The 10 Texas Police Codes Everyone Should Know

Whether you want to better understand police shows or just want to be nosey about police business, you’ve probably heard a few of these “10-codes” before, you know, the ones that make Texas police officers sound cool.

This is the lingo that kids throw out there, even if they don't understand it, when they are pretending to be police officers on the playground. But learning just a few of the common ones can actually help any Texans understand better what's happening around them... or, ya know, their favorite TV show.

The 10 Texas Police Codes Everyone Should Know

Let's start with 10-4, that's a big one. I've got a lot of friends who use it (correctly, I might add) in text messages; if you didn't know, it just means “message received.” And not just law enforcement and my friends use this one, truckers driving on I-20 are throwing it around as well.

Next, we've got 10-20, which means location, as in “What’s your 10-20?” or “Where are you?” One well-known one you may've heard is 10-33, it means that there’s an emergency in progress, and officers need the airwaves clear.

For most areas in Texas, a Code 3 call means to use lights and sirens because an urgent response is required. Meanwhile, Code 4 means the situation is under control. Some departments use Signal 100 to alert everyone that only emergency traffic is allowed.

Here are some other common police codes:

• 10-9 = "say again" or "repeat"
• 10-10 = "negative"
• 10-17 = "en route to ____"
• 10-22 = "disregard"
• 10-24 = "assignment complete"
• 10-30 = "danger/caution"
• 10-38 = "traffic stop"
• 10-50 = "traffic accident"
• 10-71 = "officer needs assistance"
• 10-80 = "in pursuit"

You can run down all 99 of these here if you'd like to. And while these codes can vary slightly between Texas counties or agencies, being aware of the basics will help you understand scanner chatter, public safety alerts, or just enjoy "Blue Bloods" a little more.