The potential enormity of a domestic incident requiring the use of military forces strikes deeply at our nation's identity of domestic peace and tranquility. The federal government recognizes that the primary responsibility for response begins at the lowest municipal level, and ultimately belongs to each state governor and their state National Guard forces. However, the total force Army (to include Active and Army Reserve) has historically made up for shortfalls in extremis. The question remains, however, as to which capabilities are most desirable for Defense Support to Civil Authorities (DSCA). The capabilities inherent in military police formations, specifically the military police core capabilities of policing, investigating, and corrections, along with the military police functional missions of Mobility Support, Wide Area Security, Law Enforcement, Dislocated Civilian Resettlement, and Police Intelligence point towards the right capabilities for successful DSCA operations. This study centers on case studies of two major domestic incidents with involved the use of federal forces, the Los Angeles Riots and Hurricane Katrina. The analysis uses the Cohen-Gooch model of mapping military failures against three independent criteria: the training levels of the response forces, the capabilities of the types of units deployed to the area, and the ability of that force to quickly and efficiently integrate with response forces already on the ground. The conclusion of this research validates the capabilities inherent in military police formations as uniquely suited to particular elements of the DSCA mission. The ability of a U.S. Army Military Police headquarters to provide mission command from the perspective of a professional law enforcement organization is not duplicated anywhere within the Department of Defense or Department of Homeland Security. It is evident that DSCA requires a unique set of skills and therefore there are implications for force structuring, training, and equipping of forces. This monograph recommends further research to study a plan for apportionment of both reserve and active duty military police brigades in order to build rotational capacity for DSCA. A regionally aligned rotational capacity will ensure resourcing and training for DSCA so that in the future, U.S. citizens are assured a measure of safety and security during the times they need it most.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. The opinions and conclusions expressed herein are those of the student-authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency. (References to these studies should include the foregoing statement.)