The heart of any police department is its Patrol Division. The Patrol Division is often called the Uniform Division because, as a general rule, its members are the ones you see in the easily recognizable blue uniforms. The men and women of the Oak Lawn Police Department’s Patrol Division are “Dedicated to the Needs of the Community”.

The primary responsibility of the patrol division is to safeguard the lives and property of the people in Oak Lawn . They aggressively patrol in order to prevent crime before it occurs and respond to calls for service. The patrolman is responsible for a preliminary investigation. Only when a case cannot be solved quickly is it turned over to the Investigations Division

The men and women of the Patrol Division very often perform other duties. They are not locked into one function. Many of them teach D.A.R.E. and EDGE, or give talks to various groups on topics such as crime prevention and traffic safety. Some patrolmen perform specialty functions within the Patrol Division. Some Examples of this are Canine Officer, Evidence Technician and Bike Patrol.