FM 3-19.1: Military Police Operations

Military Police, May, 2001 by Anthony Cruz

On 22 March 2001, the Department of the Army (DA) approved Field Manual (FM) 3-19.1 and posted it to the Reimer Digital Library (RDL) on 5 April 2001. Our commandant had previously approved the final draft on 18 July 2000. With this approval, the MP Corps finally bid farewell to the 1988 version and welcomed the new millennium with relevant and much-needed and revised MP doctrine. Why it took the Corps 13 years to publish new doctrine is a complex issue, but not the focus of this article. I prefer to address what this new FM contains.

The Format

The first thing that you will notice about this manual is the new format. Pictures, drawings, and tables that offered no clarity or contributed nothing to the content were eliminated. Each chapter opens with a quote or a doctrinal excerpt relevant to the content of the chapter. The idea behind this technique is to set the stage and give the reader a quick snapshot of what the chapter is all about. Wherever applicable, brief vignettes were introduced throughout the manual to drive a point home, add realism, or validate a doctrinal issue. These vignettes came from MP leaders around the world.

With few exceptions, the overall structural organization of FM 3-19.1 is similar to that of FM 19-1. Throughout the revision period, the overall consensus was that the revised manual should follow the same structure as FM 19-1. Since, this clearly fell under the "if-it's-not-broke" category, the advice from the field was sound and subsequently approved by the commandant.

The Content

FM 3-19.1 doctrinally reflects how the Corps performs MP operations today. The main thrust of this revised version is clearly articulated by our Brigadier General Ryder's opening quote:

"The MP Corps has a strong history evolving over the past five decades. We, as a Corps, continue to transform our organizations and doctrine as we have in the past to support the Army in the active defense of the 1970s, the AirLand Battle of the 1980s, and now the force-projection doctrine of the 1990s. Our five MP functions clearly articulate the diverse role the MP play across the full spectrum of military operations. We cannot bask in our successes, nor reflect or celebrate. Our charter is to continue our legacy of stellar performance and strive to perfect it."

Here is a synopsis of what the chapters in the FM cover:

* Chapter 1 exposes the reader to a brief overview and historical perspective on our Corps. The intent is to establish a baseline and introduce the reader to the rest of the manual. For the first time, the reader is officially introduced to the five MP functions that are expanded in detail later on.

* Chapters 2 and 3 address the battle command and threat in all intricacies.

* Chapter 4 depicts and explains all five MP functions as we perform them today. This chapter also includes new items such as MP support to breaching operations, dislocated civilian control, internment and resettlement operations, and police-intelligence operations.

* Chapter 5, which deals with support to echelons above corps, captures the realities of today' s Army. It fills a void that existed in FM 19-1 as it relates to MP support to the Army Service Component Command and the theater support command.

* Chapters 6, 7, and 8 explain how the MP support corps, divisions, and separate brigades. It includes MP support to Division XXI and the Interim/Initial Brigade as we know them today.

* Chapter 9 provides the doctrinal backbone to U.S. Army Criminal Investigations Command (CID) operations and exposes the reader to current CID doctrine.

* Chapters 10 and 11 depict how MP operations are performed across the full spectrum of military operations from offense, defense, stability, and support. These chapters bring our MP doctrine in line with Army doctrine as outlined in FM 3.0, Operations.

* Chapter 12 covers MP support to force protection. This chapter is not intended to become the sole source of MP involvement to force protection; instead, it does address how we contribute to the commander' s program.

A Final Note

When I was chief of the doctrine division, I quickly learned that writing doctrine was easier said than done. It is a long process that requires intense research and consensus. Most importantly, writing doctrine cannot be done in isolation, but I was fortunate. During the revision process, FM 3-19.1 received the highest number of field comments and contributions that any other manual had in production at that time. Many of you worked with me to ensure that our doctrine was sound and relevant. The result is that FM 3-19.1 is truly a "field" manual--your manual. Thanks for making it happen.

Major Anthony Cruz is the division provost marshal, 1st Infantry Division, V Corps, Wuerzburg, Germany. Previous assignments include chief, Doctrine Division, U.S. Army Military Police School, and battalion executive officer, 787th MP Battalion, 14th MP Brigade, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. Major Cruz holds a bachelor's in business administration from the University of Puerto Rico and a master's in public administration from Troy State University, Fort Myer, Virginia.