Policing Matters

Across the country, law enforcement agencies are rethinking wellness as more than just good slogans or EAP brochures. Washington State is leading that shift. Through the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC), agencies of every size joined an eight-week wellness challenge that treated health as a professional competency — something measurable, trainable, and shared across ranks. The program upleveled from “self-care” to total readiness: stronger bodies, sharper minds, and more resilience. By combining competition, clear metrics and statewide leadership, it created a blueprint other states could follow. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Lexipol’s Mandy Nice, Camas Police Department Chief Tina Jones, and WASPC Program Manager Terrina Peterson about how WASPC’s Wellness Challenge translated that vision into measurable success. The statewide initiative focused on five pillars — physical fitness, mental health, nutrition, peer support and family welln

After years of climbing overdose deaths, some jurisdictions are finally seeing declines. But fewer fatalities don’t answer a frontline question: what actually works to cut crime tied to addiction? In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley goes beyond slogans and harm-reduction headlines to examine drug courts — intensive, accountability-driven programs that pair frequent testing, treatment and judicial oversight — and what separates effective models from window dressing. Joining him is John R. Gallagher, PhD, LCSW, LCAC, an associate professor of criminal justice at Alvernia University and a licensed clinical social worker with more than 25 years of experience in addiction and mental health counseling. Having worked inside county jails and with probationers and parolees, Gallagher has seen firsthand how untreated addiction drives recidivism — and how properly structured treatment courts can turn that cycle around. As a researcher trained in Moral Reconation Therapy, he shares data and f

Born from a push to professionalize policing, the FBI National Academy has evolved into a 10-week residential program where law enforcement leaders sharpen their fitness, academics and communication while building a global network. On this episode of Policing Matters, host Jim Dudley and two recent FBI NA graduates explore what the experience looks like today, from class selection and study habits to weekend field trips and the capstone Yellow Brick Road run. Hamilton Township, Ohio Chief Scott Hughes and retired California Chief Tricia Seyler reflect on their NA journeys, the mentors who nudged them to apply and the discipline it takes to thrive once you arrive. They discuss practical prep, why leaving your office behind is essential, how to make the most of the networking culture and what they brought back to their agencies. About our sponsor Flock Safety works with more than 5,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide, delivering real-time intelligence through a holistic ecosystem of technology designed to k

For more than a decade, Abby Ellsworth has been listening to police officers, first through interviews in the Seattle area and later through her podcast, On Being a Police Officer. She launched the show in 2020, at a moment when policing was under intense scrutiny and officers faced both public criticism and personal strain from COVID restrictions and civil unrest. Ellsworth’s mission is clear: create a safe space where officers can share candidly, remind them of the wins that sustain their calling, and give civilians a more human, unfiltered view of the profession than news headlines allow. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Ellsworth about why a civilian voice can bridge divides, how she helps officers “remember the wins,” and why context is the missing ingredient in media coverage. The conversation also explores how storytelling eases trauma, how public support can go beyond slogans and what keeps Ellsworth committed despite pushback. About our sponsor Flock Safety

Training police officers for real-world encounters requires more than classroom instruction — it demands safe, repeatable and cost-effective tools that prepare officers for high-stress situations. This special episode of the Policing Matters podcast, part of Police1’s Police Training Week series, showcases how agencies can expand training opportunities that sharpen skills, strengthen readiness and fit within limited budgets. In this episode, host and Police1 columnist Warren Wilson talks with Mike McCaslin, law enforcement and government channel manager for T4E – Training for Engagement. With more than 23 years of experience across municipal, county, tribal and federal policing, McCaslin brings a deep passion for officer readiness and less lethal training. Together, they discuss how realistic, affordable force-on-force platforms help officers train more often and with greater confidence. About our sponsor T4E – Training for Engagement provides the industry’s most realistic training equipment to help professio

Fitness, training, discipline and communication are core to good policing, but sleep underpins them all. Quality sleep sharpens judgment, reaction time and restraint while buffering stress and trauma. For officers working long shifts, odd hours and high-stress scenes, better sleep is a practical readiness tool — not a luxury. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley speaks with Dr. Leah Kaylor, an FBI clinical psychologist who provides trauma therapy and critical-incident debriefings. Kaylor’s new book, “If Sleep Were a Drug: Why Sleep Is the Ultimate Advantage — No Prescription Required,” breaks down common sleep myths, explains how REM restores emotional balance and offers field-tested strategies officers can use tonight. The episode also tackles shift work realities, caffeine and alcohol traps, and when to seek help for sleep apnea. About our sponsor Flock Safety works with more than 5,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide, delivering real-time intelligence through a holistic ecos

Online threats amplified by AI — from doxxing and deepfakes to coordinated influence operations — are collapsing the time between rumor and real-world risk. Expect pressure points across campuses and big cities, immigration enforcement and politically charged events, with protests only one piece of the picture. For police leaders, the task is to detect signals sooner, verify and communicate faster, and protect officers and targets while safeguarding First Amendment rights. On this week’s Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley speaks with Alex Goldenberg, director of intelligence at Narravance, senior adviser to the Network Contagion Research Institute and a fellow at Rutgers University. He investigates online extremism, foreign influence and child safety threats, advises lawmakers and practitioners, and helps platforms and nonprofits remove threat actors at scale. His work translates narrative and behavioral intelligence into practical steps for protest preparedness and officer safety. About our sponsor Th

Resilience is no longer just a buzzword in policing — it’s an officer safety skill. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Dr. Stephanie Conn, a public safety psychologist, former dispatcher and police officer, and author of “Increasing Resilience in Police and Emergency Personnel: Strengthening Your Mental Armor.” Drawing from her unique perspective as both practitioner and researcher, Dr. Conn explains why resilience must be deliberately developed and how officers can use small, practical tools to safeguard their health and performance. Dr. Conn was born into a police family, served as a dispatcher and later as a Fort Worth police officer before transitioning into psychology. After witnessing the lack of culturally competent mental health support for officers, she became a psychologist to fill that gap. Today, she works with public safety professionals across the U.S. and Canada, combining lived experience with research-based strategies to help officers and agencies buil

Drones as first responders (DFR) have quickly moved from experimental pilots to a central part of modern public safety response. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Rahul Sidhu, vice president of aviation at Flock Safety and co-founder of Aerodome, about how agencies can successfully launch, scale and sustain DFR programs. Sidhu shares lessons from his own start at Redondo Beach PD, common pitfalls agencies should avoid, and what comes next as AI and automation redefine drone deployment in emergency response. About our sponsor This episode is sponsored by Flock Safety. Discover the leading safety technology platform that helps communities thrive by taking a proactive approach to crime prevention and security. Empower your agency to solve crime faster with Flock's city-wide platform. Our full-service, maintenance-free solution helps you solve more crime to shape a safer future for thousands of communities across the country. Flock Safety provides best-in-class License Pl

For many officers, the stories they collect on the job remain within squad room walls. San Francisco Police Sergeant Adam Plantinga has turned his into the foundation of a second career, using two decades in patrol, investigations and specialized units to fuel both nonfiction accounts and gritty crime novels. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Plantinga about his journey from Milwaukee patrol officer to SFPD sergeant, his acclaimed nonfiction titles “400 Things Cops Know” and “Police Craft,” and his crime series featuring a former Detroit officer. Plantinga explains how real-world policing — from bizarre street encounters to high-stakes cases — shapes his stories, why he moved from nonfiction to fiction, and the strategies he uses to carve out writing time alongside a demanding law enforcement career. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for f

As more women step into command roles, their leadership paths offer lessons for anyone moving up in the ranks. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, Capt. Michelle Tavarez of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department shares how she built credibility, handled setbacks and now leads some of the agency’s most high-stakes units. Captain Tavarez oversees LVMPD’s Safe Neighborhoods Bureau, including the gang, vice and narcotics units, and helped shape the department’s internal and community-facing mentorship efforts through the Women of Metro council. She talks about the value of diverse leadership, lessons from her own promotional journey and why support from agency leaders — including former Sheriff and current Governor Joe Lombardo — played a pivotal role in her advancement. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.

Are public perceptions of police shaped more by headlines than reality? In this episode of Policing Matters, host Jim Dudley speaks with entrepreneur and author Brandon Steiner about what he learned after spending six months embedded with NYPD officers. With no law enforcement background, Steiner rode along in some of the city’s most violent precincts — gaining a front-row seat to the chaos, complexity and contradictions of urban policing. His new book, “The Ride-Alongs,” brings a street-level, unfiltered look at what officers face — and what the public needs to understand. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.

What happens when a split-second decision on the street becomes a media headline is stripped of context? In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, retired LAPD Captain Greg Meyer joins host Jim Dudley on the Policing Matters podcast to discuss his new book, “Hard Cases: Police Use of Force in America.” Drawing from decades of experience and insider knowledge on some of the most controversial police incidents, Meyer shares why he wrote the book, the importance of addressing media misinformation and how law enforcement leaders can push back against false narratives. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com.

Many agencies still rely on legacy field training models that emphasize evaluation over education — often scoring recruits before they’ve had time to learn. Recognizing the limitations of this approach, law enforcement leaders are moving toward a more effective model grounded in adult learning science. In this episode, Dan Greene, executive director of the National Association of Field Training Officers, and Sergeant Jason Devlin of the Scottsdale (Arizona) Police Department, discuss the development and implementation of NextGen Field Training. Designed to separate training from evaluation, this approach prioritizes coaching, accountability and cultural alignment. Devlin, who led the model’s creation and rollout, shares key insights on how agencies can strengthen recruit performance, improve retention and build a more resilient workforce. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for firs

In law enforcement, wellness can’t be an afterthought — it must be part of the foundation of operations. That means moving beyond surface-level initiatives to fully integrating mental health support into operations, training and leadership strategies. From proactive threat assessment to long-term officer resilience and retirement planning, embedding behavioral health into daily practice is key to building a healthier, more effective agency. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Dr. Cherylynn Lee, a police psychologist with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, about weaving behavioral science into tactical operations, threat assessment and daily officer interactions. From co-responder units to retirement planning, Dr. Lee explains how agencies can proactively support both sworn and civilian staff. Read more from Dr. Lee on Police1 here. Connect with Dr. Lee on LinkedIn. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the e

When officers respond to a call that seems routine — like a mental health check — they often have no idea how quickly that encounter could escalate. For Officer Alessandra Winterbauer of the Lincoln (Nebraska) Police Department, what began as a calm conversation with a confused subject turned into a life-or-death confrontation. Her ability to remain composed and rely on recent virtual reality training helped avoid a deadly outcome and led to her recognition with Axon’s 2025 Jack Cover Save of the Year Award. Officer Winterbauer and a colleague were dispatched to check on a man experiencing a possible mental health crisis. After a calm 20-minute conversation, the man abruptly asked, “If I come at you guys with a knife, will you shoot me?” Moments later, he sprinted toward officers. Winterbauer deployed her TASER 10 from over 30 feet away — just minutes after completing VR-based TASER training. Her successful response neutralized the threat without serious injury, demonstrating the real-world value of immersive

In a rare bit of encouraging news, the FBI’s 2024 report on active shooter incidents shows a 50% drop in cases — from 48 in 2023 to 24 in 2024. But is this a trend or an outlier? In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with two of the country’s foremost experts on mass shootings and prevention: former FBI executive Katherine Schweit, author of “Stop the Killing” and host of “Stop the Killing” podcast and psychologist Dr. Peter Langman, author and threat assessment consultant. They break down what’s behind the drop and what law enforcement and communities need to do to sustain progress. Schweit and Langman dig into key drivers behind the decline, including expanded civilian preparedness, stronger threat assessment protocols in schools, improved collaboration between law enforcement and behavioral health, and the use of AI technologies like ZeroEyes. They also weigh in on legislative factors such as red flag laws and gun purchase restrictions, while warning about new threats like

Domestic violence is often dismissed as unpredictable, but the data says otherwise. Red flags — like strangulation, firearm access and prior abuse — frequently precede fatal outcomes. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley speaks with Captain Eric K. Threlkeld of the Eddy County (New Mexico) Sheriff’s Office, who makes the case that proactive, well-trained investigators can identify these signs and intervene before violence turns deadly. Captain Threlkeld brings decades of specialized experience in domestic violence investigations to this conversation, including work with a nationally recognized domestic violence response team in Colorado Springs and the launch of a similar program in New Mexico. He outlines practical steps first responders and investigators can take to treat every domestic violence call as a potential homicide case. From leveraging victim advocates and lethality assessments to tracking co-occurring abuse patterns, this episode delivers field-tested insight for every

Over the past 30 years, American cities have seen crime rates surge and fall — sometimes dramatically. No city illustrates this swing better than New York, where murders dropped from more than 2,200 in 1990 to under 300 by 2017. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, former Baltimore cop and current John Jay professor Peter Moskos discusses the story behind that decline, as told in his new book, “Back from the Brink: Inside the NYPD and New York's Extraordinary 1990s Crime Drop.” The conversation covers leadership, accountability, crime data and the lessons law enforcement leaders can apply today. Host Jim Dudley interviews Moskos about the origins and impact of New York’s historic crime decline in the 1990s. Moskos explains how NYPD's shift in focus — from scandal and corruption control to crime prevention — was spurred by leaders like Bill Bratton and Jack Maple, along with innovations like CompStat. He outlines how data, accountability and political will converged to create a seismic shift in pol

Snohomish County 911 has officially opened a new $67.5 million emergency communications center designed to keep first responders connected and supported — no matter the crisis. The facility consolidates operations under one roof for the first time in the agency’s history, dramatically improving coordination, communications and continuity of service across all 44 law enforcement, fire and EMS agencies in the county. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with SNO911 Executive Director Kurt Mills and ECC Supervisor Kim Krenell about the planning, challenges and people behind the $67.5 million upgrade. The conversation highlights how the facility was designed with dispatcher input, how it’s built to withstand disasters and how unified operations are already improving service for first responders in the field. About our sponsor This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting O