56: A Pinellas County Sheriff's Office Podcast

Podcast episodes

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  #15 "Do No Harm... Do Know Harm" - Tactical Paramedic Supervisor Joey Greco

  #15 "Do No Harm... Do Know Harm" - Tactical Paramedic Supervisor Joey Greco

  E15

  01:46:25

  In this episode we talk with Tactical Paramedic Supervisor Joey Greco, who carries guns AND tourniquets. If he ever has to shoot you, he’ll probably be able to save your life afterward. Joey is one of the TacMeds who train with SWAT and accompany them on callouts, positioned in the hot zone. Although he’s not on the entry team, he’s trained to respond under fire if one of the SWAT operators is harmed. Joey began his lifesaving career as an Explorer with Clearwater FD, where at age 16 he responded to his first cardiac arrest. Hear about his SWAT tryouts, going through the same obstacle course as the operators but then having to save a life while the operator candidates rested, and learn how he graduated from New Guy #2 to New Guy #1. We’re proud to say that Joey has gotten first place in the SWAT Roundup TacMed Challenge two years in a row. Since that’s an international competition, does that mean he’s the best tactical paramedic in the world? We like to think so. Email us your questions and suggestions at lets56@pcsonet.com Follow PCSO: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube Follow 56: Instagram PCSO Website

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  #14 "Is the Chicken Armed?" - Deputy Jana Demperio

  #14 "Is the Chicken Armed?" - Deputy Jana Demperio

  E14

  01:50:53

  Jana Demperio could have been a professional stand-up comic, but instead she’s a deputy currently working the desk at our North District Station. She’s done Patrol, Street Crimes, Community Policing, and was a School Resource Officer, but thinks that working the desk is at least as challenging as any of those. The public thinks she can fix any problem, has a skewed perception about what constitutes a crime, and is perfectly willing to yell in her ear about it all. But Jana won Deputy of the Year for heroically taking out a wrong-way drunk driver with her own vehicle, crashing head-on to save the motorists behind her… and talked a suspect out of slitting his own throat… so of course she is going to go above and beyond to help anyone who calls. She deals with cases that can be investigated at the desk, or takes preliminary reports for things like harassing phone calls or runaway juveniles, as well as answering questions about civil matters, custody disputes, and neighbor conflicts. Her favorites are economic crimes calls, helping people avoid scams or deal with their painful aftermath. But really, ma’am, she can’t do anything about that chicken. Unless it’s carrying a gun. Email us your questions and suggestions at lets56@pcsonet.com Follow PCSO: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube Follow 56: Instagram PCSO Website

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  #13 "Vigorous Talking" - Lieutenant Dave Stang

  #13 "Vigorous Talking" - Lieutenant Dave Stang

  E13

  01:55:28

  In this episode we talk with Lieutenant Dave Stang, a man so powerful he can lose eight pints of blood – the amount in an average human – and still be standing, a veritable Paul Bunyan who was running a chainsaw in the timber business at age 11, and was hired as a firefighter before he even finished high school. As a young man he never thought about going into law enforcement, but his superhero origin story is full of foreshadowing: as a teen he saved students and teachers from bullies, and even rescued a state trooper in a fight against a huge drunk. His career began in St. Pete, cleaning up a drug-ravaged housing complex, and plucking guns from rioters’ hands. When he came to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office he spent years taking down some of the county’s most violent offenders. He’s been mistaken for the bodyguard to the head of a notorious biker gang, caught an escaped inmate charged with murder, and may or may not have run over our SWAT Supervisor, Sergeant Brian Diebold. Meet the guy who has never lost a fight, but whose wife thinks he has a cushy desk job now that he’s a lieutenant. (Shh… don’t tell her!) Email us your questions and suggestions at lets56@pcsonet.com Follow PCSO: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube Follow 56: Instagram PCSO Website

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  #12 "Buried Bodies, Scattered Skeletons" - Dr. Meredith Tise

  #12 "Buried Bodies, Scattered Skeletons" - Dr. Meredith Tise

  E12

  01:37:57

  In this episode we talk with PCSO’s answer to Bones – only better because she’s real! Dr. Meredith Tise is not only a forensic anthropologist, she’s also our Forensic Quality Assurance Coordinator, making sure that our Forensics Division is held to the highest standards. She started in a morgue as a teenager, and her work has taken her from the border to body farms as she perfected her knowledge early in her career. She was involved in the excavation at the Dozier School for Boys, uncovering the remains of children and young men who suffered under terrible conditions and died at that notorious facility. She has also helped bring lost WWII service members home, from a pilot who crashed in a dogfight in Germany, to hundreds of Marines killed on the tiny Pacific island of Tarawa. She’s our go-to expert for any unidentified bones found in the county – even if they’re more often pig knuckles from crab traps than evidence of a homicide. Hear about some of the most fascinating cases she’s worked here at PCSO and in her entire career. Email us your questions and suggestions at lets56@pcsonet.com Follow PCSO: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube Follow 56: Instagram PCSO Website Suncoast Forensics History Flight

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  #11 "Beacon of Joy" - Sergeant Jimmy Fortner

  #11 "Beacon of Joy" - Sergeant Jimmy Fortner

  E11

  01:24:31

  In this episode we talk with possibly the happiest man in the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office: Sergeant Jimmy Fortner. He began his career in a super max prison where stabbings, overdoses, hangings, and attacks on guards were commonplace. Now he works at the Pinellas County Jail, which despite the best resources and training can still be fraught with danger. Jimmy is an imposing six-foot-six and 360 pounds but he says he’s never won a fight… even against a Little Person in the Mexican Mafia. Jimmy is a larger-than-life guy who does a lot for the agency, including riding in a helicopter while dressed as Santa. On this episode you’ll hear about how the jail helps psych inmates and the elderly, how to maintain mental health when you work in the jail… and what severed body part he’s had hurled at his chest. Email us your questions and suggestions at lets56@pcsonet.com Follow PCSO: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube Follow 56: Instagram PCSO Website Mental Health For Heroes