By Jennifer Balmforth
University Police officers are carrying the sword of Laban.
But the sword is not in the form of a weapon, rather a part of their symbolic arm patch.
The features on the patch are a lamp, a scale, and the sword of Laban, which represents the police department''s function in BYU''s unique environment, said Michael Harroun, university police officer.
The patch was designed in the early 1970s as a part of the university''s action to change the night watch parking enforcement organization into a full service police department, said Swen Nielsen, patch designer and former BYU chief of police.
Before this time, officers wore a standard arm patch, which had security officer embroidered on it, Harroun said.
Nielsen said before he designed the patch he needed to think about the role a police department should play in the context of a church university. He said after a few quick sketches, he came up with the lamp of learning and the scales of justice, but he said he felt like the patch was still missing an important factor.
The factor of force must at times be used by a police officer, Nielsen said, but it must be represented justly.
'I thought of the sword of Laban, which was used very judiciously and only in extreme absolute necessary cases, so that is the emblem I put on the patch,' Nielsen said.
The University Police handbook said another reason the sword is significant is because it was used by Nephi and his successors in defending their people against oppression.
Nielsen said after coming up with the idea of the sword of Laban emblem, he met with faculty members in the religion department to see if the idea was appropriate. The religion department seemed to agree that the sword was a suitable representation for righteous force, Nielsen said.
The scales represent the scales of justice, symbolizing the process of weighing facts in a court of law. The lamp is a symbol of learning or knowledge, which symbolizes light and the pursuit of truth according to the university police handbook.
Out of the three emblems, Nielsen said he was never really crazy about the lamp of learning, but it was best he to represent BYU''s educational environment.
The patch seems to summarize the essential role the police department plays in the university setting, Nielsen said.
'Justice should prevail in an atmosphere of learning and recognizing in certain instances the use of force might be justified even in that setting,' Nielsen said.
Lt. Arnold Lemmon, university police officer said he feels the patch accurately symbolizes the police department.
'I think it represent our mission and what we are all about,' Lemmon said.
The arm patch distinguishes officers as members of the BYU police department and is worn on the right shoulder of their uniform.