Blog Archives
Tucson 9-1-1: Do the Right Thing!
Tucson 9-1-1: Do The Right Thing! is a deeply personal, sometimes fiery, and always passionate insider account of the rise and fall of Tucson’s emergency communications center. Michael LaFond, a former 9-1-1 operator, brings readers behind the curtain of public safety communications to reveal the unsung heroes, complex personalities, bureaucratic missteps, and systemic flaws that shape how emergency calls are handled. The book recounts both the triumph—like the heroic response during the 2011 Tucson shooting—and the unraveling of a once-proud institution due to budget cuts, managerial changes, and disregard for public safety culture.
What struck me most about LaFond’s writing is the raw, unfiltered honesty. He writes like a man who has nothing left to lose, and that lends a gravity to every page. His admiration for figures like Louie Gonzales is touching—almost reverent. But when he turns his pen against those he sees as betraying the mission of public safety, it’s blistering. His style swings wildly from reflective to sarcastic to downright angry. That makes it a bit uneven, sure—but it also makes it real. This isn’t corporate PR. It’s a whistleblower’s war story written with both heart and bite.
At times, the story slows down to dive deep into the minutiae—office politics, scheduling policies, bureaucratic turf wars. There are long tangents that might lose readers unfamiliar with the workings of a 9-1-1 center. But maybe the tedium is part of the tragedy. Because LaFond’s central message is clear: it’s not flashy heroics but small, smart decisions made by dedicated people that save lives. When leadership forgets that, things fall apart fast.
Tucson 9-1-1: Do The Right Thing! is a stirring read. I’d recommend it to anyone interested in public service, emergency response, or organizational leadership. It’s not a thriller, but it sure feels like one when you realize what’s at stake in every call. If you want a book that will challenge your assumptions and make you care about the people behind the phones, give this a read.
Pages: 542 | ASIN : B0F2M3PG1L
Deputy While Immigrant: The Story of a German Who Became a Deputy Sheriff in Arizona
Deputy While Immigrant by Tom Peine offers a reflective and engaging look into the life and career of a German immigrant who navigates the challenges and triumphs of working as a police officer in the United States. Peine’s journey from exploring various professions to becoming a dedicated policeman is presented with an honest and grounded perspective, highlighting the rigorous testing and physical confrontations he faced, especially as a 40-year-old entrant into law enforcement.
Peine’s memoir stands out for its blend of personal anecdotes, detailed crime scene descriptions, and insightful reflections on his mental and emotional experiences. His narrative style is engaging, bringing to life high-adrenaline moments of vehicle pursuits and home raids while acknowledging the less glamorous realities of police work that often contrast with their cinematic portrayals. This authenticity is evident in stories like the noisy trailer home raid, which diverges from the stealthy operations commonly seen in films. The book also delves into the more somber aspects of law enforcement, such as handling sensitive cases involving minors and attending a fellow officer’s funeral. These moments are presented with sensitivity, adding depth to the narrative. For those interested in action-filled memoirs or considering a career in law enforcement, Deputy While Immigrant offers valuable insights. Peine’s advice, such as maintaining professionalism in adversity and using police jargon, immerses readers in the law enforcement.
This memoir is more than just an account of a police officer’s life; it explores resilience, adaptability, and dedication. It resonates with current, former, and aspiring police officers, providing a multifaceted look at the profession. Peine’s compelling storytelling and richly detailed experiences make Deputy While Immigrant an absorbing and enlightening read.
Pages: 299 | ASIN : B0CNQRV7QL
Postscript of My Professional Career
Busting Drug Dealers: Diaries of a DEA Special Agent shares your stories and experiences from working out in the field for the DEA and how this impacted your life and the lives of the people you encountered. Why was this an important book for you to write?
As I wrote briefly in the book’s Introduction, for decades, I toyed with the idea of writing a novel. The protagonist was to be an intrepid DEA agent. His story would be based upon my personal experiences and those of my fellow special agents. Over time, however, following the loss of my parents, I developed an interest in genealogy and my ancestry. When I learned that I had multiple ancestors who had been American police officers in the 1600s, I began thinking about writing a collection of law enforcement stories relating fictional or imagined experiences of my ancestors, combined with my own true personal experiences, and those of my father and brother (also former law enforcement officers).
In recent years, however, I decided that a memoir would be the appropriate medium for my story. My true-life experiences equaled or surpassed those I might imagine in a fictional novel. More than that, however, I felt a memoir would provide me with the opportunity to explain to my daughters and son, aspects of my life that we have never discussed in depth. By writing my story rather than verbalizing it, I have attempted to provide some level of explanation for my absences, my inattention, and my early prioritization of career over family. In some ways, the book has been a way to bridge a previous lack of communication with my children.
This memoir is a postscript of my professional career. Other than myself and my family, the people impacted by my work are, for the most part, dead and gone. Whether due to their lifestyle(s) or other reasons, I seem to have outlived the individuals I previously investigated and sent to prison. My career was an evolving and ongoing education for me, as well as often being an adrenaline rush. Regardless of all the highs and lows over the years, I loved my job as a DEA Special Agent. I’ve reached a stage in my life where I want to share my adventures.
I appreciated the candid nature with which you told your story. What was the hardest thing for you to write about?
When I was a young man, I had a feeling of certainty; feelings of indestructibility and omnipotence. I was one of the “good guys.” Nothing bad could happen to me. The good guys always won. Over the years, however, and especially when facing the facts while writing my book, it was embarrassing to realize how wrong I sometimes was. My prioritization of the job conflicted dramatically with family life. It was difficult to come to terms with my misplaced “machismo,” and the fact that although it provided me with personal goals and self-satisfaction, it negatively affected my family. The murder of my second wife, and the loss of friends (both DEA agents and foreign national police officers) along the way, were also especially difficult.
What were some goals you set for yourself as a writer in this book?
My primary goal was to share stories of my career with family and close friends. Once I decided to write the book, I committed myself to learn about self-publishing, and to make my book as professional a product as I could, fully knowing that I may never recoup that expense through book sales. For me, the goal is to tell the story in a way to make it interesting; not to worry about the commercialization of the book.
What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be published?
I end Busting Drug Dealers: Diaries of a DEA Special Agent as I leave Lahore, Pakistan, and am promoted into a supervisory field position in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This first book is written from the perspective of a “street agent” in domestic and overseas assignments. I have the material and have begun work on a second book that will begin with my supervisory assignment in San Juan, and follow the remainder of my DEA career through that 3-year assignment, over six additional years assigned as head of DEA foreign operations for five countries in South Asia, two years at DEA headquarters in Washington, DC (with another promotion to oversee all DEA domestic and international chemical investigations), and finally, three post-retirement years working on contract to DEA international operations, identifying, vetting, equipping, and training foreign national police officers for special counternarcotics units to support DEA operations in US Embassies overseas. I do not yet have an anticipated publication date.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | BookBub | Amazon
While the rest of us were safe in our homes, DEA Special Agent Mike Fredericks was busting dopers around the world and preventing illicit drugs from hitting the streets in the US.
Written from his extensive diaries and court documents obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests, the real-life adventures of Mike Fredericks read like fiction—and will either scare the pants off you or assure you that daring agents like Fredericks are on the job.
From Portland to Pakistan, Colombia to the Caribbean, Fredericks was working hard and playing harder, ripping and running, buying drugs undercover, driving fast cars, arresting felons and fugitives, busting redneck meth labs in remote Oregon sites, raiding clandestine cocaine labs in dense Colombian jungles, training with US Army special forces, investigating heroin traffickers in Pakistan, and working internationally to dismantle worldwide drug distribution organizations.
This memoir is the inside story of decorated Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent, Mike Fredericks.
Warning: This book contains scenes of terrorism and weapons use, drugs and drug trafficking, and torture. It also contains profanity. For adult readers only.
LITERARY TITAN 