On this episode of Shoot Me Straight, Eddie Gallagher and Dave sit down with Panama City Beach Police Chief J.R. Mendez and returning guest Bruce Bailey for a conversation about law enforcement, drugs, online predators, human trafficking, protecting children, and what it takes to clean up a city built around tourism.

J.R. shares how a kid from San Antonio who never planned on becoming a cop ended up joining the Marine Corps, becoming a military police officer, and eventually finding his way to Panama City Beach. After starting on patrol, he spent nearly a decade working undercover narcotics, watching the drug landscape shift from cocaine and meth to Florida’s pill mill and opioid epidemic. Eventually, the revolving door of addiction left him questioning how much difference enforcement alone could actually make.

That search for a greater impact led J.R. into Internet Crimes Against Children investigations. He opens up about going undercover online, investigating predators, and seeing firsthand how smartphones, social media, pornography, and new technology have completely changed the access predators have to children. After years of those investigations, J.R. created Parents Against Predators, a program designed to show parents exactly what their children may be exposed to online and how to recognize the warning signs.

Bruce and J.R. also discuss human trafficking and the darker side of communities that depend heavily on tourism—including why problems like sexual exploitation and date-rape drugs can be difficult to openly address when businesses and local economies depend on maintaining a certain image.

The conversation then turns to J.R.’s role as Police Chief and the approach he has taken to changing Panama City Beach. Rather than avoiding problems or trying to please everyone, J.R. says he built a culture where officers are expected to do their jobs for the right reasons, while being held accountable when they don’t. His message to visitors is simple: come to Panama City Beach, have a great time, and leave with good memories—but if you come to commit crimes, expect consequences.

Together, Eddie, Dave, J.R., and Bruce discuss the Marine Corps, undercover police work, the opioid epidemic, online predators, human trafficking, parenting in the age of smartphones and AI, mental health, youth crime, law enforcement, leadership, accountability, and the realities communities face when protecting the public conflicts with protecting an image.

This episode is a look inside the problems most people never see—and why J.R. believes confronting them directly is the only way to actually make a difference.

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