The North Dakota Highway Patrol, also known as the North Dakota State Patrol, is the state police and highway patrol agency for North Dakota, with jurisdiction over the entire state. It is a division of the North Dakota State Cabinet. Colonel Brandon Solberg has been serving as the 17th superintendent since July 1, 2018. North Dakota Highway Patrol established in 1935 by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly. North Dakota state troopers, when hired, attend the Law Enforcement Training Academy in Bismarck. It is a 22-week program in which the recruits learn all Peace Officer Standards and Training as well as advanced traffic information. Troopers are assigned to many different post locations within the four regions upon graduating from the Academy. Major activities of the State Patrol include: traffic enforcement, crash investigation, reporting road conditions, and enforcement of laws where state property is involved. A major duty of a North Dakota state trooper is the ability to work independently and exercise good judgement accordingly. This may differ from other peace officer agencies where operations are teamwork oriented.

Regions

The state is divided into four regions. Each region is commanded by a regional commander and contains two offices located in the major cities of the region. Troopers work within their regions, however they have equal jurisdiction throughout the state.

Highway Patrol symbol

The North Dakota Highway Patrol symbol is a profile of Red Tomahawk, a Teton Dakotah (Sioux) Indian who lived on his land near the Cannonball River on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Mandan, North Dakota and who is famous for shooting Sitting Bull in the head. The North Dakota Highway Patrol officially adopted the profile of Red Tomahawk as the patrol vehicle door emblem and department symbol in 1951.

Rank structure

The North Dakota Highway Patrol uses a paramilitary rank structure and has the following ranks:

Special Assignments

Troopers can serve in special roles including the following:

Superintendents of the North Dakota Highway Patrol

Fallen officers

Since the organization was established, one North Dakota Highway Patrol officer has died while on duty.

Vehicles

Current and historical patrol vehicles used by the North Dakota Highway Patrol.