Calibre Press

No doubt this piece is going to tick off a few cops.  I’ve noticed a trend over the past few years for officers to “dress down” while on duty. I’m not talking about a few cops going rogue, but a formal policy of abandoning traditional police monochromatic uniforms for polo-type shirts, tan tactical pants and sneaker-type footwear as on-duty street uniforms. I recently traveled up to the great northeast to attend a formal evening polic... Full Article »

The feedback received from our readers on the two-part TV Cop Trivia piece that ran in May-June was quite positive. So, the folks at Calibre Press asked if I’d do a follow-up. Here is The Sequel. Again, go from memory. NOTE: The answers are now posted below in blue. 1. In the TV show, “Walker, Texas Ranger,” Chuck Norris plays Texas Ranger Cordell Walker. What is his TV rank? Cordell Walker is a Sergeant with the Texas Rangers, a divi... Full Article »

Without further ado, folks, here are the answers! To see the original trivia article with the questions, click here.  #1. Columbo’s first name was never revealed during the show’s run. However, when he displayed his police ID in one scene (“Dead Weight” Season 1, Episode 3) that aired in 1971 his signature briefly appeared on the ID card: Frank Columbo.    #2. Both the official SFPD and TV rank for the plainclothes officers was Ins... Full Article »

A while back I authored a piece comparing the fictionalized T.V. California cop T.J. Hooker and the real-life Vegas officer R.C. Hindi . I received quite a bit of feedback from our readers.  So I decided to put together another piece with some trivia about TV cops. The answers will appear in a few days in a follow up piece. Take the test from memory. See how you do. The Quiz 1. What was the first name of the LAPD cop popularized by actor Peter... Full Article »

[Editor's note: In a previous version of this article we indicated CHP Officer Kirk Griess was killed while standing outside of his passenger door. In fact, Officer Griess was assigned to motorcycle patrol when he was struck and killed by an allegedly distracted and speeding driver. We sincerely regret the error.] Dateline: Columbus County, N.C. Trooper Kevin Conner was gunned down on October 17, 2018 by a 20-year-old suspect driving a stolen... Full Article »

Based on the response received from our Calibre Press.com readers my recent column “September: A Month to Remember” article, I decided to plop my butt down, do a little research, and author a piece for December. Here, in chronological order by year, are a few interesting factoids regarding our profession during the month of December.  Unfortunately, this piece, unlike the September article, doesn’t have a whole lot of positives. That wasn... Full Article »

There’s been a ton of stories written about 9/11. Most deal with the extraordinary heroics of our police, fire, and EMS personnel during and after the attack. Most are compelling and bring credit to each occupation. However, recently I came across a video of incredible heroics performed by a group individuals most would not associate with any of the three professions mentioned above. Yet collectively they were responsible for rescuing almost ha... Full Article »

Nineteen years ago this month, I testified in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco in the matter of Hull vs. City of Oakland, Calif. I was reflecting on the circumstances of the case recently and thought perhaps the details of the shooting, the six years of uncertainty for the officer, and the jury verdict might make for an interesting read.  Following are the details. Facts On July 30, 1993, a rookie O... Full Article »

September is a very significant month for law enforcement. Of course, we’ll always remember September 11, 2001, more commonly referred as simply “9/11,” the date when our country was attacked. For those of us in the profession, it also bears significance in that 114 of our LE brothers and sisters lost their lives either on 9/11/01 or from complications from the aftermath of the rescue and recovery efforts thereafter. That’s right … 11... Full Article »

[Author’s Note: I give a lot of speeches. Some are at military affairs. Most are at police functions such as academy graduations, Peace Officer Memorial Day, and so forth. I always like to pepper my speeches with a few relevant quotes. From time to time, I’m asked by other LEOs for permission to use them. I always agree to because, really, they’re not mine. My lovely wife suggested that I put a few down in print to share with our CalibrePre... Full Article »

[Author’s Note: Most of our readers know that I spent a considerable amount of time working undercover narcotics.  While at a family gathering, I was reflecting on some of the more humorous moments during those years. After a few prompts from family and friends, I decided to regale the small group with some of the more hilarious, albeit G-rated, anecdotes. –D.G.] Dopers are not the brightest of criminals. I mean, they’re not sophistic... Full Article »

My wife and I just returned from a police funeral. Fort Myers, Fla., Police Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller was shot on July 21 after responding to a call at local service station of a stolen cell phone. He pursued the suspect on foot and during the apprehension attempt, was knocked to the ground, allegedly disarmed, and shot in the head with his service pistol. He survived for a week on life support. His End of Watch was July 28, 2018.  His funera... Full Article »

[Author’s Note: Most of our readers know that I spent a considerable amount of time working undercover narcotics.  While at a family gathering, I was reflecting on some of the more humorous moments during those years. After a few prompts from family and friends, I decided to regale the small group with some of the more hilarious, albeit G-rated, anecdotes. –D.G.] An early morning search warrant brought us to the home of two dopers in a ... Full Article »

[Author's Note: Most of our readers know that I spent a considerable amount of time working undercover narcotics.  While at a family gathering, I was reflecting on some of the more humorous moments during those years. After a few prompts from family and friends, I decided to regale the small group with some of the more hilarious, albeit G-rated, anecdotes. --D.G.] I was subpoenaed to testify at a preliminary hearing of a dope dealer. We had b... Full Article »

Two incidents the last few weeks regarding celebrity suicides—fashion designer Kate Spade and celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain—have brought the topic of suicide to light. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), suicide rates for the overall population have climbed nearly 30% since 1999. Other reports show that incidents of suicide have increased in nearly every state since the late 1990s and suicide now claims about ... Full Article »

Thirty years ago this month (June), I lost one of my best buds. Most of our readers know that I spent a good portion of my days working undercover, initially as a “white” shield patrolman and finally as a “gold” shield detective. One of the guys I worked with was a top notch narc. Ron lived every aspect of the job during our time in deep cover. Deep cover is different than administrative narcotics (ad narc) or other vice narcotics assi... Full Article »

There’s no doubt that undercover work is exciting, if not dangerous. In fact, it’s the exciting part that makes UC work so addictive. One of the most unusual cases our task force team of UC narcs became involved in was a “murder for hire” investigation. [Note: In order to respect the privacy of not only the intended targets of this contract hit, the minor child it centered around, as well as the convicted subjects, I have masked the name... Full Article »

[Author’s Note: I recently became engaged in a lengthy discussion on the issues of contact and cover (C/C) with an officer from the Midwest. This officer had a pretty good grasp on the contact officers’ job, but didn’t quite understand the all important tactics and responsibilities of the cover officer. ... So I asked permission from the great folks at Law Officer.com to reprint an article authored by yours truly that originally appeared in... Full Article »

If you haven't already, click here to read Part One. Otherwise, we’re in the city, at the hotel, and all the advance work has been completed. Bob and I are dressed for work and ready to go. Day One 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. On Day One, we’d head down to the ball room at 5:30am and set up the AV equipment, and once again test all the equipment, cue up the film clips and audio tapes, and then head to breakfast. It was important to the com... Full Article »

The Calibre Press Street Survival Seminar continues to inform and inspire American law enforcement. Under the leadership of Jim Glennon, it has been transformed to reflect the realities affecting today’s officers. I highly recommend it, especially to newer officers. It provides the platform on which to build your career. But my personal, lived experience with Street Survival comes from a prior iteration. See, I was lead instructor from 1988 to... Full Article »