Edited for brevity.
Since the Sept. 11 attacks, local governments have spent millions on high-tech radios to improve communication among police forces. Now, Virginia is changing the very way cops talk. Starting this month, Virginia State Police have banned the "10 codes" used by generations of officers to flag everything from murders to bathroom breaks. Gone is the language of "10-4" and "What's your 10-20 (location)?"
The codes are as much a part of police culture as badges and coffee. But over time, individual police departments adapted the codes in their own ways, creating confusion when they have to work together — such as on Sept. 11, 2001.
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