New Mexico and North Dakota

Editor's Note: One of the authors is a servicemember.

Police-Writers.com is a website that lists state and local police officers who have written books. The website added police officers from New Mexico and North Dakota.

Bart Skelton was raised on the Mexican border and attended college at Southwestern University, Sul Ross State University and New Mexico State University. He joined the New Mexico State Police in 1984 and later became a Special Agent with the U.S. Customs Service and is stationed in New Mexico. Bart Skelton is the author of Down on the Border: A Western Lawman's Journal.

Darrell Graf is the former Chief of Police of the Medina Police Department (North Dakota). Darrell Graf graduated from the North Dakota Law Enforcement Training Center in August of 1976. He holds two patents on firefighting devices he invented.

Steve Schnabel is the former Colonel of the Medina Police Department (North Dakota). Steven Schnabel graduated from the North Dakota Law Enforcement Training Center in April of 1981. He is also a staff sergeant for the North Dakota Army National Guard of which he has been a member for over 19 years.

Darrell Graf and Steve Schabel are the authors of It's All About Power. According to the book description, “It's All About Power is a true and accurate eye witness account of the shoot-out between Gordon Kahl and US Marshals at Medina, North Dakota in 1983.” Of the book, Senator John DeCamp (Lincoln, NE) said, “There are many problems in America today. It's All About Power is a stimulating account of the disaster at Medina, ND in 1983 which was the first in a series of similar shocking events that have rocked our nation. I would highly recommend everyone from politicians to distressed farmers and government agents to militia members read and learn from this fabulous book!”

Dr. Allen Koss, PhD (Sitting Bull College, Ft. Yates, ND) added, “The authors...have dealt with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder for the past 16 years. This text should be a significant contribution to the education of other law enforcement officers.”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 657 police officers (representing 289 police departments) and their 1398 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books

Military Books

Military-Writers.com is a website committed to listing military personnel who have authored books. The website added to servicemembers: Steven Rogers and Steve Schnabel.

Lieutenant Steven L. Rogers is a 30-year veteran of the Nutley Police Department (New Jersey) and a 21-year veteran of the United States Navy Reserve, serving his country during the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the War on Global Terrorism. He is a former member of the FBI National Joint Terrorism Task Force, and presently serves as a police lieutenant on the Nutley Police Department. Lieutenant Steven Rogers is the author of America’s Homeland Warriors; 21st Century Policing: Community Policing : A Guide for Police Officers and Citizens; and, Cops and God; Soldiers and God; Marines and God; and, Sailors and God.

According to the book description of America’s Homeland Warriors, “From Beirut and Baghdad to Los Angles and New York, the war on terrorism knows no boundaries. What is your police department doing to prevent a terrorist attack in your city? Do the police officers in your community know about the terrorist groups roaming your streets? Steven Rogers answers the above questions and explains what kind of terror is being spread by violent terrorist organizations worldwide and how these organizations plan to bring their terror to America. He shares with police officers how they are now part of a new joint war fighting force that will confront a new brand of “criminal warrior” never seen before on the streets of America.”

Steve Schnabel is the former Colonel of the Medina Police Department (North Dakota). Steven Schnabel graduated from the North Dakota Law Enforcement Training Center in April of 1981. He is also a staff sergeant for the North Dakota Army National Guard of which he has been a member for over 19 years.

Steve Schnabel is the co-authors of It's All About Power. According to the book description, “It's All About Power is a true and accurate eye witness account of the shoot-out between Gordon Kahl and US Marshals at Medina, North Dakota in 1983.” Of the book, Senator John DeCamp (Lincoln, NE) said, “There are many problems in America today. It's All About Power is a stimulating account of the disaster at Medina, ND in 1983 which was the first in a series of similar shocking events that have rocked our nation. I would highly recommend everyone from politicians to distressed farmers and government agents to militia members read and learn from this fabulous book!”

Dr. Allen Koss, PhD (Sitting Bull College, Ft. Yates, ND) added, “The authors...have dealt with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder for the past 16 years. This text should be a significant contribution to the education of other law enforcement officers.”

Military-Writers.com currently lists 33 current or former military servicemembers and their 71 books.

Former Marine Angles to Honor Troops

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

July 19, 2007 – For servicemembers, "Operation Open Arms" is all about fun in the southwestern Florida sun. It's about much more than that for Capt. John Bunch, however. Through its network of more than 125 sponsors, Operation Open Arms provides opportunities for free or discounted vacation activities.

"It's not about anything but tangible acts of kindness for our troops for two weeks," said Bunch, a fishing guide and the organization's founder. "It's pretty much two weeks of just about anything you want to do, including kayaking (and) sailing trips that are free."

The only requirement is that participants be active-duty servicemembers on leave from a foreign duty station. Marines, who are not granted leave during deployments, are the only exception to this rule. They must provide proof they have recently been assigned to a foreign duty station.

"The only responsibility that U.S. servicemen have is to be reverent and respectful of the sponsors and to be courteous," Bunch said.

Bunch, a former Marine first lieutenant -- the "captain" title refers to his current occupation as a well-known fishing guide - said he started the program without really realizing what he was doing.

In April 2005, the Vietnam veteran was eating lunch in a restaurant in St. James City, Fla., a small fishing village on Pine Island, about 30 miles from Fort Myers. A young soldier and fishing enthusiast, Army Spc. Travis Downes, recognized Bunch from the TV fishing show he co-hosts.

The soldier asked where he could go fishing along the shore because he couldn't afford a charter trip.

When Bunch discovered Downes had orders to Iraq, he made a command decision. "I said, 'Don't worry about the money. I'll take you fishing, and there'll be no charge,'" Bunch said. "He just absolutely couldn't believe it."

Downes and his father offered to contribute something at the end of the trip, but the captain of GiddyUp Fishing Charter wouldn't hear of it.

"I said, 'Absolutely not. Travis is paying a big enough price by going back to Iraq for the third time. (This is) the least I can do for him,'" Bunch said. "It actually made me feel better to receive nothing, ... given the circumstances."

That feeling got him thinking. Before the day was over, he had four other fishing captains lined up to provide fishing excursions for servicemembers from Pine Island who came home on two weeks of rest and recuperation leave. The next calls he made were to five contacts from his days as a golf pro and five restaurant owners on the island; all agreed to provide free golf games and meals, respectively.

Then a story about the program appeared in the local newspaper, catching the eye of a "Today" show correspondent's mother. Before long, the NBC program had set up shop on Pine Island to tell the tale of Operation Open Arms.

The segment, which aired Memorial Day 2005, generated a new wave of sponsors ready to offer services to troops.

"It went from a very small thing -- a very well-intended thing that would serve a very small number of people -- to now a runaway successful train."

The "Today" show exposure also generated something else: a desire for the program to go national.

"After the 'Today' show, I received 2,188 e-mails and letters about Operation Open Arms from all over the country," Bunch said. "All of the letters were pretty much the same thing, 'Can you come (here) and do this?'

"Given how easy it was to do this, there's absolutely no reason there shouldn't be an Operation Open Arms in every single county of every single state in the United States, in my opinion," he said, adding that he's offering "lessons learned" to those interested in starting their own programs.

Though the seed for Operation Open Arms may have sprouted when Bunch met Downes in 2005, he said it had been planted when he was a young Marine officer.

"I was a young second lieutenant in the Marines going through the D.C. airport, and some war protestors spit on my brand new Marine Corps officer uniform," he said. "I swore that day if I could ever treat U.S. service people better than what I was treated ... I would do it.

"It was almost like this whole thing was meant to happen from that incident," he said.

Bunch has made good on that promise to himself. What originated as a program for servicemembers from the 17-mile-by-2-mile Pine Island, has never turned down any servicemember wanting to enjoy what the sponsors are offering. He said they had servicemembers in from Texas and Arizona this past Christmas.

Eligible servicemembers wishing to participate in Operation Open Arms should visit the program's Web site, www.operationopenarms.com, and follow the instructions. Because Bunch accepts no funds and runs the program with just two volunteers, participants must contact and make arrangement directly with the sponsors, he said. Servicemembers will be required to provide a military identification card, as well as leave documents.

Pace Speaks to 'Sky Soldiers' About Being a Soldier

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

July 19, 2007 – During a town hall meeting here with the "Sky Soldiers" of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, a young noncommissioned officer asked the military's highest-ranking officer what being a "soldier" means to him. Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has served in uniform more than 40 years since his graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1967. Although not technically a "soldier," he considers himself "a soldier of the sea," a term dating back to the 17th century for foot soldiers who serve with the sea service.

"For me, being ... a soldier of the sea has been an incredible way to spend a sizeable chunk of my adult life," Pace told the soldier. "I'm proud of what I've done with those years not because of what I've become, but because of the opportunity to serve with so many great soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen."

Pace noted that he re-enlisted 41 soldiers during a ceremony in Iraq on July 17. And the fact that they re-enlisted in a combat zone says something about being a soldier. He said the quality of the force has gotten higher. And when good people -- respected people - re-enlist, it makes every member of the military feel better about their chosen profession.

Following his first tour in a combat zone, Pace also chose to remain on active duty. His first assignment was to the Republic of Vietnam, where he joined 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, just in time for the Tet Offensive in February 1968.

He told the soldiers that he remembers the names of every Marine who was killed following 2nd Lt. Peter Pace's orders. The chairman said those Marines gave their lives so Americans can live the way they please. "I have always felt a sense of responsibility to repay what they gave their country," he told the airborne soldiers.

After coming back from Vietnam, Pace said, he made the decision to stay on active duty until he was no longer needed. He said he would know it was time to leave when he stopped getting promoted.

With four stars glinting on his desert camouflage uniform's collars, he said, "That worked out OK. But now I'm getting close to the time the nation no longer needs me, and I'm OK with that."

"I know, come 1 October, ... that for a little over 40 years I tried to do my best to take care of the guys and gals I've been responsible for," he said. "I also know that come 2 October, I will still owe the organization more than I can ever repay."

The chairman said he will take great comfort in knowing that leaders on every level -- from private first class to general -- "go about the business of taking care of the nation's business and taking care of each other," Pace said.

"As long as we've got that, we're going to do just fine," he concluded

Soldiers Missing in Action from the Korean War are Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of three U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors.

They are Sgt. Donald C. Trent, of Crab Orchard, W. Va.; Cpl. Robert K. Imrie, of Randolph, Mass.; and Cpl. Samuel Wirrick of Lancaster, Pa.; all U.S. Army. Imrie will be buried Monday at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.; and Trent and Wirrick will be buried at Arlington in October. Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men in their hometowns to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.

In late November 1950, these soldiers were members of the 2nd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, then operating south of the Chongchon River in North Korea. Their regiment's positions came under heavy attack by Chinese forces and the 2nd Battalion was forced to withdraw to positions near the town of Kujang. On Nov. 27, Imrie was killed in action, and Trent and Wirrick were reported missing.

In 2000, a joint U.S.-Democratic People's Republic of Korea-Korean People's Army team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), excavated a mass burial believed to contain the remains of U.S. soldiers who died near Kujang. The team found human remains, Wirrick's identification tag and other material evidence associated with U.S. Army infantry equipment.

Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.

For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1420.

Defense Leaders Tackle Family Issues

By Tech. Sgt. Chris Vadnais, USAF
Special to American Forces Press Service

July 19, 2007 – The Defense Department has identified 10 key issues of importance to military members and their families, including education policies and benefits, accessible support for military families, and spouse employment opportunities. Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, met here with David S.C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, this week to discuss such key issues.

"Family issues are crucial to the willingness of our people to continue to serve," Chu said.

Among the most important of the 10 key issues is the interstate compact for educating children of military members. The mobile military lifestyle creates challenges for children, and the Defense Department wants to provide a policy platform to head those off, Chu said. For example, some school districts will allow children to start kindergarten at age 5, while others require children to be 6 years old to start school. Children who start school in one location might not be able to go back to school at a new location when military families move.

"If the young lad or the young lady has already started school, why can't he or she keep going?" Chu asked. "Many school systems say, 'No, we've got to wait,' and that's a big issue with a military family," he said. "We'd like to get issues like these ironed out at a national level so military families can do the same thing every other American family can do."

Other key issues include policies for members of the reserve components, unemployment compensation for military spouses, and responsive voting programs. "Those issues affect the well-being of our families," Chu said. "We put a lot of burdens on military personnel; the family has to be well supported if they're going to accept those burdens."

Keating said healthy partnerships like the one between the Defense Department and the state of Hawaii are key to providing the best possible quality of life for military families. "It is that communion between the community and the military members that will produce long-lasting effects," he said.

"It is a powerful tool for us here," he added. "The governor and the mayor have both promised me that they would pay close attention to any initiatives that I brought to their attention, and they have followed through on that."

Shared Vision for a Joint Services Based Environment to Enable Information Sharing

DoD and DNI Chief Information Officers Establish Shared Vision for a Joint Services Based Environment to Enable Information Sharing

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration and DoD Chief Information Officer John G. Grimes and retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Dale Meyerrose, Associate Director of National Intelligence and Chief Information Officer for the Director of National Intelligence, recently signed a memorandum of agreement for a joint vision which enables improved interoperability and seamless information sharing between the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community (IC).

The joint agreement seeks to create a services-based information environment and to reinforce DoD and DNI collaboration towards implementing business and information services and service-oriented architecture. This environment, which leverages commercial practices, offers functionality as 'services' rather than stand-alone applications and is based on building capabilities using standard Web technologies.

"We work closely with Dale Meyerrose, my counterpart in the DNI, to ensure that DoD and the national intelligence community are pursuing complementary strategies to achieve information sharing," said Grimes. "The strategies communicate our vision of how to best achieve effective, efficient, and agile information sharing between DoD and the IC."

Developed through the combined efforts of the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the shared vision is to establish an information services-based environment that is:

Supported by a mandatory and common foundation based upon DoD CIO/DNI CIO jointly-developed standards, rules, and interoperable secure infrastructure services. This foundation will be governed by a joint board co-chaired by the DoD CIO and the DNI CIO; Populated with secure mission and business services. These will be provided and used by functions and organizations from across the DoD and IC and based on applicable enterprise architectures;

Managed to ensure operational visibility and situational awareness of the information environment for users throughout the DoD and IC.

To achieve this shared vision, the DoD-DNI agreement outlines the shared goals adopted by the DoD and the IC to ensure the envisioned services-based environment is achieved. These goals include: (1) provide services-rather than developing stand alone applications; (2) use services-rather than creating duplicative capabilities; (3) govern the environment; and (4) manage the environment. These goals are further explained in the context of the DoD and the IC in their respective services strategies. Each strategy articulates the same vision and goals to ensure unity of purpose but each is grounded in the terminology and the required level of detail for the respective organization. The service oriented vision and strategies will be shared with other government agencies to enhance the information sharing environment.

The jointly signed memorandum and DoD Net-Centric Services Strategy can be found online at http://www.defenselink.mil/cio-nii/entservices/.

Marine Missing From Vietnam War Is Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors. He is Cpl. Jim E. Moshier, U.S. Marine Corps, of Bakersfield, Calif. He will be buried Wednesday in Bakersfield.

On June 11, 1967, Moshier was one of 11 passengers on board a CH-46A Sea Knight helicopter that was inserting forces into Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam, when the aircraft was struck by enemy ground fire and crashed. Pilots from two nearby helicopters saw the crash and reported that none of the men on board could have survived. Aircraft flew over the site for several hours, but saw no survivors. A ground patrol attempted to access the site the next day, but could not because of the large concentration of enemy forces in the area. Two weeks later, a reconnaissance patrol was within 25 meters of the crash site, but extensive enemy activity prevented the team from approaching closer.

Between 1993 and 1994, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted two surveys of the site, and interviewed several Vietnamese citizens who said they witnessed the crash. Two of the citizens claimed to have seen bone fragments while scavenging the site years earlier. The teams found small pieces of wreckage, but no human remains.

In May 2005, Vietnamese officials notified U.S. officials that possible human remains were present at a district security compound in Quang Tri Province. The Vietnamese reported they confiscated the remains and other items, including Moshier's identification tag, from a Vietnamese citizen in 1996. The remains were then buried in the security compound, but the ID tag and other items had supposedly been lost over the years. Later that month, a U.S./S.R.V. team excavated the secondary burial site in the security compound and recovered a box containing human remains.

Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA in the identification of Moshier's remains. Remains from one of the other servicemembers on board the aircraft, Pfc. James E. Widener, U.S. Marine Corps, were identified in August 2006.

For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.

New Jersey Cop Authors

Editor's Note: Steven L. Rogers is a 21 year veteran of the US Navy (R).

Police-Writers.com is a website that lists state and local police officers who have written books. The website added two police officers from New Jersey who have authored books: Steven L. Rogers and Michael Petrillo.

Lieutenant Steven L. Rogers is a 30-year veteran of the Nutley Police Department (New Jersey) and a 21-year veteran of the United States Navy Reserve, serving his country during the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the War on Global Terrorism. He is a former member of the FBI National Joint Terrorism Task Force, and presently serves as a police lieutenant on the Nutley Police Department. Lieutenant Stephen Rogers is the author of America’s Homeland Warriors; 21st Century Policing: Community Policing : A Guide for Police Officers and Citizens; and, Cops and God; Soldiers and God; Marines and God; and, Sailors and God.

According to the book description of America’s Homeland Warriors, “From Beirut and Baghdad to Los Angles and New York, the war on terrorism knows no boundaries. What is your police department doing to prevent a terrorist attack in your city? Do the police officers in your community know about the terrorist groups roaming your streets? Steven Rogers answers the above questions and explains what kind of terror is being spread by violent terrorist organizations worldwide and how these organizations plan to bring their terror to America. He shares with police officers how they are now part of a new joint war fighting force that will confront a new brand of “criminal warrior” never seen before on the streets of America.”

Michael A. Petrillo is a retired chief of police from the Belleville Police Department (New Jersey). He has co-authored several books with Daniel R. DelBagno, a retired Captain from an unknown law enforcement agency in New Jersey. Among the books they co-authored are The New Age Of Police Supervision And Management: A Behavioral Concept and The New Jersey Title 2C Quizzer: A Question and Answer Study Guide of the New Jersey Code of Criminal Justice. They are also co-editors of the LearningExpress Police Sergeant Exam.

According to the book description of The New Age Of Police Supervision And Management: A Behavioral Concept “Packed with the authors’ 60 years of time-tested leadership expertise, this managerial gold mine is filled with the knowledge you need to accelerate your career and earn the supervisory positions you aspire to! Easy-to-understand and logically segmented for long-term retention, this guide leaves no stone unturned on the road to higher rank…from detailing the key traits of successful supervisors and understanding the complex world of human behavior to practical advice for gaining respect from the troops and handling difficult, real-world challenges within the ranks, from drugs to racial tension.”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 654 police officers (representing 285 police departments) and their 1396 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.