Sunday-Wednesday, April 28 – May 1, 2024
Grand Hyatt San Antonio River Walk
Sessions are 1-1.5 hour sessions in the main ballroom. The Conference offers an attendee total of 11 hours of potential training. Sessions are subject to change.
Uncommon Valor: The Lone Survivor
Special Guest Speaker TBA
FBI-LEEDA is honored to welcome a special guest speaker who will be revealed to attendees registered for the the Conference. He will share his experiences from his childhood, life lessons growing up, stories and lessons on becoming a true American hero. His inspirational and empowering message of perseverance and overcoming adversity will surely be relevant to all.
Remarks from the FBI Leadership
Paul M. Abbate, Deputy Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Deputy Director will take this opportunity to update attendees on critical issues facing law enforcement, as well as focus on key Bureau programs supporting agencies throughout the country.
De-Escalation, Trauma, Resiliency and Vicarious Trauma
Marcia K. Thompson, Esq., Civil Rights Attorney; Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice, Aurora University
Individuals that work in public safety encounter immense amounts of stress during their interactions and when addressing crisis in their day-to-day work. This session is designed to equip individuals with the necessary knowledge and skills to understand and effectively respond to and de-escalate challenging situations associated with their work. There will be an emphasis on building a resilient mindset and embracing a trauma informed approach within public safety to help increase officer well-being and critical thinking. Participants will analyze cases scenarios and work on practical activities to reinforce theory and become more self-aware.
Legal Issues in Law Enforcement
Eric P. Daigle, Esq., Daigle Law Group LLC
OSW – Part 1: Focus on Financial Health
Judy Pollard, Business Development Officer, Justice Federal Credit Union
We understand that today’s law enforcement is more complex than ever before. We realize that you are facing a growing array of challenges, opportunities, and threats in your day-to-day operations. This stress can also be compounded by one of the biggest stressors in our personal lives today: financial uncertainty. Just as your mental and physical wellness on the job is important, financial wellness is equally important. Unfortunately, financial education has not kept pace with the rising need for knowledge. In this presentation, attendees will have many takeaways that aspire us to be better prepared and financially resilient. The presenter will share real examples and current resources that relate directly to the topics. Participants will also gain a greater sense of ease and control when making choices of how we spend the money that we have and gain confidence over money choices as one reflects on what has the most meaning through dialogue and application.
OSW – Part 2: Focus on Physical and Mental Health
Michael Laidler, Leadership Strategist; Best-Selling Author; Former Florida and Texas Law Enforcement Executive
OSW – Part 3: Overview of the VALOR Officer Safety and Wellness Program
David Flory (Ret), Hot Springs Police Department (AR); Senior Research Associate, Institute of Intergovernmental Research
Covenant School Shooting in Nashville
Commander Scott Byrd, Special Operations Division, Nashville Police Department (TN)
The community of Nashville and Davidson County joined a growing list of jurisdictions that have been confronted by an active shooter event at a school. The Covenant School Shooting Incident presentation will discuss the Covenant School and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department prior the shooting event, the events that unfolded on March 27, 2023, and challenges that followed when the shooting stopped. It is our hope that the events experienced in Nashville will help the next agency be better prepared to meet the challenge of a day we all hope never comes to our community.
Manhunt for a Murderer: Danelo Cavalcante Prison Escape and Takedown
Agent Padraic Berlin and K-9 Yoda, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security
On September 13, 2023, the U.S. Border Patrol was involved in the Pennsylvania State Police-led multi-agency apprehension of convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante, who escaped from a Pennsylvania county jail. Yoda, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois is the U.S. Border Patrol BORTAC K9 that subdued Cavalcante. Agent Padraic Berlin is Yoda’s handler. In this session, they present the details of the incident and success of Yoda’s takedown.
FBI-LEEDA Media Public Relations Refresher
Sarah Connolly, Communications Strategist, Baltimore County Police Department (MD); Instructor, FBI-LEEDA
Sergeant Matthew Fagiana (Ret), Loudon County Sheriff’s Office (TN); FBI-LEEDA Instructor
Allen Premium Outlets: Mass Casualty Shooting
Lt. Kris Wirstrom, Allen Police Department (TX)
Sgt. Chad Hernandez, Allen Police Department (TX)
This session will review video of the attack, video from the officer’s perspective, and a brief overview of the historical preparations undertaken by City of Allen Police and Fire to ensure an effective response to spontaneous active attack situations. The session will cover isolated areas of importance from timeline data. We will describe some aspects of the response that went well, and we will explain in greater detail some areas for improvement. The session will underscore the importance of maintaining solid relationships between police and fire departments and demonstrate some areas wherein law enforcement should make changes to training and deployment strategies.
Intelligence Led Policing: Identifying Officer Safety Threats and Social Service Needs of the Community
Andre McGregor, CEO and Founder, ForceMetrics; Former FBI Cyber Special Agent
Shane McGregor, Head of Analytics / Educational Technology Specialist, ForceMetrics
Assistant Chief Easton McDonald, Alexandria Police Department (VA)
In the ever-evolving landscape of law enforcement, the need for strategic, informed decision-making has become more critical than ever. “Intelligence Led Policing” (ILP) plays a pivotal role in not only ensuring the safety of our officers but also in identifying and addressing the social service needs of the communities we serve. Providing dispatchers and officers with critical response time information related to an individual, a location, or vehicle results in more efficient and effective calls for service. Utilizing data to uncover crucial insights within the community enables command staff to allocate their limited resources more effectively towards community needs.
ForceMetrics executives will present on the principles and impact behind Intelligence Led Policing. Law enforcement executives that have implemented ILP will discuss use cases on how they have employed the technology. Participants will utilize open source data to address various scenarios and discover the benefits of ILP from a dispatcher, patrolman and command staff point of view.
FBI-LEEDA Trilogy Refresher
Carol Frederick, FBI-LEEDA Instructor; Florida Department of Law Enforcement (Ret)
Chief Luis Soler, FBI-LEEDA Instructor; Woodland Police Department (CA) (Ret)
Jerry Thompson, FBI-LEEDA Instructor; Ohio State Highway Patrol (Ret)
Les Kachurek (Moderator), FBI-LEEDA Instructor
Concerns of Police Survivors
Dianne Bernhard, Executive Director, Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.)
Click HERE to download the Training Session Summary PDF with details about the speakers.