Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Episode 1- Introductions
3 Plays1 month ago
Meet Sgt. Adam Sherman. He has worked for the Adams County Sheriff's Office in Colorado for more than 15 years within the jail, on patrol, as a detective, and now as the agency's public information officer. Sgt. Sherman is here to share with you his journey into law enforcement, and why he chose to to work for ACSO. Our first guest on our podcast is Undersheriff Paul Gregory. He is the second-in-command for ACSO, and has been an integral part of establishing many of the units that are still a part of the agency today. He explains how he came to ACSO and how law enforcement as impacted his life.
On Breaking & Adventuring, our goal is to share with you the stories and lives of the men and women who represent our agency, as well as other members within the law enforcement community. We hope to share insights on how the profession has changed and evolved, and what to expect next. If you have questions or feedback, we want to hear from you. Please email us at CommunityConnections@adcogov.org.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction and Guest Background
00:00:00
Speaker
Music Music Music
00:00:28
Speaker
I'm Adam Sherman, and welcome to Breaking and Adventuring, a live look inside the Adams County Sheriff's Office. I'm a sergeant here with us, and with me today, I have Undersheriff Paul Gregory.
00:00:41
Speaker
Sir, thank you for being here. I know it was a bit of a surprise, um but I just wanted to give a look into just the backgrounds today of what brings people into this career field and what may have led you into law enforcement and eventually the Adams County Sheriff's Office.
00:00:56
Speaker
Yeah. Thank you. I can tell you what led me here to this seat is you ambushing me yes and telling me that you're going to do a podcast, and which I knew nothing about. So thanks for that. Hopefully the ropes were gentle.
00:01:07
Speaker
Yeah. they No, that's, that'll be noted on your evaluation. That's for sure. That's totally fair. So to, yeah. So how I started in law enforcement. ah I think like most teenagers, I was seeking something that intrigued me. So at the age of 17, came in contact with a Westminster police officer at a place where I worked, which is a Chinese food restaurant. I delivered Chinese food for for two years as I was going through high school, my ah junior and senior year.
00:01:36
Speaker
And as I connected with that police officer, he took me on a couple of ride alongs and what I was like, this, this sounds, this seems pretty cool. Yeah. You know, maybe I'll get involved in that. And I, I kind of held onto that, you know, that feeling for quite some time. And, and as I was going through college, I got to my third year in college and i was away for the summer with my cousin and who, who was a freshman at the time. I was a junior and he's like, Hey dude, what are you, what are you going to do after college? And I'm like,
00:02:05
Speaker
I don't really know. Maybe I'll be a cop. but You know, that sounds cool. Totally reasonable. And then ah right after that, that, that August, in fact, just a month after that conversation, I, I got enrolled in a police Academy and that's when I started. And that was way back in the nineteen hundreds Yeah. 1998. Yeah. That's what the kids say now. Yeah. Oh, you're from the 1900s. Yeah. Well, awesome. Well, just
Career Highlights and Reflections
00:02:31
Speaker
brief summary. What are some of the positions you've held throughout your career?
00:02:34
Speaker
Yeah. And this is going to be boring. So going to try to spice it up a little bit. So, um, uh, yeah, I started like most deputies with our sheriff's office. I started in the jail and wake up. and Oh, sorry.
00:02:45
Speaker
And, and then moved to a different division, patrol division and, and which led me to become a field training officer. Uh, and then, probably the most exciting part of my career. I started the SWAT team in, uh, way back and G, oh my gosh, it was 21 years ago, 2004.
00:03:01
Speaker
And i was on that team for nearly 15 years as an operator, a sniper, a team leader, and then the commander for a number of years too. And along the way, I was part of you know our impact team, um then it got promoted to sergeant. And I was in your job. I had your job at one point in time.
00:03:17
Speaker
Big shoes to fill. they were I don't do it nearly as efficiently as you do now. but um Too nice. no And then got promoted to commander. um i did some detective time and then division chief of patrol and now undersheriff for the last two and a half years.
00:03:31
Speaker
It's fair to say well-rounded. you've You've dabbled in pretty much everything we do. Yes. Have good knowledge base. Yeah. Thank you. Absolutely. All right. So what was your favorite position out all those? When you look back, we're like, man, that was a blast. So I can, this it's funny. Cause I think about this one all the time and I get asked this question all the time.
00:03:48
Speaker
Uh, and it changes all the time because I, I get new jobs and I grab onto them and I make them the best I can. And then I start to fall in love with the job. The job I have now is, i think, most certainly the most rewarding job I've ever had because I get an opportunity to have a far reach and impact the entire organization of 650 members we have. you know and it's So for me, that's quite rewarding, which I guess is what makes it um my favorite position. Yeah.
00:04:19
Speaker
Now a couple, you know, honorable mentions, uh, that the, uh, the impact team back in the day now knows this community resource team. That was fun. And I started that in 2006, uh, which was when it was founded and worked on that for a couple of years. That was great.
00:04:35
Speaker
And I think a any good stories from some of those days, yeah maybe one share a short one. Yeah. Um, good stories from what, uh, let me think here. Gosh, put me on the spot. Um, I, yeah, you know, we, I remember when we first got started on that team, the the sheriff at the time, this was Doug Dahr.
00:04:55
Speaker
Uh, he got a complaint from a number of citizens, many complaints about a, um, massage parlor, uh, that were, they were, involved in some uh activities that were not lawful naughty naughty they were yeah so uh that was my first operation was to have that uh massage parlor uh shut down more or less and that was an interesting case and i won't tell you details yeah i i suspect that people can kind of imagine what you know that's all about so that was that was very interesting there are there are a number of other ones but
00:05:30
Speaker
Uh, thank you for your service for doing that by the way. yeah No,
Paths into Law Enforcement
00:05:36
Speaker
it's, and it's funny. I mean, similarly where, you know, came out of college, you know didn't know what I wanted to do next. yeah And it's funny. So I, I, I'd always had an interest in law enforcement.
00:05:45
Speaker
And so when I moved out here, like I started applying at agencies and I didn't know how it worked because back in Florida, like, you know large agencies, they just ran their own thing. Everything was in house. And so I just assumed it was that way. So I remember the first time I got a call back from an agency and I won't say who it was. It really doesn't matter, but they're just like, okay, everything looks great. We want to hire you.
00:06:03
Speaker
Are you post eligible? And I was like, I'm eligible for whatever you want. Yeah. Just send me wherever I'll do whatever. And it's like, no no, no. Like, are you post certified? was like, oh no. Like, well, you need to do that first. Okay. What's that? So they explained you have to go to either community college, put yourself through police Academy. And I was like, I just got done with college. I'm not doing that again. So I delayed my career a little bit.
00:06:21
Speaker
So I went to the private sector and went elsewhere. But yeah, when it came in, Uh, did our in-house academy. Oddly enough, you were one of my lead instructors. It was Sergeant Heinrichs and then you and Sergeant Sherman.
00:06:33
Speaker
Um, so yeah, so my, some of my first interactions were with yourself of me getting into law enforcement and actually, don't know, do you guys still do this where you kind of gather everybody incoming and you meet at the range? And so I remember a very intimidating, you in full uniform to stay there.
00:06:49
Speaker
We fire a few shots. and You were just like, okay, Next. Okay. So i remember me and a couple of the other people were he kind of looks like, like Jim Carrey and me, myself and Irene, like you were just very stoic yeah kind quasi flat top. Like, yeah, very funny. So little did I know there'd be so much shenanigans later down the road.
00:07:06
Speaker
Um, but yeah, you know, bounce around. The one thing I do love about being a part of the sheriff's office is much like you, I'd like to see where else I can go when I can do it, but I can like get a new job without losing my job.
00:07:17
Speaker
And it's very, so yeah being able to do that every three to five to however long years um is, you know, I recommend that to anybody, just anywhere where you can move and grow. yeahp so you're just not stagnant. One, one areas is a huge plus for, for a lot of us.
00:07:29
Speaker
Yeah. All
Music, Camaraderie, and Duties
00:07:31
Speaker
right. Another off the top one. What's your go-to or what was at one time like a go-to song that whether you're in your, you know in the car with your CRT partner or you just get ready for work, what's the song that you just had to put on for ah period in your career?
00:07:44
Speaker
Well, okay. On CRT, I had a partner. He's now a division chief. His name is Mike McKinney. Just, uh, I've heard of him. Yeah. Right. Um, so for, for funsies, you know, we used to play music that would annoy one another.
00:07:59
Speaker
And I can recall playing Since You've Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson. You know, that was a good one. That is a good one. Yeah. um But we also used to work out together every every day. Yeah. ah We used to, you know, we used to do some jujitsu and some kickboxing and, you know, weightlifting, running. We did every day.
00:08:17
Speaker
um And I can remember the songs that we would have in our playlist because we would, we we you know, when you get a partner in a car, yeah you become pretty close. Yeah. Um, so you, you know, I'll tell you another story about that. Sure. No, I won't nevermind.
00:08:31
Speaker
And then, so you get annoyingly close yeah and, um, some of that closeness and, um, things where we saw eye to eye was on our music selection. So we had very similar songs that are playlists on our um iPods.
00:08:44
Speaker
The back, do they have these still? I don't think so. I don't know. ah But yeah, it's those things, a smaller version of an iPhone that you cannot call anyone on. Right. Right. Yes. And, um, and I, I can recall, um, uh, a couple of the songs by journey.
00:09:01
Speaker
Ooh, yes. That word was from the the movie vision quest. If you recall this movie vision quest, uh, I think with Matthew Modine, anyway, um, those are some go-tos. Uh, I, you know, I love eighties, nineties rock. So that was a journey is a great one.
00:09:15
Speaker
Nice. Yeah. Okay. All right. I love it. Um, so kind of fast forwarding. So in your position now, What are some of the interesting things you get to do as under sheriff? So i'm I'm sure many people know what a sheriff is. They're the elected official to run the office. ah They kind of have an idea of like what sergeants and commanders or lieutenants do, but for, as an under sheriff, what, what all kind of encompasses that position? Yeah. So my, my position is quite autonomous. though There are things that I need to do, but the majority of the time there are things that I, I find that are ah necessary or that are, you know, wanted by, by others throughout the organization.
00:09:53
Speaker
Uh, I, the, the way I look at it between the, the relationship between the sheriff and I, and by the way, my my priority, by the way, is to ensure that the sheriff is successful because he needs to be.
00:10:05
Speaker
Um, but my other priority, um, and how he and I kind of work is I try to take care of the inside of the house. Right. color Right. And he, you know, takes care of the outside of the house. Now, of course, uh, he takes care of everything.
00:10:19
Speaker
Uh, but he relies on me to handle Absolutely. this stuff Yeah. That's a big point. Yeah. Delegation as a leader, it's paramount. Yeah. ah So that's where I focus a lot of my time is internal.
00:10:31
Speaker
Now events happened. Like last night we had a community meeting, a box elder, which is on the, and up and we'll call it district seven. We had a community meeting from about 6 to 8 PM last night.
00:10:42
Speaker
Where we go out and we listen to community members, we we hear what is concerning them, and then we come up with solutions to their problems. And by the way, as a side note, I think last night ah that meeting was very productive with that group of people. Great group of people, by the way.
00:10:55
Speaker
We don't get up there often enough, but um things like that take a majority of my time, taking care of the folks internally and then taking care of you know community meeting community events, which we have a lot of. As you know, we have a lot of.
00:11:08
Speaker
So, yeah, no. And, you know, being able to provide that experience that you bring with you to that position to provide resources and guidance to others around it's definitely paramount. So, um, if you were not a police officer, if you're not a a sheriff's deputy, what do you think you would have done as a career? Oh, so if I started over, not like, or even just like a man, I wish I would have done X. Oh boy. Where would where would you be if you weren't a cop today? Oh yeah. So,
00:11:36
Speaker
I'm always pulled by this sense of service, you know, and I, my, I suspect that many people in public service probably have the same sort of sentiment, which is I, I have a need, like this need to give back.
00:11:50
Speaker
Um, so something in service may, maybe career military. Okay. maybe Maybe even firefighter, you know, that could, I don't know.
00:12:05
Speaker
Yeah. So those are the two that kind of hit me, you know, yeah I have many friends and colleagues that are, who are firefighters who I visit with. regularly Um, and they are, they're, they're similar to, to us, you know, they have similar senses of humor.
00:12:20
Speaker
Uh, they have similar drives, they have similar, you know, um, skills. So, um, probably those two things. Okay. Yeah. No, and it's, I mean, they all align cause I know we're a paramilitary organization, so we we do get a lot of veterans that come into our organization and it's just a seamless fit, fit and transition.
00:12:36
Speaker
And like the way I kind of look at it with our firefighter friends is we're like, we're all in the family. Like we're allowed to fight and kind of make fun of each other, but you know, we, we protect each other at the same time and nobody else, know, from the outside can. So yeah yeah, we do have a lot of fun with those.
Coping with Trauma and Challenges
00:12:50
Speaker
Um, you know, like and like for me, similarly, like i had a very, I played sports all growing up and I had a very impressionable SRO who was actually one of my baseball coaches. So it was pretty funny where like, all right, time to go to practice. I just get in the back of his car at school and driving his police car to go to his house, everybody changes and then we'd go to practice.
00:13:08
Speaker
Um, but like always, always saw law enforcement officers in a very positive light and same thing where I'm like, they get to serve, they could do all this cool stuff. And so I actually went to college with a, with that in mind. So actually had a special specialty in criminology. So looking at more theoretical stuff, but still, um, wanting to eventually somehow find my way into this role. So,
00:13:28
Speaker
It's been what i hoped and more. i mean, like, honestly, some of the stuff is, definitely more intriguing. And I was actually by one of your old CRT colleagues, uh, who now are now our, our sons just play baseball together, but, uh, former senior deputy, Nick Lombardi said it's the, the front seat to the greatest show on the world that you'll just every day. It's like, Whoa, that was incredible.
00:13:54
Speaker
either insane or that was unbelievable, or I got to do, I mean, the impact you get to see, um, it's hilarious. It's it's, it is hilarious. I mean, honestly, I've laughed so much with just in the middle, you know the middle of a graveyard shift, just boxed out with somebody, just laughing over a call we just did or what we just saw.
00:14:10
Speaker
Yeah. But it's true you know sometimes it's tough too. you know You get a lot of that. And yeah um you know and not not to do a like a you know a segue for anything else, but- You do you. you know When we first started in way back then, and even before, but not until I would say, I don't know, maybe 10 years ago, we started to understand the impacts of of trauma in first responders.
00:14:34
Speaker
Um, so, you know, back then what we really used for our coping skills and mechanisms is to get a chuckle from one another that helps, you know, when you go to this awful call that you have bad dreams about that you think about that, whatever we, we, it was, it was this, um, this brotherhood and sisterhood that we had yeah to keep us sane.
00:14:55
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. And we still do yeah cop humor or dark, yeah dark humor. Yeah. Yeah. No, it's, but we've recognized that in modern law enforcement and now we have much more sophisticated ways to take care of ourselves. Yeah. The, the strides and wellness is something we'll get into in further episodes and explore that. But yeah, I mean, it's gone on leaps and bounds just in my 16 years. So I can't even imagine what it was like for, you know, the generations before us.
00:15:18
Speaker
Um, you know yeah. Any of those where maybe you, you know, you showed up to a call and you just were having to just hold back your lunch that you just downed on the way or something where you just, I can remember one very vividly, uh, where I was a commander on patrol at the time. And there, it was, there was a, a, a decedent who had been there for months, months and months. And, uh, I didn't even recognize this to be a human.
00:15:46
Speaker
Yeah. Um, I recognize it to be just a, a pile. Right. That was a rough one. Yeah. Summertime by chance. It was July in a motor home. Ooh, it didn't. Yeah. It didn't smell good. takes a while to get that out of your, that's not a uniform. Yeah. And it's what, what it's not funny, but it's funny when you, things can, uh, kind of, you, you recall things, uh, based on like a a smell or, or, or hearing something.
00:16:13
Speaker
And, um, there are certain things that I smell and it takes me right back to that moment. Right. Yep. Yeah. No, honestly, the first autopsy i ever had to go to, it was same thing. We had a decedent that, uh, unfortunately passed away in a house fire, but,
00:16:26
Speaker
Yeah. as soon as they went to to start, it brought me back to memory. just like being around like the household barbecue. I was like, oh yep. That's weird. So i'll I'll never smell barbecue the same way again. Yeah. Just, yeah, there's different benchmarks, but then and I'm sure there's just been so many
Reality vs. Fiction in Law Enforcement
00:16:40
Speaker
hilarious times. Like it's like right out of a movie or something to where, um, you know, and I'll ask this of you, what TV show do you think gets it right about law enforcement?
00:16:49
Speaker
What do you think is just like, man, that they're pretty spot on. Um, let's, oh gosh. I mean, besides Starsky and Hutch and Turner and Hooch besides those shows. of vern and shirleyish ah Yeah.
00:17:07
Speaker
Uh, is there any that get it right? I, so I don't watch TV. Oh, that's fair. Um, uh, but yeah, there's, there's, you know, some movies get some stuff right, but man, I don't know if there's one that gets everything right all the time. Yeah. Those are hard to come by.
00:17:20
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, I had to stop watching some shows cause I'd be like, Oh, come on. Like really you're going to have the person in plain clothes at the front of the stack. Like, yeah please. The shield was an example of that. Yeah. There's some really cool stuff in this. yeah I don't know if you ever remember that movie or that, that so series, but there's some cool stuff that was kind of accurate, but yeah a lot of it. youre Yeah. What you do, you're like, come on. Yeah.
00:17:43
Speaker
or yeah And you just ruin the experience for everybody else around you. But yeah. yeah So I stopped watching this. I've gotten that question a lot. That's why I thought of it where people like at parties like, Oh, is it like NYPD blue? Is it like, is it like the shield? Is it like blue bloods? And I'm like, honestly, honestly,
00:17:57
Speaker
my experience is probably most like Reno nine on one, which is like wild stuff happens. Like, but you know, you try to, you try to, you know try to bust open the door and your foot goes through it. Yeah. That's that totally happens. Yeah. Like you get out of the car to chase somebody and just fall on your face. yeah Like, uh, not to drop any names, but you know, Sergeant Miller, um, who's retired now. I remember being a partner his on the SWAT team yeah and he kicked right through a door one time and I stood there and laughed.
00:18:26
Speaker
Yes. At him with his leg halfway through the door. Yeah. yeah This really happened. It was great. Yeah. That's, that's usually my go-to answer. If I get questioned along those lines, because yeah, you have those, or you have the, you know, the person that gets out there on a hurry and they didn't put their car in park. Yeah. yeah it's yeah It happens. So yeah, no, I have a, I've got one where,
00:18:49
Speaker
I won't even name on this one, but we had a, a call of basically ready report, just DUI in the area.
Advice and Mentorship
00:18:55
Speaker
And so a few of us go over and this beautiful, beautiful soul of a deputy stops the car. so we're all like, okay, cool. So we're heading to this location. So I'm getting out. I see him and he just walks up and he goes, Hey, look at my finger. Guy's still sitting in the driver's seat, like cars on. And he goes,
00:19:14
Speaker
get out of the car. You're drunk. And I'm just like, no like we don't do, that's not how we do roadside that's not our procedure. So we stepped in and we put them through, we got to actually ah a traffic unit who specialized in those did, you know, proper roadsides to everything. But just like, just so funny. Like the things that cross, cross, uh, you know, the, the radar, it's like, wow.
00:19:36
Speaker
All right. Yeah. Oh yeah. Plenty of those. Right. So it's, it's been a great experience. Well, I mean, for anybody looking to get into law enforcement, I mean, do you have any advice or any things that they should maybe kind of, as law enforcement has grown from just basically like, here's a key to a car, here's a gun go yeah to where we are now where we're, I mean our, our academy is 22 weeks long and it keeps the curriculum keeps getting more stringent as, as legislative changes happen.
00:20:02
Speaker
I mean, is there anything you would recommend for people while looking for this career? Yeah. So those who are young looking to get into this, um, a few things like make your time, cup leading up to this career relevant time because law enforcement, believe it or not, a lot of people seek it out as a career.
00:20:23
Speaker
Uh, so we have hundreds and hundreds of app applicants and we're looking for this, the cream of the crop, right? And we get, we've been super fortunate by the way, as an organization to get the really good employees such as great yourself.
00:20:35
Speaker
Oh yeah. too Nice. Yeah. ah But so I would say stay out of trouble, right? leave Have a path in your life where you're going down the right tracks. And if you start to deviate from those, pop back on them and keep going. So maybe like check yourself. Check yourself. Before you wreck yourself. Yes, exactly.
00:20:52
Speaker
You know, and surround yourself with some people who have the same types of morals and the same, uh, types of values. That's super important. We we are who we surround ourselves with. Yeah. So pick your friends wisely. And that's tough to do as a teenager sometimes. Right.
00:21:07
Speaker
Absolutely. ah well Particularly culturally, it's tough to do. Yeah. Yeah. Cause it seems like a lot of the accolades come from the other end of, of, of. Yep. Totally away from all that stuff. so Totally. Totally. stay away from illegal activity, stay away from drugs.
00:21:20
Speaker
Uh, all of these things will be found out in our background process. yeah So just, you know, lead, lead a ah life that is, um um, you know, trouble free and do your best to just be a good human.
00:21:33
Speaker
Yeah. Uh, and do what is right. Even when no one is around. And there's a, there's a book, um, uh, by, Dan Crenshaw, who is a, uh, a Congressman, uh, I think out of Texas.
00:21:47
Speaker
Um, And one of his sayings is return the shopping cart. yeah And I love this saying because it's, it's just so much that yeah those people who don't return the shopping cart, you know, they but like bump other cars or whatever. Yeah. They let the wind take into another car. Yeah. And you know, you don't have to do it, but it's the right thing to do. Right. Because it prevents a lot of things. Right. And it,
00:22:08
Speaker
even for the poor people who's got to come out of the King supers and put it back, you know, put it in the right spot, even when no one's around. And you know, that's just a ah good way to live your life. So I love that saying. And I give that saying to people.
00:22:21
Speaker
Nice. Yeah. And I just, if I could jump onto that too, once you get your foot in the door, don't stop, especially with, you know, seeking out those mentors, just finding people who are, you know, a good pillar of what you're longing to be, whether it's their, you know, different area or something, but yeah, surround yourself with some of those good mentors too. Yep.
00:22:38
Speaker
um And that's not only for prospective law enforcement officers. I mean, we, especially for an agency like our size, yeah we have tons of routes where people come in and I've met people. I'm like, Hey, you know,
00:22:49
Speaker
You'd be a great candidate. I don't want to be a cop. That's awesome. We have it needs. We have, we have a fully functioning DNA and crime lab. That's, you know, just like out of TV. I mean, there's so many different roles that I encourage people just, if you want a good, steady, uh, fulfilling career, it's a great place to look. Yeah. Agreed. So, but yeah, but continuing that ongoing training, that ongoing, uh, seeking out knowledge and, and, and mentors is hugely important. It's been, I've benefited from it and I love passing that on to others as well.
00:23:18
Speaker
And you're, you're one of those. Yeah. Thank you. So, know, from being, you know, the, the scary, scary Jim Carrey to now, you know, being, you know, the undersheriff handling business. It's, it's, it's fun. And some of the, even the people you mentioned in some of your stories were critical in some of my development and just, you know, being in a, in a career field like this, it's very rewarding, inspiring as you, as you progress as the young buck then on up to the so old dog. But, um,
00:23:42
Speaker
you know, it, it, it happens and it keeps, keeps, it's very cyclical, I think. Yeah, for sure. So, yeah well, this has been a pleasure. I appreciate you coming down. I know I will, I won't have to tie you back up to get you back to your office. Cause I know you're going to get stuff knocked out, but I do appreciate you making time for us. You're welcome. And, and for, for those who I know and who know me, they know that I appreciate a good dad joke.
00:24:04
Speaker
Ooh, I have one. ah Yes. Let's hear it. I've been practicing this all morning. Not really, but Why does the pediatrician, why does a pediatrician lose their temper so quickly?
00:24:19
Speaker
I don't know. Why does a pediatrician lose their temper so quickly? They have such little patience. ah You're welcome. All right. And with that, we will sign off. ah Yeah, but we look forward to going in and, you know, for those come back. We're going to really dive into just all things law enforcement and then what we have within the sheriff's office.
00:25:02
Speaker
you