Stephen Sumner

I am a retired Police Narcotics Detective who worked for the Los Angeles Police Department from 1970 to 1993. It was a time of excitement and chaos. I was born in 1947 in a small all white community in Indiana. I joined the Army and served in Viet Nam as a 2nd lieutenant in the 25th Infantry Division where I experienced firsthand the horrors of war. A year after leaving the Army I found myself in Los Angeles freshly divorced and in need of a job. The Los Angeles Police Department was the answer. I spent many years as an undercover narcotics detective where many of my ideas about life were tested and many times changed. My books reflect some of the thoughts that were a result of those times. I also followed up my LAPD career by working as a detective for a Texas County Sheriff’s Office and went on to be a Director of Security for a Texas Improvement District. I have an Associates of Arts degree in Sociology, a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration and a Master’s Degree in Public Management. The reason I mention the degrees is to highlight my attempts to understand and to interact with the public. I have spent almost 4 decades working with the public. Besides the academic degrees I hold many certifications. I have been certified to teach in both California and Texas police academies. I hold the certification of Master Police Officer in the State of Texas. I taught as an adjunct professor for four years at a local college. I have plenty of certificates and degrees on my “me” wall at home. Classified as a product of the baby boomer generation I now find I have time to express my opinions and express my thoughts about the past and the future.. Once a policeman or a COP (COP stands for Constable on Patrol) you are always a Policeman or COP. Even if you are retired or not working for an agency: you are still the police (PoPo) or COP.

Well as time has gone by and I am many years retired. I am rarely referred to as the PoPo anymore I am called Pops. A name I got from my sons. I found a lot of thoughts going through my mind and by the use of a Blog (Popsontheporch.com) and I can express my thoughts without fear of losing my job or persecution from the public.

I would like to say that I am open-minded and fair, but that really is only in the eyes of the beholder. My life experiences have led me to be prejudiced on some matters and to be completely wrong on others. I now feel comfortable enough to write books and I hope you'll enjoy reading what I write.

Pops