Donald Soranno

One of the biggest challenges for those in law enforcement is overcoming the negative stereotypes and stigma associated with the career. People need to be aware that law enforcement officers are there to help, not hurt, and have to find ways to bridge the gap between the community and law enforcement. Additionally, officers need to be able to do their job safely, while also showing compassion and tactfulness.
 
Transcript: "What are some of the biggest challenges you face in your job? I'm gonna address this from the point of view from a first responder in the law enforcement community I would say some of the biggest biggest challenges right now is just the negative stereotypes and the negative stigma That's being put out there falsely on law enforcement as a whole that all law enforcement is is going out there and beating up people and shooting people and Taking people's guns away and taking people's rights away That could be the furthest thing from the truth Everybody that signed up to be in law enforcement is there to help people. It was a calling. That's what they wanted to do so I think it's a big challenge for Individuals who are currently in the law enforcement arena or those who are aspiring to be in that position that Places you go not everybody is going to welcome you not everybody's gonna think that because you're driving on the street that They're welcoming you there There's just a culture that we need to Break down those barriers and work with the community that law enforcement is there to help them. It's not going away It's not gonna be defunded. It's not gonna be disbanded We'd have total chaos and anarchy then so law enforcement has a role in keeping society safe But there is correct ways to do that I think some of the challenges that are out there as relates to this is people are coming up with ideas that you know We need to be more Tactful in the way we do things absolutely agree. We need to have more compassion Absolutely, but we can't handcuff our officers and not let them do the job that they need to do because it is a very dangerous job out there so I think the challenges are getting past all these stigmas and stereotypes and Keeping in a right mind on which roles and duties are out there"

It is ok for first responders to come forward and ask for help when they need it. There is a stigma that asking for help makes them weak, but this isn't true. There are many places where they can get the help they need and they should not be afraid to reach out.
 
Transcript: "Why is it so hard for first responders to come forward and ask for help when they need it? Amazing, amazing question. And this is a question that needs to put out more to the community. It is okay to come forward and ask for help. There's this old stereotype that, you know, if you come forward and if you're having issues at work, if something's bothering you, you know, you've lost the edge. You're weak. You're not supposed to show emotion. In law enforcement, we wear the body armor to protect us from external forces. Well, we also put up a shield to protect us from the trauma that we see, the negativity, just the horrible stuff in the world. The problem is a lot of times that body armor will come off, but that shield never comes off. You keep everything inside because you don't want to show that you're having a tough time with that call that you were just on or you're going through a tough time in your marriage or your family or your friends or just personal. And it's okay not to be okay. And we need to let our first responder community know that it's okay to say something. You want to talk to your brothers and sisters. Seek out what's the peer support group that your agency has. If they don't have one, reach out to another agency to see if they can refer you to somebody. There's a lot of places out there here on any question. There's a lot of great places that they can provide support. So that's what we're all about is breaking down that stigma, breaking down that wall of first responders can't ask for help. You can. It is okay. It doesn't make you weak. It doesn't make you any less of an officer. So my brothers and sisters out there, it's okay. Ask help if you need it."

It is a very admirable position to take on the burden of being a first responder, but you have to be aware that it is a tough job. It involves working nights, weekends and holidays, and you will often encounter people at their worst. You must develop a thick skin and make sure to take care of your mental health. Despite the difficulties, it can be a rewarding career, and it is important to do research and make sure it is the right fit for you.
 
Transcript: "What do you want? People considering a career as a first responder to know, first and foremost, it's very admirable position. It's a big burden you're taking on your shoulders to scrap on that uniform. Be it a police officer, Corrections firefighter, whatever encompasses. Your first responder role on the law enforcement side. You know, it is, it's a very tough position. You're going to be working nights. It's weekends. You're going to miss birthdays anniversaries kids events, graduations, holidays. No be prepared that you know, your life is going to change both with what your schedule is. But also what you're going to see how people are going to interact with you. You're going to have to develop a little bit of a thick skin because you're going to see people at their worst. When something goes bad, that's when you're going to be called. And unfortunately, a lot of times, you may not be the person that they want to see. You could be yelled at spit at Beyond, you know, viral that this, you know, against law enforcement. So you have to develop a thick skin to that aspect of it. But you also have to realize you need to take care of your mental health and don't hold all that in. You need to be willing to talk to people be open but it's a great profession. And it's very admirable. If you're going to go down that road, I loved it. Especially at ATF, 26 years. Their our agency was not very liked by a lot of individuals, but I loved everything I did. And I think it's a great profession that you can get into and just read a lot about it into a lot of research on where you would like to go."

Criminal justice professionals need to familiarize themselves with the laws and regulations related to search and seizures, Miranda warnings, interviewing individuals, traffic stops, state and local laws, and any internal policies or procedures. It is important to stay up-to-date on any changes in the law or court rulings that may affect their work.
 
Transcript: "What are the most important laws and regulations that criminal justice professionals need to be familiar with? Well, I think there's a wide variety of laws that law enforcement professionals need to be familiar with. First and foremost, you need to know the laws that pertain to how you can do your work. You need to know all the laws regarding search and seizures. You need to know the laws, what is required for filing for an arrest warrant. You need to know the laws as relates to Miranda warning and interviewing individuals. You need to know the laws regarding traffic stops and what you can and cannot do. All those govern what you can do as a law enforcement professional on what you're going to do every day in doing your work. And then compounded with that, you need to know your state and local laws. These may vary within your jurisdiction, what you're able to enforce, what you can't enforce, what are the policies and procedures if you want to do a search warrant or arrest warrant or do interviews. You may have internal policies and procedures that tie into those laws. So the biggest thing is you need to keep current and abreast on what's happening. Just because you went through the academy and you went through what the Miranda warning is and how to get a search warrant and search and seizure laws, things change. There could be court rulings that come out. So you need to keep abreast of those, keep reading, keep doing research because the last thing you want to do is do something that you thought you were legally justified to do and then you wind up in a trick bag and found out that you did something illegal. So you just want to make sure you're keeping abreast of all the rules and regulations that are within your area because you want to keep yourself safe and make sure you're doing it the way you're supposed to."

We focus on identifying and removing the small numbers of individuals responsible for most gun violence in a community. We use ballistic technologies to identify how many guns were used at a scene and to determine links between shootings, which will help us identify the trigger pullers and get them off the streets quickly.
 
Transcript: "What types of crimes do you deal with on a regular basis? Well, what we're mainly focused on right now is firearms violence. Trying to identify those individuals, we like to refer to them as the trigger pullers, who are out there causing havoc in communities. These are the individuals that they're wrapped up in maybe narcotics trafficking, or a gang activity, or it's just a retaliatory shooting. Somebody got shot at, so the first thing they're going to do is get a gun and shoot back. Or somebody was disrespected or cut off in traffic. So unfortunately, a lot of times they'll just pick up a gun and try to retaliate. What we try to do and what we're focusing on are those small numbers of individuals in a community that are responsible for a vast majority of your shootings. We've seen studies and studies and different crime statistics that 80% of your shootings are done by about 10% to 15% of the individuals. So if you've got 200 shootings in a community, you don't have 200 individuals that are doing the shooting. You probably got 10% to 15% that are involved in a vast majority of those shootings. And the sooner you can identify one and remove them, you're able to immediately have a direct impact on reducing gun violence in that community. So that's what we're focused in on is trying to identify those individuals. And right now we're working with the ballistic technologies, looking at the spent cartridge casings that are recovered from scenes. And with our technology, Ballistics IQ, we're able to identify how many guns were used at a scene. And then with our rapid ballistics, we're able to determine links between shootings, which will help us identify those trigger pullers and get them off the streets quicker and hence making that area safer."

My advice to my younger self would be to slow down, take in all the good and bad experiences, and use them to your advantage. Set goals for yourself, but don't try to reach them too quickly. Make sure you have the knowledge, skills, abilities and attitude that you need before advancing.
 
Transcript: "If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be? That's a good question. I would say the piece of advice that I wish I had would be slow down. At work, I loved being at ATF, spent 26 years there, but I wish my younger self, my older self, could have told my younger self, slow down. Everybody, I was trying to do the cases as quickly and as good as I can so I could get on to the next one. And then in the federal government, once you're in a grade series for so long, you move to the next one and then you can compete. I was always looking for that next step. I always wanted to get that next promotion, that next advancement. And at times, I think if I would have slowed down a little bit, make sure I learned everything I needed to in that position, that duty, that task I was doing, and then take that to help me in that next position, that position that I'm looking for or competing for. Now, I wish there was one thing that I would have done more of is taking time, absorbed it. One thing I like to say now is be a sponge. Whatever position you're in, what agency you're doing, whatever task you're in, slow down, absorb everything. And by absorbing, absorb the good and the bad. Because you wanna absorb that good so you can emulate that. But you also wanna absorb the bad stuff that's happening around you and say, you know what, I don't want this. You can squeeze that sponge and that bad stuff will fall away. So you wanna learn from the good things that happen, you wanna learn from the bad things that happen, you wanna learn from your mistakes. But overall, I think just set goals for yourself, but don't try to reach them too quickly. Make sure that you're advancing, but also make sure you've got the knowledge, skills, and abilities, and the mental attitude that you need."