Police ranks of the United States

[1][2] A uniform system of insignia based on that of the US Army and Marine Corps is used to help identify an officer's seniority.

[2][3] Although the large and varied number of federal, state, and local police and sheriff's departments have different ranks, a general model, from highest to lowest rank, would be: Police corporals will often act as a lead officer in field situations when a sergeant is not present.

[8] In a few departments, such as New York City, Washington DC, and Baltimore, officers from the rank of lieutenant and up wear white shirts instead of the dark blue or black uniform shirts common to lower-ranked police officers.

[9] Command staff and ranking officers/supervisors may wear fretting ("scrambled eggs") on their hat visors.

In a sheriff's office, the second-highest ranking person is often responsible for most operations, similar to a chief of police in a police department, because the Sheriff is often elected and in many cases is a politician rather than an experienced law enforcement officer.