Firearms
Please remeber that when you are cruising, you are leaving the country and visiting different countries.
There may be some confusion surrounding law enforcement on cruise ships. Many people assume that those in law enforcement should be allowed to bring their firearms on cruise ships. Since law enforcement officers are trained and have a duty to protect the public, this assumption makes some sense.
To further add to the confusion, there is something called the Law Enforcement Safety Act. This act mainly dictates that current and retired law enforcement officers can carry firearms in any state or US jurisdiction. This act came into existence in 2004. Since then, its provisions have expanded multiple times. While this act grants plenty of freedom for officers to carry weapons, there are many restrictions:
The officer must undergo annual firearm training.
Retired officers must have left service in good standing.
Officers must have no mental health issues.
Officers must refrain from abusing alcohol.
The act does not allow officers to carry firearms on planes or cruise ships.
At first glance, this act seems to allow law enforcement to carry firearms on cruises. But the details of the act prove otherwise. Under the Law Enforcement Safety Act, officers cannot carry firearms on cruise ships.
Jail
Due to the large number of guests on a cruise ship, cruise ships do have to have jails onboard. They are needed for a variety of reasons and members of the ship’s security team manage the jail.
The cruise ship jail, or brig as it is known, is not accessible to guests for obvious reasons and isn’t usually visited on ship tours for security reasons. For this reason, many people forget that it exists at all.
The cruise ship brig is only used for the most serious incidents.
