WRITER’S DETECTIVE’S FIFTH BIRTHDAY, POLICE FIRARMS, AND PROTECTING A VICTIM - 088

Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

---

transcript:

---

​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, Writer's Detective fifth birthday police firearms, and protecting a victim. I'm Adam Richardson and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau.

Welcome to episode 88 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime-related fiction. This week we are celebrating the fifth birthday of Writer's Detective, and I'm also answering your questions about police officers carrying their own firearms on duty and how a victim might get special protection. Big thank yous go out to Gold Shield patrons Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli of nataliebarelli.com, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall and Terri Swann for their support, along with my Silver Cuff Link and Coffee Club patrons. You can find links to all of the Bureau's patrons in the show notes at writersdetective.com/88.

Since COVID hit, I've been donating 100% of the money I received through Patreon to masks for docs, to provide PPE to those on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. If you have funds you'd like to donate, a box of N-95 masks, or if you're a first responder or a medical professional that's in need of PPE, go to masksfordocs.com to get connected with PPE right now. And to learn more about patronage through Patreon or to support the show and get access to my Patreon-only live streams for as little as $2 per month, go to writersdetective.com/patreon, P-A-T-R-E-O-N.

---

​This past week marks the fifth birthday of Writer's Detective, and if you notice that I didn't end up pushing out a podcast episode last week, that's because I was answering your questions in my very first Facebook Live inside our Writer's Detective Q & A Facebook group instead. Thanks to those of you that were able to catch it live and throw out some questions for me to answer. I appreciate it. It would have been really weird for me to be in there all by myself. So I thought I would start out this week with a trip down memory lane back to the very beginning by reading my very first blog posts since fewer than 10 people probably read it back then. All right, here it goes. April 25th, 2015. Welcome and thanks. Last weekend, a screenwriter friend and his wife were joining us on a wine tasting weekend when the conversation turned to work. He asked for my take on a search and seizure issue related to how a character in his script would have actually had to deal with it.

After a quick lesson on search warrants and privacy, I realized these types of questions are probably common amongst writers. This was my aha moment and when I decided to launch this website. I should probably explain that I've been a cop for nearly 20 years, the last 16 as a detective. I've held a variety of assignments from wearing a suit and tie working white collar cases and then major crimes, sexual assault, robbery and homicide, to dirtying up to some work covertly in narcotics, vice and counter terrorism. I've worked alongside many of the federal acronym agencies, been assigned to task forces and worked on countless dignitary protection details. In addition to my own adventures as a detective, these experiences have given me unparalleled insight into how these agents and agencies work. We in law enforcement are wary of folks calling themselves experts, often snarkly defining an expert as someone carrying a briefcase and from more than 50 miles away.

I'm not claiming to be an expert in all things law enforcement, I'm simply here to augment your writer's toolbox by offering my own experiences and knowledge. I promise not to bullshit you. I will tell you if I don't know something, and I will work with you to find the answer. I want to thank the crime writing community on Twitter for welcoming me with open arms. There are quite a few great resources for crime writers out there already. I highly recommend following @HomicideSchool and @ThrillWritingFQ on Twitter. As a writer, you're already able to accomplish a huge amount of research on the internet, which is likely why you're on this page, just by reading articles applicable to your story scenario. While I certainly plan to add to your technical repository of cop knowledge, my real goal is to help you understand the human aspect of police work...                                                                                                                                                                                        Continue reading...