Ep. 13. Part one of three – Saving Lives. This is the first in a three-part series with a former Seattle Police Officer who recently left the department after 14 years. First, in this part, we look back at the great work this officer did with the Seattle Police Department. We start with his response to the shooting in March 2019 of Metro Bus Driver Eric Stark whose story of heroism is featured in EP. 8. Eric credits two SPD officers with saving his life. This is one of those officers.

We then talk about this officer’s work on SPD’s Crisis Intervention Team which works with Mental Health Professionals (MHPs) to respond to incidents of persons in mental crisis. This is the co-responder model that I’ve discussed previously in this podcast. This officer’s stories illustrate the lengths SPD goes to to help people get treatment and into programs as an alternative to incarceration.

Later in this three-part series, we revisit the summer of 2020 during which this officer worked the front lines of the riots, riots that continue in many markets; and we discuss his decision to leave SPD, a department he had hoped to stay with until retirement. Each part of the series will air one week apart. 

Booking, interviews, pre- and post-production, editing by Abby Ellsworth. Music courtesy freesound.org.