Policing Matters

How police can prepare for AI, doxxing and disinformation

Online threats amplified by AI — from doxxing and deepfakes to coordinated influence operations — are collapsing the time between rumor and real-world risk. Expect pressure points across campuses and big cities, immigration enforcement and politically charged events, with protests only one piece of the picture. For police leaders, the task is to detect signals sooner, verify and communicate faster, and protect officers and targets while safeguarding First Amendment rights.

On this week’s Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley speaks with Alex Goldenberg, director of intelligence at Narravance, senior adviser to the Network Contagion Research Institute and a fellow at Rutgers University. He investigates online extremism, foreign influence and child safety threats, advises lawmakers and practitioners, and helps platforms and nonprofits remove threat actors at scale. His work translates narrative and behavioral intelligence into practical steps for protest preparedness and officer safety.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.

Resilience is survival — and the key to keeping cops in the fight

Resilience is no longer just a buzzword in policing — it’s an officer safety skill. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Dr. Stephanie Conn, a public safety psychologist, former dispatcher and police officer, and author of “Increasing Resilience in Police and Emergency Personnel: Strengthening Your Mental Armor.” Drawing from her unique perspective as both practitioner and researcher, Dr. Conn explains why resilience must be deliberately developed and how officers can use small, practical tools to safeguard their health and performance.

Dr. Conn was born into a police family, served as a dispatcher and later as a Fort Worth police officer before transitioning into psychology. After witnessing the lack of culturally competent mental health support for officers, she became a psychologist to fill that gap. Today, she works with public safety professionals across the U.S. and Canada, combining lived experience with research-based strategies to help officers and agencies build resilience, improve wellness and strengthen organizational support.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.

From early lessons to AI integration: The evolution of drones as first responders

Drones as first responders (DFR) have quickly moved from experimental pilots to a central part of modern public safety response. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Rahul Sidhu, vice president of aviation at Flock Safety and co-founder of Aerodome, about how agencies can successfully launch, scale and sustain DFR programs.

Sidhu shares lessons from his own start at Redondo Beach PD, common pitfalls agencies should avoid, and what comes next as AI and automation redefine drone deployment in emergency response.

About our sponsor

This episode is sponsored by Flock Safety. Discover the leading safety technology platform that helps communities thrive by taking a proactive approach to crime prevention and security. Empower your agency to solve crime faster with Flock's city-wide platform. Our full-service, maintenance-free solution helps you solve more crime to shape a safer future for thousands of communities across the country. Flock Safety provides best-in-class License Plate Readers (LPRs), audio detection, video cameras, RTCC software, and Drone as First Responder systems for law enforcement to solve crime and keep their cities safe.

From the street to the page: A San Francisco sergeant's journey from police work to bestselling books

For many officers, the stories they collect on the job remain within squad room walls. San Francisco Police Sergeant Adam Plantinga has turned his into the foundation of a second career, using two decades in patrol, investigations and specialized units to fuel both nonfiction accounts and gritty crime novels.

In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Plantinga about his journey from Milwaukee patrol officer to SFPD sergeant, his acclaimed nonfiction titles “400 Things Cops Know” and “Police Craft,” and his crime series featuring a former Detroit officer. Plantinga explains how real-world policing — from bizarre street encounters to high-stakes cases — shapes his stories, why he moved from nonfiction to fiction, and the strategies he uses to carve out writing time alongside a demanding law enforcement career.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com.

What every officer can learn from the rise of women in command

As more women step into command roles, their leadership paths offer lessons for anyone moving up in the ranks. In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, Capt. Michelle Tavarez of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department shares how she built credibility, handled setbacks and now leads some of the agency’s most high-stakes units.

Captain Tavarez oversees LVMPD’s Safe Neighborhoods Bureau, including the gang, vice and narcotics units, and helped shape the department’s internal and community-facing mentorship efforts through the Women of Metro council. She talks about the value of diverse leadership, lessons from her own promotional journey and why support from agency leaders — including former Sheriff and current Governor Joe Lombardo — played a pivotal role in her advancement.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.

What an outsider learned during 6 months inside the NYPD

Are public perceptions of police shaped more by headlines than reality? In this episode of Policing Matters, host Jim Dudley speaks with entrepreneur and author Brandon Steiner about what he learned after spending six months embedded with NYPD officers.

With no law enforcement background, Steiner rode along in some of the city’s most violent precincts — gaining a front-row seat to the chaos, complexity and contradictions of urban policing. His new book, “The Ride-Alongs,” brings a street-level, unfiltered look at what officers face — and what the public needs to understand.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.

When media myths define the moment: Fixing the narrative on police use of force

What happens when a split-second decision on the street becomes a media headline is stripped of context? In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, retired LAPD Captain Greg Meyer joins host Jim Dudley on the Policing Matters podcast to discuss his new book, “Hard Cases: Police Use of Force in America.” Drawing from decades of experience and insider knowledge on some of the most controversial police incidents, Meyer shares why he wrote the book, the importance of addressing media misinformation and how law enforcement leaders can push back against false narratives.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com.

This FTO model is changing how cops are trained — and it's working

Many agencies still rely on legacy field training models that emphasize evaluation over education — often scoring recruits before they’ve had time to learn. Recognizing the limitations of this approach, law enforcement leaders are moving toward a more effective model grounded in adult learning science.

In this episode, Dan Greene, executive director of the National Association of Field Training Officers, and Sergeant Jason Devlin of the Scottsdale (Arizona) Police Department, discuss the development and implementation of NextGen Field Training. Designed to separate training from evaluation, this approach prioritizes coaching, accountability and cultural alignment. Devlin, who led the model’s creation and rollout, shares key insights on how agencies can strengthen recruit performance, improve retention and build a more resilient workforce.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com.

Stop checking the box: How to make police officer wellness part of the job

In law enforcement, wellness can’t be an afterthought — it must be part of the foundation of operations. That means moving beyond surface-level initiatives to fully integrating mental health support into operations, training and leadership strategies. From proactive threat assessment to long-term officer resilience and retirement planning, embedding behavioral health into daily practice is key to building a healthier, more effective agency.

In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, host Jim Dudley talks with Dr. Cherylynn Lee, a police psychologist with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, about weaving behavioral science into tactical operations, threat assessment and daily officer interactions. From co-responder units to retirement planning, Dr. Lee explains how agencies can proactively support both sworn and civilian staff.

Read more from Dr. Lee on Police1 here. Connect with Dr. Lee on LinkedIn.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters Podcast is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com.

Virtual reality training pays off in armed encounter

When officers respond to a call that seems routine — like a mental health check — they often have no idea how quickly that encounter could escalate. For Officer Alessandra Winterbauer of the Lincoln (Nebraska) Police Department, what began as a calm conversation with a confused subject turned into a life-or-death confrontation. Her ability to remain composed and rely on recent virtual reality training helped avoid a deadly outcome and led to her recognition with Axon’s 2025 Jack Cover Save of the Year Award.

Officer Winterbauer and a colleague were dispatched to check on a man experiencing a possible mental health crisis. After a calm 20-minute conversation, the man abruptly asked, “If I come at you guys with a knife, will you shoot me?” Moments later, he sprinted toward officers. Winterbauer deployed her TASER 10 from over 30 feet away — just minutes after completing VR-based TASER training. Her successful response neutralized the threat without serious injury, demonstrating the real-world value of immersive, high-frequency training.

Click here to find out how to join the Lincoln Police Department.

About our sponsor

This episode of the Policing Matters podcast is sponsored by OfficerStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting OfficerStore.com.