Featured podcasts

Noted gun writer Patrick Sweeney discusses tactical rifles and his latest book, "Gun Digest Book of the Tactical Rifle." He gives an overview of non-AR rifles such as the FN SCAR, AK, and Steyr AUG. More importantly, he offers suggestions about choosing a sling, what to look for in an optic, how much to spend on gear, and whether to practice only with agency-issued ammunition.

Stephen Sloan and Robert Bunker explain red-team simulations, role playing for LE, and the terrorist attack cycle in discussing their book, "Red Teams and Counterterrorism Training."

A school employee calls 911, after a gunman interrupts a board meeting in Panama City, Fla. The employee gives a description of shooter Clay A. Duke and provides details of the unfolding incident to a dispatcher.

Chief Gerald Garner brings more than 40 years of law enforcement experience to his "High-Risk Patrol: Reducing the Danger to You." With the book, Chief Garner provides a general orientation for survival and details the specifics the intelligent police professional must master to come out on top in risk situations such as vehicle stops, DV calls, intoxicated subjects, hostage takers, ambush attacks, prisoner transport, emotionally disturbed subjects and off-duty confrontations.

Richard J. Keyworth provides detailed accounts of 14 fires he investigated as both a municipal and private investigator in "Fires: Accidental or Arson." Keyworth shares investigative tips for officers when responding to a fire that will bolster the case, and he explains what patrol officers should look for when first arriving at a scene.

On Oct. 28, 2009, Pinellas County (Fla.) Sheriff's Office deputies pursued a Ford Mustang driven by suspect Kentin Dion Brooks. Listen to 30 minutes of radio traffic as dispatchers and officers coordinate the multi-agency response to Brooks' campaign of vehicular terror. POLICE Magazine features the incident as the March 2011 "Shots Fired."

Sgt. John "Rick" Baker takes readers to the front lines of the urban war against violent crime fought by the men and women of the Compton (Calif.) Police Department in his memoir, "Vice: One Cop's Story of Patrolling America's Most Dangerous City." The men and women of the department, which was disbanded in 2000 for budgetary reasons, had a force of no more than 130 officers to deal with 10,000 criminals.

Performance trainer Will Brink provides functional ideas for establishing a physical training program for tactical officers with, "Practical Applied Stress Training (P.A.S.T.) for Tactical Law Enforcement." In the interview, Brink gives suggestions for getting equipment with little or no budget, explains training concepts and provides single-operator and two-man stage drills.

POLICE Magazine caught up with law enforcement trainer and "Top Shot" contestent Chris Cerino at SHOT Shot 2011. Cerino, who leads firearms training for the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy, explains how to best choose a patrol rifle, gives three tips for improving sidearm accuracy and lets you know what in his mind when he's acquiring a sight picture.

Retired Baltimore officer Dick Ellwood tells his best stories from 25 years as a beat cop, vice detective, homicide unit supervisor and arson/bomb squad leader with the Baltimore Police Department. In "Cop Stories: The Few, The Proud, The Ugly," Ellwood chronicles his arrest of boyhood hero Mickey Mantle as a first-year officer, a vice arrest of a body part and his most memorable (and still unsolved) homicide case with an NFL player as the prime suspect.