Police organisation
United States Park Police
A police force operating as a unit of the National Park Service, with jurisdiction in federal parks and a permanent presence in three metropolitan areas.
At a glance
- Official name
- United States Park Police
- System
- United States
- Level of government
- Special jurisdiction
- Kind of body
- Specialist national service
- Status
- Currently operating
- Official website
- https://www.nps.gov/subjects/uspp/index.htm — confirmed against the organisation’s own pages on 17 September 2026.
- Facts last checked against sources
- 17 September 2026
What it is
The National Park Service describes the Park Police as functioning as a unit of the Service with jurisdiction in all federal parks, and states that its officers are located in the Washington DC, New York City and San Francisco metropolitan areas and investigate and detain persons suspected of offences against the United States. It is a useful counterexample to the assumption that a police force must be organised around a place: this one is organised around an estate, and the estate is discontinuous.
What it covers
Federal parks, with officers stationed in the Washington DC, New York City and San Francisco metropolitan areas.
Broad responsibilities
- Policing of federal park land
- Investigation of offences against the United States within that jurisdiction
- Policing of events held in the national parks
Who it answers to
The force is stated to function as a unit of the National Park Service.
Elsewhere on this site
- Who polices what — how United States is structured, against other systems
Sources
United States Park Police — National Park Service
National Park Service · Institutional (self-description) · link verified 2026-09-17
SCOPE: the United States Park Police only. The National Park Service's own page for the force, read directly. Supports the official name, the force's status as a unit of the National Park Service, its jurisdiction in federal parks, and the three metropolitan areas in which its officers are stated to be located. Establishes nothing about the National Park Service's other law-enforcement functions.