police work
Detectives' daily tasks
Police work is the activities involved in law enforcement—investigating crimes, gathering evidence, patrolling, making arrests, and maintaining public order.
The term often emphasizes the methodical, unglamorous aspects of the job: Good police work solved the case, not a lucky break.
It was old-fashioned police work—knocking on doors, interviewing witnesses.
- arrestSeize by law
- booking processSteps to secure arrangements
- patrolRegular surveillance route
- foot patrolOn-foot police monitoring
- detectiveProfessional crime investigator
investigation · crime scene · forensics · sleuthing · suspect · Miranda rights · evidence · body cam · undercover operations · handcuffs · surveillance · case files · cold case · K-9 unit · court testimony · roundup · chase · witness interviews
- police workpatrol, arrests, arrest, stings, investigation
- dangerous jobsfirefighting, bomb disposal, crab fishing, offshore drilling, oil rigs
- investigatoryprobe, audit, inspection, search, inquiry
- working animalsherding, gun dog, guarding, pulling, hunting dog
- civic dutyjury duty, voting, tax paying, military service, public service
- serviceserve, help, aid, assist, cater
police workvigilante justice
Unauthorized punishment by civilians
vigilantism · mob justice · taking the law into one's own hands · frontier justice · kangaroo court
police workcriminal activity
lawbreaking · crime · organized crime · criminal enterprise · outlawry
police workcitizen's arrest
Civilian detaining suspected criminal
private investigation · neighborhood watch · community patrol · self-policing
work, police, policy, policeman, policies, policemen, policing, policed, policewoman