Ep. 50 – NYPD Cold Case Det. Jason Palamara (Ret.) was with the department for 20 years and recently retired in 2020. Prior, he served in the U.S. Navy for three years. I've long wanted to interview a homicide or cold case detective about the challenges of their work and because of what I see as the public’s misperceptions of their commitment.

We start with the inauspicious beginning to his law enforcement career. He writes on his LinkedIn page, “I became a cop on July 2, 2001. Two months later, I would respond to Ground Zero.” We discuss his memories of that day and of his time deployed as a recruit. I also lived in New York during 9/11, so we discuss that shared experience. I once again get to thank an NYPD officer as I did in Ep. 45 with Det. Knocko Nolan for his service during that difficult time.

In 2006, Jason joined the Detective Bureau with the 84th Precinct Detective Squad in downtown Brooklyn and then in 2015, was assigned to the Cold Case Homicide Squad. As stated, I've long wanted to show how dedicated homicide and cold case detectives are they are to solving their cases. You will hear in our conversation how deeply personal these cases were to Jason, and the impact the investigations had on him, both the rewards and the challenges.

During his time with Cold Case, Jason became a peer support member with the NYPD Health and Wellness section. Since retiring, he has remained committed to health and wellness for veterans and law enforcement. He works as a crisis counselor, keynote speaker and life coach. He has an upcoming book with coauthor Barbara Rubel called “Living Blue: Helping Law Enforcement Officers and Their Families Survive and Thrive from Recruitment to Retirement.” We take the time to talk about the emotional challenges of retirement for LEOs, a subject I don’t often hear discussed. 

I close with my favorite line from his website:

“I find there to be no greater mission than of giving your fellow human being the hope that tomorrow is worthwhile destination.”

Here is the link to his website:

https://jasonpalamara.org/

You can also find him on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Thank you, Jason. 

Thanks for listening to On Being a Police Officer. YOU are what keeps me going.

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©Abby Ellsworth. All booking, interviews, editing, and production by Abby Ellsworth. Music courtesy of freesound.org