, , ,

Miranda: I KNOW MY RIGHTS!

All officers hear those familiar words, and they’re likely repeated many, many times each and every day all across this great land of ours.

It’s a phrase spoken by the wisest of the wise—the soothsayers of the legal world. They’re the top legal minds of street corners, sour mash guzzling patrons of back road honky-tonk juke joints, and professional crack and meth smokers everywhere. It’s forcefully uttered by masked basement keyboard warriors who’re out for their weekly brick-throwing adventures, and by pickup truck cowboys out hee-hawing it up after a night of two-stepping at Myrtle Mae’s Bar and Grill in the strip mall next to the Sizzler that closed some six years ago.

That famous line is typically presented in a sing-songish manner—gently and soothingly, almost like a lullaby.

More times than I care to count, the person delivering the line is a scrawny, wiry sort of guy who prefers to go shirtless, exposing a set of bony ribs that could replace any xylophone in any symphony in the world. They’re the hoodlum wannabes who guzzle three six-packs of Natural Light followed by six shots of Jack Black as a warmup before they start their serious drinking. Of course, members of all sexes/genders dive in to offer their own spectacular versions of the diatribe and, like the aforementioned folks, they, too, come in all shapes and sizes and from varied backgrounds.

Lately, though, the famous words have been adopted by the likes of soccer moms, college students, sovereign citizens, kids, grocers, butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers.

But no matter from whose lips they cross, the message is the same, and it’s shouted and screamed and yelled into the faces of law enforcement officers. It is …

“I. Know. My. Rights, you fat dumbass son of a whore doughnut-eating pig! I’m gonna have your job. You gotta let me go ’cause you didn’t read me my rights! Now take off these cuffs … NOW … afore I open a can of whupass on you like you ain’t never seen!!!!”

Well, Mr. Canary-Chest TinyPants, your legal analysis is incorrect, and your threats of violence against  well-armed and well-trained officers do very little to intimidate them. Especially when you’ve shown the world the physical attributes you have to back up those strong promises of ass-whuppins.

So let’s examine TinyPants’ claim regarding Miranda and when it’s required.

Miranda

When is a police officer required to advise a suspect of the Miranda warnings?

I’ll give you a hint, it’s not like we see on television. Surprised?

Television shows often have officers spouting off Miranda warnings the second they have someone in cuffs. Not so. I’ve been in plenty of situations where I chased a suspect, caught him, he resisted, and then we wound up on the ground fighting like street thugs while I struggled to apply handcuffs to his wrists. And yes, words were spoken once I managed to get to my feet, but “Miranda” wasn’t one of them. Too many letters, if you know what I mean. Words consisting of only four letters seemed to flow quite easily at that point.

When Is Miranda Required?

Two elements must be in place for the Miranda warning requirement to apply. The suspect must be in custody and he must be undergoing interrogation.

Writers, this is an important detail – A suspect is in police custody if he’s under formal arrest or if his freedom has been restrained or denied to the extent that he feels as if he’s no longer free to leave.

The fellow wearing the handcuffs in the photo below is not free to leave. Therefore, should the officer wish to question him he must advise him of his right to remain silent, etc. However, if the officer decides to not ask questions/interrogate, then Miranda is not required.

arrest-take-down.jpg

I’ve arrested criminals, many of them, in fact, and never advised them of their rights. Not ever. And that’s because I didn’t ask them any questions.

Sometimes officers receive a stack of outstanding arrest warrants for a variety of cases and it’s their job that day to go out and round up those folks. Those officers have no clue as to the circumstances of the crime or case details, therefore they’d not know the appropriate questions to ask. All they know is that the boss handed them a pile of warrants and told them to fetch. This, by the way, is often one of the mundane duties assigned to rookie officers, along with directing traffic and writing parking tickets.

So, the warrant-serving officers locate the person named on the warrant and haul them to the station, or jail, for processing/booking. The officer who had the warrant issued may or may not question the arrested person at a later time. But the arresting officer, the one who played hide and seek with the crook for a few hours on a Monday morning is most likely out of the picture from that point onward. So no questioning = no Miranda.

Interrogation

Interrogation is not only asking questions, but any actions, words, or gestures used by an officer to elicit an incriminating response can be considered as an interrogation.

If these two elements are in place officers must advise a suspect of the Miranda warnings prior to questioning. If not, statements made by the suspect may not be used in court. Doesn’t mean the arrest isn’t good, just that his statements aren’t admissible.

Officers are NOT required to advise anyone of their rights if they’re not going to ask questions. Defendants are convicted all the time without ever hearing the police officer’s poem,  You have the right to …

Miranda facts:

Officers should repeat the Miranda warnings during each period of questioning. For example, during questioning officers decide to take a break for the night. They come back the next day to try again. They must advise the suspect of his rights again before resuming the questioning.

If an officer takes over questioning for another officer, she should repeat the warnings before asking her questions.

If a suspect asks for an attorney, officers may not ask any questions.

If a suspect agrees to answer questions, but decides to stop during the session and asks for an attorney, officers must stop the questioning.

Suspects who are under the influence of alcohol or drugs should not be questioned. Also, anyone who exhibits signs of withdrawl symptoms should not be questioned.

Officers should not question people who are seriously injured or ill.

People who are extremely upset or hysterical should not be questioned.

Officers may not threaten or make promises to elicit a confession.

Many officers carry a pre-printed Miranda warning card in their wallets. A National Sheriff’s Association membership card (same design and feel of a credit card) has the warnings printed on the reverse side.

Fact: The Miranda warning requirement stemmed from a case involving a man named Ernesto Miranda.  Miranda killed a young woman in Arizona and was arrested for the crime. During questioning Miranda confessed to the slaying, but the police had failed to tell him he had the right to silence and that he could have an attorney present during the questioning. Miranda’s confession was ruled inadmissible; however, the court convicted him based on other evidence.

Miranda was released from prison after he served his sentence. Not long after his release he was killed during a bar fight.

His killer was advised of his rights according to the precedent setting case of Miranda v. Arizona. He chose to remain silent.

*Some individual department/location policies requires their officers to advise of Miranda at the point of arrest. However, the law does not require them to do so.

Writers’ Police Academy
June 2-5, 2022
Green Bay, WI

The 2022 Writers’ Police Academy offers a unique opportunity for attendees to participate in many of the same hands-on training classes—basic and advanced—taught to Law Enforcement, Fire, EMS, and Corrections personnel. These incredibly exciting cutting-edge sessions are typically reserved only for professionals. Until now.

Four days of exciting hands-on training. at a renowned public safety training academy. Real police equipment and vehicles. Over 30 certified instructors and top law enforcement and forensics experts.

Attendees of the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy earn continuing education credit and a certificate from Northeast Wisconsin Technical College.

Sign up today to reserver your spot at this one of a kind event!

/by
,

4 Rules of Factual Cop Fiction: Avoid Writing a Stinky Story!

Realism in fiction is important, when it’s needed and when placed in the proper context. The ability to weave fact into fiction is a must. But writers must have a firm grasp of what’s real and what’s made-up before attempting to use reality as part of fiction. Otherwise, the author is offering readers fiction as reality, and that’s a fact. Or is it fiction?

The above paragraph is as clear as mucky pond water, right? Well, that’s the sort of muddy writing readers must wade through when writers don’t conduct proper research before diving into to write their next story. For example, confusing a semi-auto pistol with a revolver, or a shotgun with a rifle. Those are the sorts of things that cause writers to lose credibility with their readers. A great example of this is in a current book I read a few weeks ago, where the main character racked a shotgun shell into the chamber of her rifle. Silly writer, shotguns shells are for shotguns, not rifles. Therefore, one does not “rack” a shell into the chamber of a rifle.

The writing in the book was absolutely wonderful … until I read that single line. At that point, as good as the book had been, as I continued to read I found myself searching each paragraph for more errors.

Anyway …

Have you done the unthinkable? Are there words in your latest tale that could send your book straight to someone’s “Wouldn’t Read In A Million Years” pile? How can you avoid such disaster, you ask? Fortunately, following these four simple rules could save the day.

1. Use caution when writing cop slang. What you hear on TV may not be the language used by real police officers. And, what is proper terminology and/or slang in one area may be totally unheard of in another. A great example are the slang terms Vic (Victim), Wit (Witness), and Perp (Perpetrator). These shortened words are NOT universally spoken by all cops. In fact, I think I’m fairly safe in saying the use of these is not typical across the U.S.

2. Simply because a law enforcement officer wears a shiny star-shaped badge and drives a car bearing a “Sheriff” logo does not mean they are all “sheriffs.” Please, please, please stop writing this in your stories. A sheriff is an elected official who is in charge of the department, and there’s only one per sheriff’s office. The head honcho. The Boss. All others working there are appointed by the sheriff to assist him/her with their duties. Those appointees are called DEPUTY SHERIFFS. Therefore, unless the boss himself shows up at your door to serve you with a jury summons, which is highly unlikely unless you live in a county populated by only three residents, two dogs, and a mule, the LEO’s you see driving around your county are deputies. Andy was the sheriff (the boss) and Barney was his deputy.

3. The rogue detective who’s pulled from a case yet sets out on his own to solve it anyway. I know, it sounds cool, but it’s highly unlikely that an already overworked detective would drop all other cases (and there are many) to embark on some bizarre quest to take down Mr. Freeze. Believe me, most investigators would gladly lighten their case loads by one, or more. Besides, to disobey orders from a superior officer is an excellent means of landing a fun assignment (back in uniform on the graveyard shift ) directing traffic at the intersection of Dumbass Avenue and Stupid Street.

4. Those of you who’ve written scenes where a cocky FBI agent speeds into town to tell the local chief or sheriff to step aside because she’s taking over the murder case du jour, well, grab a bottle of white-out and immediately begin lathering up that string of goofy words because it doesn’t happen. The same for those scenes where the FBI agent forces the sheriff out of his office so she can remove his name plate from the desk and replace it with one of her own along with photos of her family and her pet guinea pig. No. No. And No. The agent would quickly find herself being escorted back to her “guvment” vehicle.

The FBI does not investigate local murder cases.

I’ll say that again.

The FBI does not investigate local murder cases. And, in case you misunderstood … the FBI does not investigate local murder cases. Nor do they have the authority to order a sheriff or chief out of their offices. Yeah, right … that would happen in real life (in case you can’t see me right now, I’m rolling my eyes).

Believable Make-Believe

Okay, I understand you’re writing fiction, which means you get to make up stuff. And that’s cool. However, the stuff you make up must be believable. Not necessarily fact, just believable. Write it so your readers can suspend reality without stopping in their tracks to wonder if they should, even if only for a short time. If your character carries a rifle that accepts shotgun shells by “racking” them into the chamber, then you must devise a reason for that to become reality—your character is a wacky scientist who invented the new-fangled long gun, for example. Your readers must believe you and your characters.

Your fans want to trust you, and they’ll go out of their way to give you the benefit of the doubt. Really, they will. But, for goodness sake, give them something to work with, without an encyclopedic info dump. Provide readers a reason to believe/understand what they’ve just seen on your pages. A tiny morsel of believability goes a long way.

Still, if you’re going for realism then please do some real homework. I say this because you certainly do not want readers to barely make it halfway through the first chapter of your latest gem when when they suddenly toss it into my WRIAMY pile (Wouldn’t Read In A Million Years).

It’s sometimes painfully obvious when a writer’s method of research is a couple of quick visits to crappy internet sites, and a 15-minute conversation with a friend whose sister works with a man whose brother, a cab driver in Dookyboo, North Carolina, picked up a guy ten years ago at the airport, a partially deaf man with two thumbs on his right hand, who had a friend in Whirlywind, Kansas who lived next door to a retired security guard who, during a Saturday lunch rush, sat two tables over from two cops who might’ve mentioned a crime scene … maybe.

Please, if you want good, solid information, always speak with an expert who has first-hand knowledge about the subject. Not a person who, having read a book about fingerprinting or bloodstain patterns, suddenly believes they’re pro and hits the writers conference circuit teaching workshops. Sure, they may be able to relate what they’ve read on a page, however, those mere words are not the things writers need to breathe life into a story. Reading about bloodstains is not the same as standing inside a murder scene, experiencing the sights, sounds, smells, and emotions felt by the person who’s there in person. The latter is the true expert who can help a writer take their work to the next level, and beyond.

So, is there a WRIAMY pile in your house? Worse … have you written something that could land one of your tales in someone’s “Wouldn’t Read In A Million Years” pile of unreadable books? If so, perhaps it’s time to change your research methods.

A great means to assist in adding realism to your work is to, of course, attend the Writers’ Police Academy! Registration for the 2022 WPA’s 14th anniversary blowout is now OPEN! You will not want to miss this thrilling experience. It is THE event of the year! Sign up today, and please bring a friend!

/by

2022 Writers’ Police Academy Registration is OPEN … again!

After several days of downtime for an unexpected website redo, the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy registration is once again OPEN! We apologize for any inconvenience.

We invite you to join us for THE most exciting writer event of the year. And please, spread the word for us!

See you in June!

 

www.writerspoliceacademy.com

/by

Meet the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy Instructors

It is with great pleasure that I introduce you to an esteemed group of experts, the instructors and presenters of the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy.

Nicole Crocker

Detective Nichole Crocker

Nichole is presently assigned as a detective with the Oconto Police Department. She is also a Wisconsin Department of Justice certified instructor. Class – Emergency Vehicle Operations (EVOC)

Jason Feucht

Lt. Jason Feucht

Jason currently serves as a patrol lieutenant for the Fox Crossing Police Department. In his time at the police department Jason has also worked as a patrol officer, drug investigator, and detective. Class – Use of Force Virtual Reality Simulator

Nicole Fumelle

Nicole Fumelle, NWTC Adjunct Instructor

Nicole has 15 years experience in corrections, having worked at the Brown County Sheriff’s Office attaining the level of Corporal. Nicole also was responsible for training jail staff, and she’s worked as an adjunct instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. Class – Arrest and Booking Process

jerry johnson

Lt. Jerry Johnson (ret.)

Jerry is an adjunct instructor at NWTC and is certified by the Wisconsin Department of Justice to instruct Firearms, EVOC,  Vehicle Contacts, Officer Wellness, DAAT, Scenarios, and Tactical Response. Class – Emergency Vehicle Operations (EVOC)

Dave Jones

Dave Jones, Chief of Police (ret.)

Dave recently retired as the Chief of Police for the University of Wisconsin—Green Bay Police Department, an NCAA Division 1 State University. He oversaw all Police Operations and Emergency Management for its four campuses (Green Bay, Manitowoc, Marinette and Sheboygan). Class – Firearms

brian jordon

Patrol Sergeant Brian Jordan

Brian is a 25-year law enforcement veteran and currently a Patrol Sergeant, Field Training Officer and Training Unit member with the Green Bay Police Department. Class – Forced Entry/Room Clearing

Officer Ron King

Ron is a police officer for the Oneida Police Department and is presently assigned as a detective. He is a Wisconsin Department of Justice certified instructor in Vehicle Contacts, and Firearms. Class – Tribal Policing

k9 deputy turbo

Oconto County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit

All K-9s within the unit are dual purpose tracking and narcotics detection police service dogs, and each is trained in handler protection, obedience, criminal apprehension, and tracking including evidentiary scent work. Class – K-9 Operations

Kurt Kitzman

Lt. Kurt Litzman

Kurt is presently assigned as a patrol lieutenant with the Shawano County Sheriff’s Office. He is a Wisconsin Department of Justice certified instructor in Defensive and Arrest Tactics (DAAT), EVOC, and Firearms. Class – Emergency Vehicle Operations (EVOC)

Mike Knetzger

Patrol Sergeant Mike Knetzger

Mike Knetzger, a certified use of force analyst for the Force Science Research Center and recipient of the J. Edgar Hoover Memorial Award, is a 28-year law enforcement veteran and currently a patrol sergeant with the City of Green Bay. Class – Body Cameras

Jonathon Ladwig

Jonathon Ladwig – Fire Training Coordinator and Instructor

Jonathon is presently the Fire Training Coordinator and Instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College.  Jonathon is also the fire chief for Little River Fire Department. Class – Vehicle Extrication

Jon Nejedlo

OfficerJon Nejedlo

Jon is a Police Officer for the City of Green Bay Police Department who’s served 19 years as a Patrol Officer. He is currently assigned to the Operations Department as the Range Master. Class – Forced Entry/Room Clearing

Matt Ninham

Matt Ninham -Criminal Justice Instructor

Matt is an Oneida Tribal Member and grew up on the Oneida Indian Reservation. He was an Oneida Police Officer for 16 years and retired in 2016. Matt is currently a full-time Criminal Justice Instructor at NWTC, and a part time officer with the Hortonville Police Department. Class – Vehicle Contacts

Kevin Rathburn

Municipal Judge Kevin Rathburn

Kevin became a full-time faculty member at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in 2000 after serving as an adjunct instructor for nine years. Prior to that, he served for ten years as an Assistant District Attorney for Brown County in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Class – Court Process

Jeff Steeber

Jeff Steeber – Criminal Justice Instructor

Jeff is a full-time criminal justice instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC). Prior to employment at NWTC, Jeff spent 15 years as an officer for the Fox Valley Metro Police Department. Class – Defensive and Arrest Tactics

Jeremy Stover

Jeremy Stover – Public Safety Officer

Jeremy is a public safety officer for Ashwaubenon Public Safety Department, where officers assume three roles during each 24-hour shift—EMT, law enforcement officer, and firefighter. Jeremy is certified in all three. Class – Firearms

Justin Uitenbroek

Justin Uitenbroek – Fire Science Instructor

is a full-time Fire Science Instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. Justin also works as a paramedic in Clintonville, Wi., and a firefighter for Fox Crossing, Wi. Class – Vehicle Extrication

Angel Van Noie

Angel Van Noie – Academy Instructor

Angel is 20-year veteran police officer of the Hobart-Lawrence Police Department. During that time, Angel worked patrol and served as a School Resource Officer in the West De Pere School District. Class – Defensive and Arrest Tactics

erik walters

Erik Walters – Public Safety Training Complex Specialist

Erik is the Public Safety Training Complex Specialist at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College.  In that role, Erik oversees all the public safety training facilities and equipment at 4 different locations. Class – Use of Force Virtual Reality Simulator

Marco Conelli

Marco Conelli – NYPD Detective (ret.)

A twenty year veteran detective of the NYPD, Marco Conelli’s diverse career is highlighted by his work as an undercover where he was plugged into many investigations for the Organized Crime Control Bureau. Class – Guilty Until Proven Innocent

lefevre

Joe LeFevre, PhD – Academy Instructor

Joe is a full-time police academy instructor in WI. His instructional focus is on investigations, forensic skills, and officer fitness/wellness. Prior to teaching Joe was a police officer, and had spent a few years involved with a volunteer fire department. Class –  These People Breaking Bad Were Not Walter White

rick mcmahan

Rick McMahan – Detective, Kentucky Attorney General’s Office

Rick spent over a quarter of a century as a Special Agent for the ATF. During his career, Rick investigated a wide range of crimes from violent militant extremists to outlaw motorcycle gangs to murder for hire plots. Currently, he serves as a Detective for the Kentucky Attorney General’s office. Class – Armed in America

Special Guest Presenters

Dr. Katherine Ramsland

Dr. Katherine Ramsland 

Special Presentation – Conversations with the B.T.K. Killer, Dennis Rader

Dr. Ramsland teaches forensic psychology at DeSales University in Pennsylvania, where she is the Assistant Provost. She has appeared on more than 200 crime documentaries and magazine shows, is an executive producer of Murder House Flip, and has consulted for CSI, Bones, and The Alienist. The author of more than 1,500 articles and 69 books, including The Forensic Science of CSI, The Forensic Psychology of Criminal Minds, How to Catch a Killer, The Psychology of Death Investigations, and Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, The BTK Killer, she was co-executive producer for the Wolf Entertainment/A&E documentary based on the years she spent talking with Rader. Dr. Ramsland consults on death investigations, pens a blog for Psychology Today, and is writing a fiction series based on a female forensic psychologist.

Steven Spingola – “The Spingola Files: An Evening with Steven Spingola”

Steven Spingola

Special Presentation – The Spingola Files: An Evening with Steven Spingola

Known to his colleagues as “the sleuth with the proof,” Spingola is an investigator for Cold Justice, a popular Oxygen Channel true crime program. During a 2014 episode in Vigo County, Indiana, Spingola and another investigator obtained a confession in a decades-old cold case. During an intense interrogation, suspect Clint Mackey broke down and stated, “I went back, grabbed the knife and killed her.

Steven Spingola is an investigator with a national reputation for excellence. He is a 2001 graduate of the FBI National Academy, and he holds two master’s degrees. Steven is a death investigation expert, a police-related shooting reconstruction specialist, and is formally trained as a criminal investigative analyst (profiling).

Prior to his retirement as a lieutenant of detectives with the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD), Spingola supervised all major categories of criminal investigations, including stints in the Homicide Unit, Vice Control Division, Sensitive Crimes Unit, and Violent Crimes Division. He further served as the lead investigator for the Critical Incident Unit, a group that probes police related shootings, use-of-force incidents, and other significant events. As a detective, Spingola spent several years conducting death investigations for a homicide unit with one of the highest clearance rates in the country.

Steve has authored several books: Best of the Spingola Files, Volumes 1 & 2; Predators of the Parkway: A Former Homicide Detective Explores the Colonial Parkway Murders, and Staggered Paths: Strange Deaths in the Badger State.

2022 Guest of Honor, Robert Dugoni

robert dugoni

Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Postand #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 8 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and  several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, and the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell – Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a three-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.

Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than twenty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

 

www.writerspoliceacademy.com

/by

Writers’ Police Academy: A Deep and Heartfelt “Thank You” to Our Generous Supporters

To Our Treasured Sponsors

On behalf of the Writers’ Police Academy, I’d like to take a moment to personally extend a deep and heartfelt “Thank You” to the generous supporters who make it possible to produce this one of a kind, thrilling event for writers, readers, and fans.

 Without you, dear friends, the renowned Writers’ Police Academy would not be achievable.

And now, without further ado, please meet the heroes of the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy … our Sponsors.

Mystery Writers of America

Corporate Sponsor

Mystery Writers of America is the premier organization for mystery writers, professionals allied to the crime-writing field, aspiring crime writers, and those who are devoted to the genre. MWA is dedicated to promoting higher regard for crime writing and recognition and respect for those who write within the genre. We provide scholarships for writers, sponsor MWA Literacy programs, sponsor symposia and conferences, present the Edgar® Awards, and conduct other activities to further a better appreciation and higher regard for crime writing.

Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine

Corporate Sponsor

For over sixty years, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine has been one of the foremost publishers of mystery, crime, and suspense short stories, offering mystery fiction of the broadest range and the highest quality. Home to many renowned authors, including Martin Limón, Jane K. Cleland, Loren Estleman, Rhys Bowen, and Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Hitchcock’s stories represent every subgenre of mystery fiction, from the classic whodunit to the hardboiled tale of suspense, and everything in between. AHMM has also introduced numerous new authors who have taken their places among the luminaries of the genre. Stories featured in AHMM have won dozens of awards, including many Robert L. Fish awards for Best First Mystery Short Story of the year.

 

Lisa Regan

lisa regan

Silver Star Sponsor

Lisa Regan is the USA Today & Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Detective Josie Quinn series as well as several other crime fiction titles. She has a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Master of Education degree from Bloomsburg University. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, Crime Writers Association, and Mystery Writers of America. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband, daughter and Boston Terrier named Mr. Phillip.

The Drowning Girls cover

“The Drowning Girls”

A knock on the door late in the evening can only mean trouble for Detective Josie Quinn, but fear chokes her at the news that the one of her own team is missing. No one has seen Denton PD’s beautiful Press Liaison Amber for days. Sweet-natured and totally dedicated to the job, she’d never let her colleagues down. A message scrawled on the frosted windscreen of Amber’s car leads Josie to a nearby dam. But the body they pull from the water is not Amber …

Denise Grover Swank

Denise Grover Swank

Medal of Valor Sponsor

Denise Grover Swank is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author. She indie published her first book, a romance mystery, Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes, in 2011. She has since published over seventy novels, novellas, and short stories as an indie and with five publishers. She is published in eight languages. She has sold nearly three million books to date.

A-Cry-in-the-Dark-Ebook

“A Cry in the Dark”

A woman on the run with no one to trust.
With the ink barely dry on her new identity, Carly Moore just wants to disappear…but fate has other plans. Broken down car, next to nothing in her bank account, Carly is stuck in a Smoky Mountain town that time has forgotten. Drum is riddled with secrets and outsiders are eyed with distrust. Still, it isn’t until she witnesses a cold-blooded murder in a darkened parking lot, that she realizes she’s escaped one nightmare, only to land in another.

Mary Burton

Mary Burton

Commissioner Sponsor

Mary Burton is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling novelist, and is routinely featured among the top ten writers in Amazon’s Author Rankings for suspense, romantic suspense and thrillers. Her recent titles Don’t Look Now, Near You, Never Look Back, I See You, Hide and Seek, Cut and Run and Her Last Word consistently rank high on the Kindle eBooks bestseller list. She is the author of 37 published novels and 5 novellas. Mary has also published 8 works of contemporary fiction as Mary Ellen Taylor, including Winter Cottage, Spring House, Honeysuckle Season and the upcoming The Words We Whisper.

Kendra Elliott

kendra elliott

Commissioner Sponsor

Kendra Elliot has sold ten million books, hit the Wall Street Journal top ten bestseller list over a dozen times, and is a three time winner of the Daphne du Maurier award.

She is an International Thriller Writers’ finalist and a Romantic Times finalist. She grew up in the lush Pacific Northwest but recently spends most of her time on a warm beach, always wearing flip flops.

https://www.kendraelliot.com/home/

Stacy Green

stacy green

Commissioner Sponsor

Stacy Green is the author of the Lucy Kendall thriller series and the Delta Crossroads mystery trilogy. ALL GOOD DEEDS (Lucy Kendall #1) won a bronze medal for mystery and thriller at the 2015 IPPY Awards. TIN GOD (Delta Crossroads #1) was runner-up for best mystery/thriller at the 2013 Kindle Book Awards. Stacy has a love of thrillers and crime fiction, and she is always looking for the next dark and twisted novel to enjoy. She started her career in journalism before becoming a stay at home mother and rediscovering her love of writing.

Stacy is represented by Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo, Helin and Fountain Literary Management for literary and dramatic rights.

She lives in Iowa with her husband and daughter and their three spoiled fur babies.

Melinda Leigh

melinda leigh

Commissioner Sponsor

#1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh has written twenty novels and sold over 10 million copies of her books. Her stories have been been translated into more than a dozen languages. Her debut novel, She Can Run, was an International Thriller Award finalist. Since then, she has garnered numerous writing awards, including two RITA® Award nominations.
Melinda holds a 2nd degree belt in Kenpo Karate. She’s dabbled in Arnis stick fighting, studied Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and taught women’s self-defense. She lives near the beach with her family and two spoiled rescue dogs. With such a pleasant life, she has no explanation for the sometimes dark and disturbing nature of her imagination.
Find out more about Melinda by visiting www.melindaleigh.com.

Patti Phillips

patti phillips

Commissioner Sponsor

Patti Phillips is the person behind Detective Charlie Kerrian at www.kerriansnotebook.com. Her second ebook, “Kerrian’s Notebook, Volume 2: Fun, Facts, and a Few Dead Bodies,” covers a wide range of law enforcement procedures and techniques. Ms. Phillips has experienced seven of the Writers’ Police Academies. Many of her stories and non-fiction articles are based on the interviews she conducted at WPA as well as the intensive WPA sessions and weeklong classes at SIRCHIE she attended over the years. Hundreds of Phillips’ photographs seen on her blog and around the internet attest to the fun and knowledge gained by all at WPA. Her book reviews can be read at www.nightstandbookreviews.com

Special Friends and Supporters of the Writers’ Police Academy

The Oak Ridge Boys

oak ridge boys

The Oak Ridge Boys have spawned dozens of Country hits, including Country-Pop chart-topper “Elvira,” as well as “Bobbie Sue,” and “Dream On.” In 1977, Paul Simon tapped the Oaks to sing backup for his hit “Slip Slidin’ Away.” In 2021, Mike Rowe(“Dirty Jobs”), John Rich of Big and Rich, and the Oaks teamed up to release the hit song “Santa’s Gotta Dirty Job,” which quickly reached the number one spot on the iTunes chart.

They’ve scored 12 gold, three platinum, and one double platinum album—plus one double platinum single—and had more than a dozen national Number One singles. During their career, the group has earned top honors such as Grammy, Dove, CMA, and ACM awards, to name only a few.

*The Oaks’ organization is a longtime supporter of the Writers’ Police Academy. In 2019, Joe Bonsall (on the left in the photo above), the lead voice on the hit songs “Elvira”, “It Never Hurts To Hurt Sometime,” and “Love Song,” joined several authors in writing a collection of short stories for the Writers’ Police Academy’s anthology, After Midnight: Tales form the Graveyard Shift. 

www.oakridgeboys.com

Joe Bonsall

joe bosnall

In addition to singing with the Oak Ridge Boys, Joe Bonsall is an avid writer. He published his first children’s books in 1997, The Molly Books, a four-book series. In 2003, Joe published G. I. Joe and Lillie: Remembering a Life of Love and Loyalty, an inspirational biography about his parents. His song by the same name was included on the Oaks’ Colors album and a music video of the song became a YouTube phenomenon with more than five million views.

Joe authored the text for the Oaks’ coffee table book, An American Journey and a Christmas story titled An Inconvenient Christmas, On the Road with The Oak Ridge Boys (2015), and From My Perspective (2010), a collection of commentaries, stories and other writings. He also wrote Sunshine Berkman, a short story in the Writers’ Police Academy 2019 anthology, After Midnight: Tales from the Graveyard Shift.

*Bio source and images – oakridgeboys.com

Kathy Harris

Kathy Harris is an author by way of a “divine detour” into the Nashville entertainment business. After graduating with a Communications degree from Southern Illinois University, she moved to Tennessee to work in the Christian music industry, a position that soon transitioned into what would become a long-tenured country music marketing career with The Oak Ridge Boys.

For several years, Kathy freelanced entertainer biographies and wrote, as well as ghost wrote, news stories and columns for various music publications. In 2007, she sold her first Christian non-fiction story, “Walk on Water,” which was included in Thomas Nelson’s All My Bad Habits I Learned from Grandpa. That same year one of her devotions was published in The One Year Life Verse Devotional from Tyndale House. She also contributed “Blooms of Wisdom” to the Chicken Soup for the Soul 2010 release Thanks, Mom and “He Who Laughs Last Is the Weiner” to the Chicken Soup for the Soul 2019 release Life Lessons from the Dog.

Abingdon Press, an imprint of the United Methodist Publishing House, released Kathy’s debut novel, The Road to Mercy, in September 2012. In October 2019, Iron Stream Media released Deadly Commitment, the first book in The Deadly Secrets romantic suspense series. Deadly Connection, the second book in the series, was released in October 2021.

An American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis finalist in 2007 and category winner in the RWA/Faith Hope & Love Touched by Love in 2011, Kathy was included in Family Fiction magazine’s list of ‘five new voices encouraging and challenging the modern woman.’ She was also a featured panelist at the 2012 Southern Festival of Books.

Kathy is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), the Christian Authors Network (CAN), the Country Music Association (CMA), the Gospel Music Association (GMA), the Academy of Country Music (ACM), and the Americana Music Association (AMA), and a former member of National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS). She is also a former board member of the Tennessee Committee for Prevention of Child Abuse and the Nashville Entertainment Association, and a former volunteer board member of The Book Club Network.

Like Joe Bonsall, Kathy Harris has supported the Writers’ Police Academy since its first year of operation. It is she who travels the streets and roads around Nashville each year to meet with country superstars to have them sign the guitars and other merchandise offered each year in the raffle and auction.

One year the guitar was slow to arrive, and it was because country music legend Kenny Rogers had taken it home with him to sign and Kathy had to wait for him to return it. Then she tracked down Dolly Parton, who added her name to the guitar.

International bestselling author Lee Child was high-bidder for a guitar signed by Keith Urban, the Oak Ridge Boys, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley and more. Who knew that Lee Child was a fan of country music!

Kathy Harris bio source and image – kathyharrisbooks.com

Writers’ Police Academy (WPA) Registration opens February 1, 2022, at noon EST.

Please visit the WPA website to view class schedules, instructors, special guests, venue, hotel, and other details.
For details about how you, too, could enjoy the benefits of joining our beloved sponsor family, please click the link below.
/by
,

Shopping at a SuperMax Prison: USP Florence ADMAX

With grocery list in hand and coupons arranged by order of item location in store aisles, it’s time to go Shopping at a Federal SuperMax Prison: USP Florence ADMAX.

As you pass by the deli counter you  remember back to just a few weeks ago, in December, when you’d often see Theodore John Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber (inmate register number 04475-046), waiting for the clerk to wrap packages of pre-cooked bacon and cheddar squares. But the COs rolled-up old Ted near the end of 2021 and shipped him to the U.S. Bureau of Prison’s Federal Medical Center in Butner, N.C.

Roll up –  Order by a corrections officer for a prisoner to move out of an area. Also, when a prisoner is transferred to another location, they’re often told to place their belongings in the center of their bed and roll the mattress around them. The bundle is is easier to carry than individual items.

“Jenkins, let’s go. Roll ’em up!”

The feds have been tight-lipped about why they shipped Ted to Butner, but it can only mean that he’s seriously ill. I mean, they just don’t take hardcore lifers from the SuperMax in Colorado, the “Alcatraz of the Rockies,” and send them elsewhere unless, well, it simply can’t be good news for Kaczynski. Butner is where Bernie Madoff served time and where he died.

Butner’s had a few other notable inmates, such as John Hinkley, Jr. the guy who shot President Ronald Reagan, and Joe “Tiger King” Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage. Exotic was transferred to the Butner medical facility after a cancer diagnosis.

So no, you probably won’t be seeing Ted at the SuperMax deli counter again.

After your moment of woolgathering passes, you decide to grab some pepperoni slices and jalapeño refried beans, because you and the fellas are planning a “spread” for Sunday’s game. Then you head over to the aisle marked “Soups” where you pick up ten packages of Ramen Maruchan Hot-n-Spicy. You already have a bag of Doritos. That’s it. Your portion of the spread is done.

The next aisle is where you spot Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the surviving Boston Marathon Bomber (95079-038) who, along with his brother, killed three people and injured approximately 280 others. The pair also shot and killed MIT Police Officer Sean Collier during an attempt to steal his gun. You make eye contact with him, but keep moving.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev stares into security camera of federal courthouse / United States Marshals Service

While perusing the CHIPS aisle you stop to chat with Michael Swango, aka Dr. Death (08352-424). He, too, is planning a meal for game day, but I imagine he won’t see a single guest. Who’d want to eat anything prepared by this guy? After all, he killed five dozen of his patients, friends, and colleagues by poisoning. Nope. Not a bite of anything he fixes, Not even a single Pepe’s Pork Rind.

You’re about to say so long to Swango when up walks Robert Hanssen (48551-083), a guy no one wants to talk to. In fact, everyone snaps their traps shut the second that guy is within earshot. You know about him, right? No? Well, let me tell you about the rat. He’s the FBI agent who was a spy for the Russian and Soviet Intelligence Services against the United States, and he did it for TWENTY YEARS! Hanssen gave up big-time classified secrets to the Russians, including our nuclear war strategies. People were killed because of him. He was such a rat that he received 15 life sentences. And that’s why nobody talks to the guy.

Standing near the hemmorhoidal cream and stool softeners is none other than Joaquin Archival Guzman Loera (89914-053), aka El Chapo, the 5′-6″ leader of Sinaloa drug Cartel. He may be short, but he carries a lot of weight, and was giving ole Hanssen the big “stink eye.” It’s no secret that El Chapo doesn’t like snitches, so the double-crossing stoolie quickly moved along.

Seeing Hanssen always spoils anyone’s day, even if the sighting is only in your mind.

So it’s back to the reality of your concrete and steel, soundproofed cell, where each day you’re confined to 22-23 hours of isolation. Reality is where high security cells have two doors, a solid metal exterior door and an interior door constructed of steel bars. If you’re lucky enough to have an in-cell shower, water flow is on a timer to prevent inmates from flooding their cells. Like the single stool inside the cell, the bed is made of concrete. The latter is topped by a thin mattress. The stool has no attached cushion.


But this article is about shopping, not living conditions, so here are the real rules for commissary shopping at USP Florence ADMAX:

Since inmates are confined to their cells, to purchase items from the commissary they must submit their lists in advance of their unit’s assigned delivery days.

Monday – D&Z units

Tuesday – F&H units

Wednesday – J-A & K units

Wednesday – J-B units

Thursday – G unit

Friday – B & E units

Commissary lists (see below) are sent to the commissary and each order is delivered to the cells. There is a limit on the number of items inmates are allowed to order, and there’s a limit to the number of items inmates may have in their possession at any one time. No stockpiling.

Inmates at the ADMAX are limited to spending $285.00 per month. Postage stamp costs are not included within the spending limit; however, stamp purchases are limited to $29.40.

Shoe sales must have prior approval and the cost is deducted prior to weekly commissary sales.

Hobby craft items are permitted, but there’s a limit to the number of items allowed in the cell.

So, with those things in mind, HAPPY SHOPPING!

Commissary Slip

(Use your mouse to hover over the page and then click the arrows at the bottom left  to maneuver between page one and two)

FLM_commlist080118

 

ATTENTION…ATTENTION…ATTENTION!!!!

Registration for the thrilling 2022 Writers’ Police Academy OPENS February 1, 2022. Be ready to sign up at 12 NOON EST! Registrations are first-come, first-served until the event is sold out!

Check back each day this week for details, schedule information, news, classes, Sponsor page updates, and much more!!

Become a Writers’ Police Academy Sponsor

Would you like to become a Sponsor of the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy? It’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase your books and other products through the WPA’s unique far-reaching worldwide community and networking environment, all while supporting THE most exciting event for writers.

Sponsor dollars help us keep registration fees at a minimum, which allows an affordable opportunity to attend for more writers, readers, and fans. Therefore, not only are you helping yourself and your colleagues, you are helping jump start the careers and dreams of others.

So please, visit the “Become a Sponsor” page and join the generous folks who support this unique event—Mystery Writers of America, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, authors Lisa Regan, Denise Grover Swank, Joe Bonsall and the Oak Ridge Boys, Mary Burton, Kendra Elliot, Stacy Green, Kathy Harris, Melinda Leigh, and Patti Phillips.

Without our sponsors the Writers’ Police Academy could not do what we do.

We are grateful to each of you!

To become a WPA sponsor, please click below.

Become a Sponsor

For questions about sponsorships, please contact me at lofland32@msn.com. Type SPONSORSHIP in the subject line of your message.

 

/by
,

The 2022 Writers’ Police Academy Website is LIVE!

The much-anticipated day has arrived. Yes, The 2022 Writers’ Police Academy Website is LIVE, and it’s your first look at the exciting lineup of hands-on training classes available at the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy. As always, we’ve assembled an incredibly outstanding group of top instructors and presenters who’re anxious to share with you their extensive knowledge and expertise. Classes offered at the WPA (Writers’ Police Academy) include actual training that’s offered in a police basic training academy, and in advanced level classes attended by in-service law enforcement officers and other veteran first responders.

These special training sessions are offered to you ONLY at the Writers’ Police Academy.

Fox Cities Exhibition Center

We’ve expanded our facilities this year to include not only the renowned Public Safety Training Academy at NWTC and all it offers—the Universal Driving Facility (UDF), Tactical House, Burn Tower, Jail Facility, Firing Range, and more—we’ve also reserved the entire Fox Cities Exhibition Center in Appleton, Wi., which will house an INDOOR display of various law enforcement and firefighting vehicles and equipment. You’ll have the opportunity to explore these vehicles and equipment, and law enforcement and firefighting experts will be on hand to answer your questions. All nighttime, Sunday morning activities, and registration/check-in will take place at the exhibition center, including the banquet, a meet and mingle with live entertainment, special presentations, and more. The exhibition center is owned by the city of Appleton, but is attached to our official event hotel, Red Lion Paper Valley Hotel, through a sky-walk.

We have gone beyond over the top to ensure that your experience is one you’ll not soon forget, if ever! We wanted to make the return to in-person training something quite special.

Due to the action-based nature of some of sessions, and for your safety and ours, we’ve slightly reduced the number of available spots at the event. This is to allow an appropriate instructor to student ration. You will need to act quickly to reserve your spot once registration opens.

The level of excitement will be high. There will be firearms, explosions, barking K-9s, gunfire, door-kicking, handcuffing, jail cell doors slamming, and patrol vehicles zipping through a closed driving course. You will be in the thick of it all. It will be loud. It will be and adrenaline-pumping weekend of heart-pounding, titillating, and absolutely electrifying FUN! Oh, and you’ll learn tons of information for your books along the way.

Also new this year, and it’s a real bonus, is the addition of WPA attendees earning continuing education credit and a certificate from Northeast Wisconsin Technical College.

As I mentioned, the 2022 lineup of presenters and speakers is stellar, beginning with the 2022 Guest of Honor, Robert Dugoni.

Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Postand #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 8 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and  several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, and the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell – Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a three-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.

 

Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than twenty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Next up are two fabulous, renowned special guest experts, Dr. Katherine Ramsland and Steven Spingola, whose captivating presentations will have you on the edges of your seats.

Dr. Katherine Ramsland 

Dr. Katherine Ramsland teaches forensic psychology at DeSales University in Pennsylvania, where she is the Assistant Provost. She has appeared on more than 200 crime documentaries and magazine shows, is an executive producer of Murder House Flip, and has consulted for CSI, Bones, and The Alienist. The author of more than 1,500 articles and 69 books, including The Forensic Science of CSI, The Forensic Psychology of Criminal Minds, How to Catch a Killer, The Psychology of Death Investigations, and Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, The BTK Killer, she was co-executive producer for the Wolf Entertainment/A&E documentary based on the years she spent talking with Rader. Dr. Ramsland consults on death investigations, pens a blog for Psychology Today, and is writing a fiction series based on a female forensic psychologist.

Dr. Ramland’s presentation – Conversations with the B.T.K. Killer, Dennis Rader

*Dr. Ramsland has been with the WPA for many years.

Steven Spingola

Known to his colleagues as “the sleuth with the proof,” Steven Spingola is as an investigator for Cold Justice, a popular Oxygen Channel true crime program. During a 2014 episode in Vigo County, Indiana, Spingola and another investigator obtained a confession in a decades-old cold case. During an intense interrogation, suspect Clint Mackey broke down and stated, “I went back, grabbed the knife and killed her.

Steven Spingola is an investigator with a national reputation for excellence. He is a 2001 graduate of the FBI National Academy, and he holds two master’s degrees. Steven is a death investigation expert, a police-related shooting reconstruction specialist, and is formally trained as a criminal investigative analyst (profiling).

Prior to his retirement as a lieutenant of detectives with the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD), Spingola supervised all major categories of criminal investigations, including stints in the Homicide Unit, Vice Control Division, Sensitive Crimes Unit, and Violent Crimes Division. He further served as the lead investigator for the Critical Incident Unit, a group that probes police related shootings, use-of-force incidents, and other significant events. As a detective, Spingola spent several years conducting death investigations for a homicide unit with one of the highest clearance rates in the country.

Steve has authored several books: Best of the Spingola Files, Volumes 1 & 2; Predators of the Parkway: A Former Homicide Detective Explores the Colonial Parkway Murders and Staggered Paths: Strange Deaths in the Badger State.

Steven Spingola’s – The Spingola Files: An Evening with Steven Spingola

In addition are the 30 professionals who host and teach hands-on workshops and other sessions (not all are pictured).

And, three of our loyal and longtime special guest presenters …

Marco Conelli

Writer, Retired NYPD Detective

A twenty year veteran detective of the NYPD, Marco Conelli’s diverse career is highlighted by his work as an undercover where he was plugged into many investigations for the Organized Crime Control Bureau.

Rick McMahan

Detective, Kentucky Attorney General’s Office

Rick McMahan spent over a quarter of a century as a Special Agent for the ATF. During his career, Rick investigated a wide range of crimes from violent militant extremists to outlaw motorcycle gangs to murder for hire plots. Currently, he serves as a Detective for the Kentucky Attorney General’s office.

Joe LeFevre

Joe LeFevre is a full-time police academy instructor in WI. His instructional focus is on investigations, forensic skills, and officer fitness/wellness. Prior to teaching Joe was a police officer, and had spent a few years involved with a volunteer fire department.

Due to the action-based nature of some of sessions, and for your safety and ours, we’ve reduced the number of spots at the event. This is to allow an appropriate instructor to student ration. You will need to act quickly to reserve your spot once registration opens.

Registration to the unique and thrilling Writers’ Police Academy opens February 1, 2022.

Please take a moment to visit the website to explore the 2022 Writers’ Police Academy, THE event of the year!

writerspoliceacademy.com

We are actively seeking sponsors for this event. If you’d like to support the Writers’ Police Academy as one of our treasured sponsors, please visit  the “Become a Sponsor” page on the WPA website by clicking here. Or, feel free to contact me (Lee Lofland) at lofland32@msn.com. Please type WPA Sponsorship in the subject line of your message.

WPA sponsorships are wonderful means to advertise you and work, or product. Sponsor generosity helps the WPA continue from year to year at an affordable rate for all. Without our wonderful sponsors the WPA could not continue. I thank you all so very much!

/by

Writers’ Police Academy’s 2022 Guest of Honor and Special Guest Presenters

The Writers’ Police Academy is pleased and excited to announce the 2022 Guest of Honor – International Bestselling author Robert Dugoni!

Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 8 million books worldwide.

He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, and the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell – Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series.

Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a three-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.

Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than twenty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

2022 Special Guest Speaker – Steven Spingola

Known to his colleagues as “the sleuth with the proof,” Spingola is as an investigator for Cold Justice, a popular Oxygen Channel true crime program. During a 2014 episode in Vigo County, Indiana, Spingola and another investigator obtained a confession in a decades-old cold case. During an intense interrogation, suspect Clint Mackey broke down and stated, “I went back, grabbed the knife and killed her.

Steven Spingola is an investigator with a national reputation for excellence. He is a 2001 graduate of the FBI National Academy, and he holds two master’s degrees. Steven is a death investigation expert, a police-related shooting reconstruction specialist, and is formally trained as a criminal investigative analyst (profiling).

Prior to his retirement as a lieutenant of detectives with the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD), Spingola supervised all major categories of criminal investigations, including stints in the Homicide Unit, Vice Control Division, Sensitive Crimes Unit, and Violent Crimes Division. He further served as the lead investigator for the Critical Incident Unit, a group that probes police related shootings, use-of-force incidents, and other significant events. As a detective, Spingola spent several years conducting death investigations for a homicide unit with one of the highest clearance rates in the country.

Steve has authored several books: Best of the Spingola Files, Volumes 1 & 2; Predators of the Parkway: A Former Homicide Detective Explores the Colonial Parkway Murders and Staggered Paths: Strange Deaths in the Badger State.

2022 Special Guest Speaker – Dr. Katherine Ramsland

Dr. Katherine Ramsland teaches forensic psychology at DeSales University in Pennsylvania, where she is the Assistant Provost. She has appeared on more than 200 crime documentaries and magazine shows, is an executive producer of Murder House Flip, and has consulted for CSI, Bones, and The Alienist. The author of more than 1,500 articles and 69 books, including The Forensic Science of CSI, The Forensic Psychology of Criminal Minds, How to Catch a Killer, The Psychology of Death Investigations, and Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, The BTK Killer, she was co-executive producer for the Wolf Entertainment/A&E documentary based on the years she spent talking with Rader. Dr. Ramsland consults on death investigations, pens a blog for Psychology Today, and is writing a fiction series based on a female forensic psychologist.

* 2022 WPA website is currently under construction—schedule, presenters, classes, registration details, and more are coming very soon. The 2022 event is thrilling, and massive. It’s the largest hands-on event we’ve ever produced!

Attendees earn continuing education credit!

You do not want to miss this event!

June 2-5, 2022

NWTC Public Safety Training Academy – Green Bay, Wi.
Red Lion Hotel Paper Valley – Appleton, Wi.
 (Transportation between locations is provided by the WPA)
Event begins at noon on Thursday at the Fox Cities Exhibition Center in Appleton, Wi., with a huge indoor display of public safety vehicles and equipment for attendees to view and explore. Officers and firefighters will be on hand to explain the functions of these vehicles and equipment used by first responders. Q&A and demo. The stellar Exhibition Center is attached to the official WPA event hotel, Red Lion Hotel Paper Valley (will be a newly remodeled Hilton property at the time of the WPA event).

Fox Cities Exhibition Center

/by