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Benjamin Bliven has served as the chief of police for Wausau Police Department since 2018. He has served in law enforcement since 1999. Chief Bliven earned a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from UW – Eau Claire and a Master’s degree in Human Resources Training and Development from Seton Hall University. He is also a graduate of the 268th session of the FBI National Academy and the 251st session of the Northwestern School of Police Staff and Command.

Amy Morgan, MSC, CFRC(D), TECC-LEO, is the founder and executive training director of Academy Hour, a training provider offering mental health and leadership courses to law enforcement, first response teams and public safety personnel. She is pursuing a Ph.D. in psychology, specializing in trauma and disaster relief, has earned a master’s degree in counseling and holds a bachelor of science in behavioral sciences. She previously served as the training officer for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. She is TCCC (Tactical Combat Casualty Care)/LEFR (Law Enforcement First Responder) certified.

Jason Potts is Director of the Department of Public Safety director for the City of Las Vegas, which provides the public with law enforcement and detention services. This department manages the city jail and includes the deputy city marshals (who provide public safety at city parks and facilities) and animal protection services.

Director Potts started his policing career with the Vallejo Police Department in Northern California, where he moved up the ranks to captain, leading the Operations Bureau, Investigations Bureau and Emergency Services Unit. Before his career in municipal policing, he worked for U.S. Customs and Border Protection as a border patrol agent.

During his career at the Vallejo Police Department, Potts worked in various capacities, including patrol, crime suppression, investigations, SWAT, field training, internal affairs, the FBI’s Solano County Violent Gang Task Force and the Oakland Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force. He also is a military reserve special agent with the Coast Guard Investigative Service.

Potts earned a master’s degree in Criminology, Law, and Society from the University of California, Irvine. He has a bachelor’s degree in Management from St. Mary’s College in California. He holds a certificate of completion from the Police Executive Research Forum, Senior Management Institute of Police. He is a graduate of the California Peace Officers Standards and Training Command College and is a National Institute of Justice Law Enforcement Advancing Data and Science Program alumni with the U.S. Department of Justice.

An advocate for evidence-based policing, Potts serves on the Executive Board of the American Society of Evidence-Based Policing, is a member of the Council on Criminal Justice (violent crime working group), and is a National Policing Institute fellow. He has been a strong proponent of officer safety and wellness, data-driven patrol deployments, community engagement, practitioner-led research, innovative practices and technology. In June 2019, he was recognized nationally at George Mason University for his collective efforts in advocating and implementing evidence-based policing.

Detective Sergeant Michael O’Brien spent three years in the 101st Military Police Company at Fort Campbell and five years in the 344th Military Police Company (USAR) in New Haven before joining the Brookfield (Connecticut) Police Department in 1997. He was promoted to sergeant in 2004 and to detective sergeant in 2009. He is an avid hiker and backpacker, a traffic crash reconstructionist, firearms instructor and member of Mensa. Contact him at MOBrien@BrookfieldCT.gov.

Cliff Couch is a police chief in East Tennessee. He’s also led two departments in Kansas and served as a deputy with the Leon County (Tallahassee) Sheriff’s Office in Florida. He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminology and psychology, and a master’s degree in public administration from Florida State University. He’s also a veteran of the United States Marine Corps. Follow him on Twitter at CliftonDCouch or on his blog, Lifeofalawman.com.

James Careless is an award-winning freelance writer who covers the public safety sector. His articles have been published in fire, EMS and law enforcement publications across North America.

Roy E. Alston, Ph.D., is a retired Major of Police and served 14 years with the Dallas Police Department in Dallas, Texas and one year with the Frisco Police Department in Frisco, Texas. In his last role with the Dallas Police Department, Roy was the night commander responsible for planning, resourcing and coordinating the efforts of the evening and overnight patrol officers in the Northwest and North Central patrol divisions of the city.

Roy is a 1989 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point where he earned a BS in leadership. He served in the US Army as a commissioned officer with the 82nd Airborne Division and served in combat with the 1st of the 319th Field Artillery Regiment during the first Gulf War. Roy is a graduate of the US Army’s Ranger School, Airborne School, Jungle School, Field Artillery Officer’s Basic Course, and the Field Artillery Officer’s Advance Course. Roy earned his MBA from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2003 and received his doctorate in management with a specialization in leadership and organizational change from Walden University in 2010. Dr. Alston is a graduate of The Bill Blackwood Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas (LEMIT) and the Police Executive Research Forum’s (PERF) Senior Management Institute for Police (SMIP).

Roy currently holds a leadership position as the vice president of security with CHRISTUS Health, where he is responsible for armed and unarmed security officers domestically and internationally. He is a co-founder of diversitypop which is a go-anywhere, app-based training program designed to help organizations grow diversity awareness and inclusion instincts in an individualized, easy and self-paced way. Dr. Alston is the author of the books The Leader’s Compass for Law Enforcement Professionals, RadioActive Leadership: How to Pursue Excellence and Positively Influence the Behavior of Others, Tarnished Honor: An Insider’s Look at Police Occupational Deviance.

Chris Masilon has been in law enforcement for over 20 years and is currently a lieutenant for a large municipal police department in southern California. He has worked many specialized assignments including gangs and homicide and served on his SWAT team as an officer and sergeant and now as a commander.

Chris is passionate about high-level human performance and runs a business where he coaches people to improve their personal and professional potential. As part of this passion, he raced mountain bikes professionally and finished third at the USA Triathlon Long Course National Championships, earning him a spot to race for Team USA.

Chris has over 1,000 hours of personal, professional and leadership development training, which he uses on a daily basis to make a difference for his people, his department and his profession.

Captain Mike McHenry began his career with the San Clemente Police Department as a patrol officer in 1989. He was assigned a police canine in 1992 and transitioned to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) in 1993. With the OCSD, Captain McHenry’s duty assignments included patrol, custody, information technology, and juvenile and adult general investigations. Captain McHenry promoted to lieutenant in 2010 and to captain in 2021, during which time he served as a jail watch commander, IGSA contract manager and transportation bureau commander. Captain McHenry is presently assigned as the bureau commander for the Central Justice Center courthouse.

Captain McHenry has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from National University and an associate degree from Irvine Valley College. He is a graduate of the Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute Class #157 and California POST Command College Class #66. Captain McHenry is an associate instructor for Santa Ana College and has lectured at several national, state and local conferences.