Reasons We Serve: Police Careers & Officer Experience

He Interrogated an Al-Qaeda Bomber for 20 Hours | FBI Agent Eric Jergenson | Ep. 186

An Al-Qaeda–trained operative was building bombs in Denver to hit New York City on the 9/11 anniversary. Retired FBI Agent Eric Jergenson sat across from him for 20+ hour

He Policed New Zealand Without a Gun for 30 Years | Craig Tickelpenny | Reasons We Serve Ep. 185

At 23, Craig Tickelpenny worked his first night shift completely alone, with no gun, no body armor, and no one to call for backup. That was how policing worked in New Zea

Body Cams Lie: Rock Drummer Turned Cop Jamie Borden on What Videos Miss | Reasons We Serve EP 184

A DA charged a man with murder based on a video, and that same video got him acquitted. Retired cop, use-of-force expert, and professional rock drummer Jamie Borden expla

I Arrested Him in 2001. 25 Years Later, He Saved a Cop's Life | Willie Merry | Ep. 183

In 2001, DEA Special Agent Niles Gooding arrested Willie Merry for selling ecstasy at raves. Twenty-five years later, one phone call from Willie saved a police officer's

Ex-CIA Intelligence Analyst Reveals How Easy It Is to Find Anyone Online | Kirby Plessas | Ep. 182

How much can someone find out about you online? More than you think. Former CIA and Defense Intelligence Agency analyst Kirby Plessas explains open source intelligence (O

Undercover Detective: How I Trapped Predators on the Streets | Heidi Chance | Episode 181

They thought they were recruiting a vulnerable woman. They were talking to Detective Heidi Chance. The retired Phoenix detective takes us inside her undercover work inv

What is a DEA Diversion Investigator? | Brian Rucker | Episode 180

Navy Commander who lost his best friend at 17 spent 20 years in the fleet, then walked into the DEA at age 42 as a diversion investigator. Brian Rucker helped take down t

From the NFL to the Secret Service: Jim Davidson’s Path | Episode 179

He went from a full-ride offensive tackle at Oregon State to the Korean DMZ… then became a U.S. Secret Service special agent who protected presidents and hunted criminals

Secret Service Agent Who Took Down a Cartel With One Bill | Mary Davidson | Ep 178

She was one of the first women in the Secret Service — and a single $100 bill from a pizza place in Brea led her to a Colombian cartel operating underground in caves. Ma

Growing Up With a Drug-Dealing Mom: How I Became a Cop | Davin Cole | Ep 177

A 31-year San Francisco law enforcement veteran who grew up with a pot-smoking, drug-dealing hippie mom reveals how childhood trauma drove him into policing, gave him rar

The Day a Corrupt LAPD Officer Nearly Killed This Federal Investigator | Paul Leonard | Episode 176

He started as a 23-year-old All-American powerlifter and ended as a DHS OIG Special Agent in Charge who investigated Border Patrol shootings, Secret Service scandals, and

What’s it like to die? | Brandon Griffith | Episode 175

What happens when a SWAT cop dies at home reading a book — and comes back after 16 minutes and 48 seconds?   Deputy Sheriff Brandon Griffith shares his incredible story o

"I Didn't Think I'd Survive": 33 Years as Cop vs Cartels | Matt Thomas | Episode 174

Police Chief Matthew Thomas shares his unfiltered 33-year journey—from a 20-year-old jail deputy who didn't expect to survive, to undercover cartel hunter, SWAT commander

"Cartel Poison is Terrorism" Sheriff Mark Lamb | Episode 173

Sheriff Mark Lamb pulls no punches on the border crisis, fentanyl killing tens of thousands of Americans, human trafficking, and why local sheriffs are the last line of d

"Don’t Hang Out With Coworkers" – 30-Year DEA Vet’s Brutal Advice | Jim Molesa | Episode 172

A 30-year law enforcement veteran shares the one piece of advice he gave a young academy classmate that stuck for an entire career: Don’t hang out with the people you wor

His Wife Got the Call No Officer's Family Wants: Deputy Shot in Traffic Stop | Yates Rodney | Ep 171

Deputy Yates Rodney thought it was a routine traffic stop—until the suspects opened fire with an AK-47 and pistol, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down. In this powe

From Quota Doubts to Combatives Leader: Sgt. Christina Gurrola | Episode 170

What does it really take for a smaller female officer to thrive in law enforcement? In this powerful episode of Reasons We Serve, Patrol Sergeant Christina Gurrola shares

Policing Without Firearms: The British Way | Kul Mahay | Ep.169

In this powerful interview, retired Temporary Chief Superintendent Kul Mahay shares his remarkable journey through UK policing — from 16-year-old cadet to senior commande

Shot Point-Blank in the Head: K9 Cop's Raw Street Truth (Ep 168)

He stared down the barrel of a gun, got shot point-blank in the forehead, and still made the split-second decision not to fire to protect his partners. This is the unfilt

Shot 4 Times at Point-Blank Range: The Brutal Cost of Being a Cop | Adam Collins | Ep. 167

Former Visalia PD gang detective and SWAT operator Adam Collins shares his unfiltered journey from Division 1 water polo athlete to California cop. In this powerful episo