S.W.A.T - Special Weapons & Tactical

The Special Weapons and Tactics Team is a highly trained and skilled tactical unit used for deployment to critical incidents. The S.W.A.T. Team is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Members of the team have other primary assignments within the Department and serve on the team only when required.

Critical Incident Stress Management Team (CISM)

Our Critical Incident Stress Management (C.I.S.M.) team is composed of members from all areas of the department to bring awareness and education regarding the aftereffects of working a critical incident call.

Wellness Program

The Wellness Program provides all personnel with access to confidential mental health services to safeguard the continued mental wellness of all personnel and their families. The Wellness Program offers peer support with team members who have experience with CISM methods, local faith-based community chaplains, and third-party consultations with qualified mental health professionals.

Field Training Officer

A field training officer (FTO) oversees the professional development of probationary police officers. The FTO is a role model and instructor who teach policies, procedures, and skills sets. FTO’s develop knowledge and skills for future supervisory roles.

Dive Team (Underwater Recovery Team)

The Underwater Recovery Team is responsible for the underwater search and recovery of vehicles, persons, items of evidence, or any other property. The team is also utilized for land-based searches while searching for missing persons or evidence in heavily wooded or large land mass areas.

Marine Unit

The Marine Unit enforces regulatory laws, statutes, and ordinances related to marine and boating safety, which includes derelict vessels. The Marine Unit responds to boating accidents, vessels in distress, search and rescue missions, and offers support to state and federal agencies.

K-9

A K-9 police officer works closely with a trained dog to respond to calls, search and rescue, protect the public from potential threats and pursue and apprehend suspects. The K-9 police officer goes through intensive training with the dog, including agility, obedience, and specialized skills.

Youth Services

Youth Services officers monitor and perform primary and secondary investigations on juvenile offenders for criminal offenses and curfew violations.

Crisis Negotiation Team

The Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT) use their skills to deal with barricaded and suicidal subjects, other crisis situations, and people who have been subjected to violent and traumatic events.

Crime Suppression Unit

The Crime Suppression Unit officers use crime data to identify trend, conduct concentrated patrols, perform surveillance to gather intelligence on criminal activities, and use proactive measures to prevent and reduce crime.

Community Resource Unit

The Community Resource Unit organizes and coordinates community programs such as Neighborhood Watch, education programs to schools and local organizations, other community engagement to address and resolve community issues.

Major Case

The Major Case Unit investigates all major felony crimes involving violence to persons, such as homicide, home invasion, robbery, and shooting cases. Although most misdemeanor and lower-level felony crimes are investigated completely at the patrol level, most felonies are reviewed by the sergeants in the Investigations Division to identify patterns and trends and connection to existing cases.

Special Victims Unit

The Special Victims Unit investigates offenses relating to any sexual offense, any child or elder abuse or neglect cases, and any crime as determined by the Unit supervisor. The Department's Sexual Offender and Predator Management Program are also assigned to this Unit.

Special Investigations Unit

The Special Investigations Unit investigates narcotics activity and organized crime that directly impacts the quality of life for the citizens of Palm Bay. These agents generally work undercover to make cases against offenders.

Bike Patrol Unit

The Palm Bay Police Department’s Bike Patrol Unit (BPU) is currently staffed by 5 officers. This part-time unit primarily operates during city events and special function details. The officers in the unit also conduct patrols in shopping corridors of the city, as well as in our neighborhoods and parks.  These patrols are typically conducted based on seasonal needs, crime trends, or when patrol shift staffing allows. The BPU conducts approximately 260 miles of bike patrols annually.  Each officer is required to complete a 32-hour training course through the International Police Mountain Bike Association (IPMBA) and attend quarterly training sessions to refresh and refine their biking skills.

Honor Guard

The Honor Guard post colors for community events, attend and support funeral ceremonies and memorial services for members of the department and other law enforcement agencies.

School Resource Officer

School Resource Officers are assigned to the middle school and the high schools to cultivate a good relationship between school children and law enforcement and assist the school staff with maintaining an orderly operation on the school grounds. The salary for a school resource officer is shared between the City of Palm Bay and the Brevard County School Board.

Traffic Unit

The Traffic Unit aims to ensure the safety and legality of traffic on public roads through enforcement, the investigation of traffic crashes, traffic control, and traffic education.  All Traffic Officers are specially trained in speed measurement, all phases of crash investigations, traffic mitigation and standardized field sobriety testing.