Like all police officers, I have vivid, enduring memories of cases that I worked. People are always saying, “You should write a book about your career.” For years, I balked at the thought, but I have come to realize that in those stories are important life lessons that need sharing. Tales about the extraordinary things that ordinary people achieved when faced with the challenge “to do the right thing.” The stories don’t dwell on or focus on the shock and awe. They highlight the good in people and the often-excruciating decisions they made to stand up for what is right and to do their part to right a wrong.
Latest Articles
Man in the Arena
President Teddy Roosevelt’s speech1 about the “Man in the Arena” rings true with everyone at some level, but perhaps loudest with anyone who has played a role in the investigation or prosecution of a significant criminal case. I often toiled in those arenas during my...
Panic wasn’t really an option
“Have you ever had the odds stacked up so high you need a strength most don’t possess? Or, Has it ever come down to do or die and you’ve got to rise above the rest?” “The Impression that I Get” -The Mighty, Mighty Bosstones The words resonate from the number...
Public Safety Writers Association
When I started to write non-fiction true crime books, I knew my genre, but I admittingly had no idea how the writing, editing and publishing process worked. Regardless, I was sure that I was well on my way to producing an award-winning best-seller. Well, two books...
Why My True Crime Account Is Different From Others
Most books in the true crime genre are authored by writers whose observations came from the side of the yellow tape where the words, “Do Not Cross” prevented their access to the crime scene. My book, When the Smoke Cleared, is different because I was the senior...
Why Enlist a Writing Coach?
I was determined to write a book and narrate a story that I believed had to be shared with a wide audience. I was well prepared with thoughts and ideas about what I wanted to write, but I had no idea about the road ahead. I didn’t lack confidence. I had some writing...
Why Did I Decide to Self-Publish?
The answer to why I decided to self-publish versus taking the traditional route of signing a contract with a large publishing house is the same as why I chose one college and law school over the others. Because one accepted me and the other one(s) didn’t. Like any new...
On Learning by Listening
Police officers constantly talk to people and usually ask a lot of questions. It’s the primary gadget in our tool bag. Not everyone we engage with likes the situation they find themselves in, and they understandably are uncomfortable and guarded with their responses....
Where were you?
“Where were you when the world stopped turning on that September day?” Twenty years have passed since Osama Bin Laden and his terrorist organization, al Qaeda claimed responsibility for killing more than three-thousand innocent souls in the attacks on the World Trade...
Working Toward a Common Goal
“People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.” -Martin Luther King Picture several adults sitting around a table in a...
The Strength of Teamwork
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." – Helen Keller Welcome back! Blogging is an entirely new and foreign experience for me. In trying to get a foothold in this new communication arena, I plan to follow the path of old Irish proverb: “If you...
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