2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-FIVE - Internal Security (§§ 1 — 3356) › Subtitle 3 - Security Generally (§§ 3101 — 3356) › PART I - Protection and Surveillance (§§ 3101 — 3356) › Chapter 331 - Puerto Rico Police of 1996 (§§ 3101 — 3142) › § 3110 - Uniform and equipment

(a) The Superintendent shall determine in the regulations what the official uniform of the Corps and the weapons and other equipment therefor shall be; and the provisions of the regulations concerning the uniform shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in Puerto Rico at least thirty (30) days prior to the date said regulations take effect.
(b) All wearing apparel comprising the uniform and the equipment to be used by the Force shall be supplied by the police. The Superintendent shall establish the uniform and its proper use by regulations. It shall be understood that the uniform will include the material for the jacket, shirt and pants as well as the boots or shoes, cap, raincoat and the corresponding insignias, badges and colors which the members of the Corps shall wear pursuant to the regulations. Provided, That a cloth insignia or badge bearing the identification number of the agent and an insignia or badge indicating his/her surname shall be deemed to be an integral part of the uniform worn by the members of the Police Force who shall be bound to prominently and clearly visibly display said insignias or badges at all times while in active service, regardless of the clothing worn as uniform or the equipment used by the agent. The fact that the uniform worn or the equipment used makes it difficult for the insignia or badge with the surname or identification number of the agent to be displayed shall not constitute an exemption or a motive for failing to comply with this requirement. The Superintendent is hereby bound to take the necessary measures to ensure that the uniform and the equipment approved for the use of the agents comply with the requirement established in this provision, except for undercover agents or those wearing civilian clothes in those cases whereby the Superintendent determines that the identification of an agent affects compliance with his/her duties or his/her safety.
(c) Appropriations for the purchase of said items shall be consigned annually in the police budget. The use by any person who is not a member of the Puerto Rico Police of uniforms or any combination of the aforesaid outerwear which may tend to identify the wearer as a member of the Puerto Rico Police is hereby prohibited.
(d) Likewise, any natural or juridical person who does not have the prior authorization of the Superintendent is prohibited from manufacturing, distributing, selling and using a uniform, or part thereof, that is equal or similar to that prescribed for the use [by] the police, with regard to its color or combination of outerwear, or of the equipment, including the design, color and insignias of motor vehicles.
(e) Any person who incurs a violation to the provisions of the two preceding subsections, shall be guilty of misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished with a maximum fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) or imprisonment for a term not greater than six (6) months, or both penalties at the discretion of the court.
(f) Upon the demise while in active service of any member of the Police who has served the corps honorably for fifteen (15) years, his/her badge number shall be retired and shall not be assigned to any person, with the exception of a direct descendant who, being a member of the Puerto Rico Police, requests to change his badge number for that of his predecessor. In case the deceased member of the corps has two (2) or more dependents who could claim the badge number, it shall be granted to the one who first entered the Puerto Rico Police, this person being able to waive such right in favor of the descendant following him in order of preference. It is also provided that upon the demise of any member of the Police while in the performance of his/her duties, his/her badge shall be presented to the surviving spouse or, in the absence of the latter, to his/her parents or dependents. With the exception of the above, any person who uses such badge to distinguish or identify him/herself as an active member of the Police, shall incur a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished with a maximum fine of five hundred dollars ($500) or imprisonment for a term not greater than six (6) months or both penalties, at the discretion of the court.
(g) The Police Superintendent may, through regulations, authorize the members of the police who retire for years of service and who are authorized to bear and possess a firearm, to acquire a firearm from the Police Weapons Depository at a depreciated price. The funds collected from the sale of such weapons to those police officers who retire for years of service shall be covered into a special fund to defray the purchase or acquisition of new firearms for the Puerto Rico Police to replace those weapons sold by virtue of this provision to police officers who retire.
(h) The Superintendent shall determine through regulations the official uniform of the School Protection Officer I and II, as well as the duties and responsibilities to be assigned to the same.
History —June 10, 1996, No. 53, § 11; June 5, 1997, No. 15, § 1; July 3, 1999, No. 141, § 1; Jan. 8, 2004, No. 32, § 1; May 4, 2004, No. 106, § 5; Dec. 13, 2007, No. 191, § 1.