The 604th Military Police Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI), or unit crest, is crafted exclusively with the colors green and yellow, official branch colors of the Military Police Corps since 1922. Taking up the majority of the insignia is gold portcullis, a vertically closing gate commonly used in medieval castles and prisons, alludes to the Battalions former mission as a rehabilitation training center.
On both sides of the portcullis is a gold bayonet positioned with its point up and extending to the handle and flame of the lamp that sits atop the portcullis. The lamp is the “Lamp Of Knowledge,” again pointing to the Battalion’s former mission of instructing and retraining military prisoners who have been sentenced with incarceration, while the bayonets have a dual meaning: they denote the organization’s combat capabilities while simultaneously pointing to the instruction and retraining of prisoners. “Serve Guard Protect,” is the Battalion motto, inscribed in gold letters to signify excellence.Also known as a unit crest or DUI, a Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. Current regulations do not permit the DUI to be worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
More guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1, Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e), "Beret" and "Garrison Cap," respectively.
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Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 604th Military Police Battalion was originally constituted in the Army Reserve as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 640th Military Police Battalion on 1 May 1959 in the Army Reserve. Concurrently, it was assigned to the Fifth United States Army and activated a Terre Haute, Indiana.
On 1 October 1984, it was relieved from assignment to the Fifth United States Army and assigned to the Fourth United States Army, which was inactivated in September 1991. The Battalion’s history after that point in time is not found at the U.S. Army Center of Military History, nor are its Shoulder Sleeve or Distinctive Unit Insignias listed at The Institute of Heraldry. In any event, it is safe to assume the Battalion has been inactivated/deactivated, redesignated, disbanded, or consolidated with another unit and given a different designation.