Transition Drill

Ashley Cummins has been a police officer for over 10 years, starting in Missouri then transferring to California. For the past 14 years she has trained and competed in MMA and Jiu Jitsu; she was recently promoted to brown belt. She is a professional MMA fighter with Invicta FC, the world’s largest all women’s MMA organization. 

Equally important to Ashley is giving back. She volunteers as a coach and mentor at the Community Youth Athletic Center (CYAC) boxing gym which is a gym for at-risk youth that provides an alternative to self-defeating behavior through the sport of boxing. Additionally, she and her team teach defensive tactics classes every Friday evening to any law enforcement officer, FREE of charge. It has been a huge success and officers from all over San Diego County, and as far as Arizona attend the training.

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CONNECT WITH ASHLEY

IG: https://www.instagram.com/smashleymma/

Invicta: https://invictafc.com/portfolio-item/ashley-cummins/

Episode 9 - Terrence Hanou spent 21 years in law enforcement, medically retiring in 2019 due to back and heart issues. In 2018, while on medical leave, he started Blue Line Roasting Co. His desire was to create a coffee company that provided a quality product, but he also wanted to be able to give back to the police community and honor fallen officers.

During our conversation we talked about his medical retirement from law enforcement. Equally significant was his realizing his own mental health issues. He explains how he secretly sought treatment because he did not feel he could tell his department to know. 

Terrence wants to help any officer in need. If you’re struggling with mental health issues, reach out to him and he will be there to talk to you.

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FOLLOW BLUE LINE ROASTING CO.

IG: https://www.instagram.com/bluelineroasting/

Website: https://www.bluelineroasting.com

 

 

Episode 8 - John Richardson is an honorably discharged Marine Corps veteran with three deployments to Iraq. He was a Deputy with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department from 2007 to 2019, the last 9 years as assistant team leader on their SWAT team. He was medically retired after two neck injuries.

He is now as a security consultant for a company that must remain nameless. He manages the armed security guards assigned to the company's locations, investigates internal theft, and writes standard operating procedures relevant for the safety and security of employees and company assets. 

During our conversation we talked about his medical retirement from law enforcement, his time crunch to find a new job, identifying his depression and survivors’ guilt, and the benefits to him by seeking counseling. He talked about the importance of preparing early for your transition, because he had no transition plan from law enforcement. We also talked about his venturing into the world of knife making.

IG: Instagram.com/edge_of_darkside_

 

Episode 7 - Michael Chandler spent almost 7 years in the Marine Corps, achieving the rank of Staff Sergeant before his separation. While on active duty, he served as an MP and in various information security and computer programing positions. He ended his enlistment assigned to Headquarters Marine Corps as a mainframe programmer assigned to support Manpower and the Commandants office.

His transition to the civilian world was as the Chief Information Officer at a manufacturing company North Carolina. When the company decided to move production operations to Mexico, Michael moved back home to South Carolina and the state government sector. Today, Michael is a Chief Information Security Officer with the State of South Carolina.

During our conversation we discussed how opting for MOS changes while on active duty benefited his future career, his transition from the Marine Corps to the civilian sector, getting advanced college education, and his ascension to the position of CISO. Additionally, he gives his advice for others seeking a career in the information security field. 

years, serving the cities of Menlo Park and Gilroy. His assignments included Gang and Narcotics teams, SWAT, and traffic motor officer. In 2018 Brent received the Life Saving award for saving two residents of Gilroy as well as being named Officer of the Year.

In 2019 Brent was diagnosed with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy or ARVC. This is an inherited condition which causes a deterioration of the heart. To make it worse, the condition is exacerbated by physical fitness. This diagnosis caused his law enforcement career to come to an abrupt end, but it also caused Brent mental health issues by having to walk away from a career he loved.

In 2020,  Brent transitioned from law enforcement into the corporate security field. Today he is a Security Program Manager at Zoox. 

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CONNECT WITH BRENT

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brent-hughes-25b6ba48/

 

Episode 5 - Tim Garcia spent 28 years in law enforcement having served in multiple functions including investigations, tactical team, and supervision. He retired from law enforcement at the rank of assistant chief. As a police officer Tim received the Purple Heart for being shot in the line of duty and the Medal of Valor. Additionally, Tim served in the U.S Coast Guard as a Port Security Specialist.

When Tim retired from law enforcement his first position was as the Regional Safety and Security Manager of a large online financial payment company, responsible for the physical security at multiple locations throughout the U.S. He has since left this position and is now the Security Manager at a large petroleum company, overseeing the security practices and personnel at multiple petroleum plants in Southern California.

In our conversation we talk about how he came into law enforcement and his subsequent transition to corporate security. We talked about topics such as his experience with the corporate hiring process, the culture of corporate security, his move to the petroleum industry and how his time with Coast Guard benefited this transition. Overall, Tim provides some good advice on how to operate in the corporate world when transitioning from a law enforcement career.

In this episode I sat down to talk with Hal “Bull” Schmitt

Hal Schmitt is a Navy veteran, and the owner and winemaker at Volatus winery in Paso Robles California.

Hal was commissioned as a naval aviator in 1995. He deployed in support of Operation Southern Watch and deployed again in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 1999 Hal was selected to attend Strike Force Tactics Instructor training at the former Navy Fighter Weapons school, more commonly known as TOPGUN. After graduation, he remained on staff as an instructor. In 2004, Hal returned to TOPGUN for a second Instructor tour. Hal again became the Navy’s air-to-air training expert and conducted training around the world. Hal resigned his commission at the completion of his second TOPGUN tour and moved to California’s Central Coast to focus on making wine.

Hal’s wine journey started in 1998 when began to learn and make wine in Paso Robles. During his limited downtimes from his Navy duties, Hal would go to Paso and assist with the winemaking at Midnight Cellars. In 2004 Hal established the Volatus wine brand. The brand has slowly grown from a first vintage of 90 cases in 2004 to a 1,500-case production today.

During our conversation we talk about Hal's decision to leave the military to pursue his passion to make wine, the wine making process, and his passion for making pizza.

Volatus Winery: www.volatuswine.com

IG: instagram.com/volatuswine/

 

Episode 3 - Matt Bogaard of Bogaard Group International (BGI) walked away from a career as a police officer after 15 years for a career change to global security, working for Dream Works Animation. Then, 5 years later he started his own global security consulting firm BGI. Today, his clients include the entertainment, video gaming, financial services, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, and retail industries worldwide.

In our conversation, Matt provides some great information about cultivating a marketable social media presence, the importance of developing a network of business relationships, the private sector interview and hiring process, and some of the pitfalls to avoid when transitioning from law enforcement or the military into the private sector.

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CONNECT WITH MATT:

Web: https://bogaardgroup.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattbogaard/

 

Episode 2 - Pete Stephens served in the United States Marine Corps from 2002 to 2010, ending his enlistment as a Staff Sergeant. During his time in the Marine Corps, Pete was a Senior Drill Instructor, training seven platoons before returning as an Instructor at DI School. After leaving the Marine Corps, Pete became a police officer in the San Francisco Bay area. From 2010 to 2019, he served in assignments such as Tactical and Sniper Teams, a Regional Gang Task Force, Honor Guard, and a plain-clothes Special Enforcement Team.

During our conversation, Pete talked about dealing with PTSD related to an officer-involved shooting. Also, we talked about a subsequent pursuit-related collision that forced his separation from law enforcement.

In 2019 Pete took a Director level position with a contract security company. In this role, he managed over 1,000 security officers and a nationwide network of Global Security Operations Centers for a major social media company.

In 2021, Pete transitioned from contract security and now manages the physical security program for a tech startup company in Silicon Valley, California.

 

Episode 1 - Shiloh Catanese is a police psychologist with a large Southern California law enforcement agency. Before a career change to forensic psychology, Shiloh was a police officer for seven years. After a decade assessing sexual disorders, compulsions, and criminal offending behavior she returned to law enforcement helping police officers addressing PTSD and mental health. She has trained law enforcement agencies throughout the county on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder prevention. Shiloh co-hosts the true crime podcast LA Not So Confidential

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CONNECT WITH SHILOH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiloh-catanese-psy-d-8ab828a6/

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