French help, please!

MarkEsq said:

Can someone tell me what the French version of an APB (all points bulletin) or BOLO (be on look out for) might be?

Thanks!

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tout le bulletin de points (?)

avis de recherche ?

I believe APB is une alerte à toutes les patrouilles (literally, an alert to all patrols). I'm not sure about BOLO; I'll have to ask some native speaking friends and get back to you.

APB is used in the US only. So I'd assume that the French term would be quite different. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-points_bulletin

Isn't BOLO essentially the same thing as an APB? I was under the impression that BOLO had essentially replaced APB.

Drachen Jager said:

Isn't BOLO essentially the same thing as an APB? I was under the impression that BOLO had essentially replaced APB.

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Yeah, pretty much...

APB was the original term used when hard line communications was typified by the teletype. A bulletin would be sent to all stations (points) equipped with a teletype machine. This was usually over a broad geographic area.

BOLO was originally used as a radio transmission to units in a more specific geographic area.

With the migration from analogue to digital communications, and the inherent increase in range and speed, the terms have become virtually synonymous.

I have had no luck in Googling and haven't found anything on the various sites devoted to the French police judiciaire. Most of the newspaper articles I've seen about nationwide alerts for particular suspects just refer to alertes.

Let's hope some French AWers have better info. I don't remember ever reading a French policier that mentioned a term of art or acronym equivalent to APB or BOLO.

Why not go directly to the horse's mouth, so to speak? This website also provide an email address:
[email protected]

http://www.police.online.fr/
Bonne chance!

MarkEsq said:

Thanks for looking, I couldn't find anything either. I, too, was hoping for a French AW-er, preferably a cop.

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Maybe post this question in the international forum?

Have you tried searching for synonymous meanings? Experience tells me that translating meaning often yields better results than the actual desired phrase. I could be wrong?

on alert adv. en état d'alerte
be alert vi. avoir conscience

Buffysquirrel said:

avis de recherche ?

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That's the correct translation. I haven't found any acronym for it.

Another reference: http://www.avisderecherches.interieur.gouv.fr/

-cb