Police Rank Progression titles...

[Infornific]

Originally Posted by GoblynByte

Here's what I'm thinking for a Space Patrol organization.

Rank	Typical Titles		Notes
8       High Commissioner       Head of ISF
7	Commissioner		Regional Commander
6	Chief			Sector Commander
5	Commander		System Commander
4	Captain 	        Mobile Squad Commander
3	Lieutenant		Duty or Shift Lead Officer for ISF Mobile Squad.
2	Sergeant		Squad Leader
1	Patrolman		Crew member of ISF Mobile Squad
0	Officer                 Station/ground based security

Depending on the scale you might want to go for more levels. I understand the semi-formal rule of thumb is:

Rank 1: Commands 1-5 people
Rank 2: Commands 6-20
Rank 3: Commands 21-100

with *100 subordinates for every +3 rank. So the NYPD chief would have about Rank 8, while the sheriff in small county with a couple dozen deputies would be Rank 3. If a Mobile Squad Commander is Rank 4 that suggests a Mobile Squad consists of more than a hundred but less than 500 officers. Of course Patrol officers could have a level or two of Rank relative to planetary law enforcement, kind of the way federal agents typically get Rank 2.

GURPS Cops has a list of police officer ranks. It's 3e but might be of interest if you want to play up the law enforcement end of things.