to arrest him. She just wanted you to make him stop beating her. If I had a dollar for every one of those I did, I could have retired years ago.
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SGT Jay Stone
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If you like the law enforcement side of the MP Corps then you're gonna love it. You can get schooling that most field MP's don't get a chance at. Like SRT, MO, Hostage Negotiations,MPI,& Marajuana Eradication for example. If you don't like the law enforcement side, well then you're gonna hate it.
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PFC Frederick Morrow
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I was stationed at Ft Stewart Ga back in 1982-84. I enjoyed road duty and field duty. I polished up on what was learned in basic and AIT. I'd do all over again with a few minor changes.
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SGT Ej Taylor
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It was OK patrolling around base and pulling people over but I never wrote one ticked while in a garrison unit. I loved being in a combat mp platoon or company.
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SGT David Crutchfield
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Sometimes a headache, depends if you work nights or days. Most bases now are mostly DID police last I've been to one
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SGT David Crutchfield
SGT David Crutchfield
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I meant DOD
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