Authorized by Oklahoma law, the University Police Department is an independent law enforcement agency whose officers are commissioned by the OU Board of Regents and certified by the Oklahoma Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training. OUPD functions separately from all other law enforcement agencies, although agreements have been made whereby assistance or mutual aid may be obtained in emergencies.
OUPD officers are available 24 hours a day, year-round. They are trained and certified as peace officers under Oklahoma state statutes, and many OU officers have received specialized training in areas of law enforcement and related fields.
OU police officers have jurisdiction on all university property and "territory adjacent thereto." They are authorized to conduct traffic enforcement on campus and on streets peripheral to campus, to conduct follow-up investigations and serve arrest warrants issued as a result of completed investigations at off-campus locations, and to exercise police authority or take action as appropriate for criminal offenses observed by them while on or off university property.