Terry Korpal started his law enforcement career as an SLMPD cadet in 1965, spent 10 years with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and went on to spend another 14 years with the United States Secret Service.

Terry takes us back to his days in the 5th District and his time working in Pruitt-Igoe, including what it was like policing one of St. Louis' most notorious housing projects.

Then he tells us how an unexpected opportunity took him from St. Louis to the Secret Service — and eventually put him on the protection detail for Ronald Reagan during Reagan's presidential campaign.

And yes... there's a Bobo the monkey story. 😂

Terry also tells us about working protection details, investigating threats, life on the road with the Secret Service and one unbelievable encounter involving bank robber and Vietnam veteran William Thomas James.

Plus, Terry talks about his new book, "The Barbarians," a fictional police story inspired by the St. Louis officers and experiences that shaped his career.

It's a great conversation with a guy who has spent decades around some of the most interesting people, places and cases in American law enforcement.

#TheBrighterSideOfBlue #TerryKorpal #SecretService #SLMPD #StLouisPolice #StLouis #LawEnforcement #PoliceStories #BehindTheBadge #RonaldReagan #SecretServiceAgent #PoliceHistory #PruittIgoe #StLouisHistory #TrueCrime #LawEnforcementStories #RetiredCop #PoliceFamily #StLouisMO #TheBarbarians

A confession that became one of the most talked-about videos on our YouTube channel is now available on all platforms

In this interview, Rafael Jackson speaks directly with investigators and recounts his involvement in multiple violent crimes, answering questions about what happened, the weapons involved and the events surrounding the cases.

This is an extraordinary look inside a real homicide investigation and the process of getting a suspect to explain, in his own words, what happened.

#TheBrighterSideOfBlue #SLPOA #RafaelJackson #Confession #TrueCrime #HomicideInvestigation #PoliceInterview #Detectives #CrimeStories #LawEnforcement #StLouis #StLouisPolice #SLMPD #BehindTheBadge #TrueCrimeStories #PoliceStories

Featured Interview (31:14)...Some friendships are built over years. Others are forged in the heat of the job.

Joe Crews and Archie Shaw worked together, chased the same bad guys, shared plenty of laughs and experienced some things that only fellow police officers can truly understand.

Over the years, their professional relationship became something much more — a genuine friendship and a bond that lasted well beyond the badge.

In this conversation, Joe and Archie sit down with us to talk about their careers, the cases they remember, the people they worked alongside and some of the stories that came out of their years together on the streets of St. Louis.

There are plenty of laughs, plenty of crazy police stories and a great deal of respect between two guys who spent years having each other's backs.

Some call them colleagues. We think “brothers” is a little closer.

#TheBrighterSideOfBlue #SLPOA #JoeCrews #ArchieShaw #SLMPD #StLouis #PoliceStories #LawEnforcement #PoliceBrotherhood #BehindTheBadge #PoliceFamily #StLouisPolice #CopStories

(24:53) Our featured Interview...For the first time in its history, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department hired its chief from outside the department.Chief Robert Tracy came to St. Louis after more than four decades in law enforcement, with a career that took him from the Bronx to Chicago, Wilmington and ultimately St. Louis.And when he arrived, he knew exactly what he was walking into.SLMPD is a proud department with a long history, deep traditions and generations of officers who had spent their entire careers there. Tracy knew there would be skepticism about an outsider coming in to lead the department.But instead of flipping the table, he took a different approach.Respect the organization. Learn its history. Listen to its people. Give officers the tools to do their jobs. And make changes when changes are actually needed — not simply for the sake of making changes.In this episode of The Brighter Side of Blue, we sit down with Chief Robert Tracy for a conversation that goes well beyond crime statistics and the usual questions he gets from the media.We talk about what it was like coming into SLMPD as the department's first outside chief, how he earned the trust of the men and women wearing the badge, the changes he's seen over the past three years and why he believes the department is finding its stride again.But we also get to know the man behind the badge.Chief Tracy talks about his father, a highly respected NYPD homicide detective who helped shape his career, his mother and her career as a nurse, his wife Brenda, his five children and the importance of having mentors throughout a law-enforcement career.He talks about why he and his family have chosen to stay in St. Louis, what he loves about the city, St. Louis sports, his first encounter with St. Louis-style pizza and why he believes this city is often harder on itself than it needs to be.And yes... we even find out what happened when a young NYPD officer named Robert Tracy met Dolly Parton. 😂It's a very different conversation with the Chief — personal, funny, candid and a look at the man who came to St. Louis from the outside and decided to put down roots.Communities that support law enforcement are safer places to live.

Featured Interview (35:10)...What does it really cost to be a hero?

This week on The Brighter Side of Blue, we're joined by two men who know that answer better than most.

Colin Ledbetter was shot in the line of duty. He told us the story of that incident during his previous appearance on the show, but surviving the physical wounds was only part of the battle.

James Frost brings his own experiences from a career in law enforcement, sharing stories that show what officers see, what they carry with them and what can happen long after the call is over.

Two very different stories. Two different paths toward healing. But a common thread runs through both:Heroism has a cost.This is a conversation about the things officers experience, the things they don't always talk about, and what happens when the uniform comes off but the memories don't.

It's honest, personal and at times difficult, but it's also a reminder that the men and women behind the badge are human beings.

Two cops. Two stories. One fight.

#TheBrighterSideOfBlue #LawEnforcement #Police #PoliceOfficers #FirstResponders #Heroism #BehindTheBadge #OfficerWellness #PoliceMentalHealth #StLouis #STL #ThinBlueLine

(33:49) Featured Interview Stephen Walker...If you're from St. Louis, you probably know the Lemp Mansion. You may know the stories of the brewery, the family's incredible wealth, the tragedies and the suicides that helped make the mansion one of the city's most infamous landmarks.

But there's a story you may not know.

Stephen Walker has been researching the Lemp family since 1982. What started with a fascination with the mansion's ghost stories turned into decades of digging through old newspapers, records, museums and historical archives.

In this conversation, Stephen takes us through the rise and fall of one of St. Louis' most powerful families before turning his attention to the death of Elsa Lemp Wright in 1920.

Elsa's death was ruled a suicide.

Stephen isn't convinced.

We get into the strange circumstances surrounding her death, the conflicting accounts, the delayed call to police, the involvement of a powerful attorney, the location of the gun, the testimony of the household servants and the questions that still surround the case more than a century later.

And, because this is The Brighter Side of Blue, we couldn't resist putting some retired cops in the room and asking the question:

If this happened today, would you call it suicide?

Featured Interview (37:06) Retired ATF Agent Bill Buford has lived a law enforcement career that sounds almost impossible.

A Vietnam-era Green Beret, Buford went on to become an ATF agent and SRT team leader. Before Waco, he had already been shot multiple times and seriously wounded during an arrest. Then, on February 28, 1993, he and his team were sent into the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas.

What followed was one of the most violent days in the history of federal law enforcement.

Bill takes us inside that day from the perspective of someone who was actually there. He talks about the loss of three members of his own 12-man Arkansas team, being shot multiple times himself, fighting his way out of the compound, and the incredible actions of the agents who fought alongside him.

But this interview goes far beyond Waco.

Bill talks about growing up in Kansas City, becoming a Green Beret, his Vietnam service, how he ended up at ATF almost by accident, building an SRT team, the importance of training and peer support, losing his friend and protégé Robert Williams at Waco, and continuing his law enforcement career long after that day.

It's an incredible conversation with a man who has spent his life serving his country and protecting others.

And, somehow, after everything he's been through, Bill is still planning to go bear hunting with a crossbow.

We were honored to have him tell his story.

We weren't planning on doing a Saturday night edition, but a few calls came in that changed that.

We've got a major update on a familiar name from our BMF series, some big developments involving local and federal law enforcement, and a look at a recent case that shows just how much work is being done behind the scenes.

We also get into the search for a missing two-year-old that ended with a good outcome, and Danny has a pretty unbelievable story about the person who recently hit the billion-dollar lottery.

There's a lot more to this one than we're putting in the description. Some of the best information is the stuff we're hearing directly from people in the know.

It's our first-ever Saturday night "Weekend Swirl," and we think you're going to enjoy this one.

#TheBrighterSideOfBlue #SLMPD #SLPOA #BMF #LawEnforcement #CrimeNews #StLouis #StLouisCrime #Police #DrugInvestigation #FederalInvestigation #CrimeThisWeek #WeekendSwirl #LawEnforcementCommunity