Murders to Music: Crime Scene to Music Scene (Streamline Events and Entertainment)
Come on a ride along with a Veteran Homicide Detective as the twists and turns of the job suddenly end his career and nearly his life; discover how something wonderful is born out of the Darkness. Embark on the journey from helping people on their worst days, to bringing life, excitement and smiles on their best days.
Murders to Music: Crime Scene to Music Scene (Streamline Events and Entertainment)
SnapShot: "When the Hero Who Saved Me Couldn't Save Himself": Steve Redmond
Sometimes our greatest teachers leave us with lessons that outlive them. Ten years ago, during the darkest chapter of my life, I sat in a classroom in Seattle as a depression-riddled patrol officer going through the motions. Fighting demons I couldn't name, failing as a husband, father, and officer—I was checking nearly every box on a suicide risk assessment without realizing it.
Then a tall, imposing motor cop in a perfect uniform took the stage. Instead of war stories or tactical advice, he shared something infinitely more valuable: his vulnerability. Steve Redmond, a Seattle PD veteran, detailed his battle with PTSD, his family falling apart, and the night his own SWAT teammates negotiated his surrender from a garage where he held himself hostage. As he spoke, I realized with startling clarity—he was describing my life. When he displayed that fateful checklist of warning signs, I mentally checked 18 of 20 boxes. That moment of recognition became my turning point.
Years later, I sought to thank the man who unknowingly saved my life, only to discover the cruelest irony. Steve Redmond, who founded Code 4 Northwest, a crisis line for first responders staffed by their peers who understand the unique pressures of the job, died by suicide on December 31, 2022. The man who created lifelines for others ultimately couldn't hold onto his own when the darkness returned. His legacy reminds us that even our heroes fight battles we cannot see, and that vulnerability isn't weakness—it's the ultimate form of courage. If you're struggling, please know that seeking help isn't failure. It's the first brave step toward tomorrow. For those in law enforcement especially: your pain matters, your life matters, and there are people who understand exactly what you're going through.
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Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to a Murders to Music Snapshot. I want to talk just for a few minutes about content for this show. You know, content from this show comes in a bunch of different forms. Sometimes I meet or see people or hear of people that I want to bring on the show to do an interview, because I think that their message has something that will either be educational, entertaining or provide value to my listeners. So I'll reach out to them and try to bring them on. Other times I try to think about personal things in my life that I think folks would get something out of and would be beneficial. Right Now, I believe that my pain wasn't given to me without a purpose, so I try to find things in my life that I can talk about, maybe lessons learned, not just a tale of woes, but something that people can actually absorb from the lessons that I've learned through the experiences that I've had and whether that's on the job or off the job, I've shared both intimate and personal things and been very transparent in my entire life. Sometimes I will hear about people, for example Shaquille O'Neal. I want to bring Shaquille O'Neal onto this show and I'm going to do everything in my power to locate him and make that happen. Shaquille O'Neal is a huge proponent of law enforcement and he's a huge proponent of mental health in law enforcement, and I think that would be awesome to have on the show, and I think it'd be great to talk to him about the NBA and the effects that had on his mental health, because you know that grind cannot be easy, right? So it's a different perspective. Well, today I was thinking about a situation in my life and it was something that I could share, that I think would be beneficial, and that took me back to a training class that I went to in 2012. In 2012, I was a patrol officer, I was a drug recognition expert or a DRE, and there was a national conference being held in Seattle Washington. Now I want to back up.
Speaker 1:In 2010, 11, and 12, I was in a very depressed place. I was suicidal, I was scared to get help. I had been diagnosed with clinical depression, my family was falling apart. I was failing as a husband, a father, a leader, a Christian, a cop. I was getting into fights every single night when I went to work, and all of these things were affecting me. But, as we do, we put on our brave face and we try to pretend like there's nothing wrong and we just keep charging forward, even though we're fighting those demons inside. So I went to this DRE conference and I'm sitting through some different classes about how-tos and one of the classes at the end of the day was about mental health and I thought, well, I'm in a position where maybe I should hear this. So I go to the class and when I go to the class there's a guy up there teaching and I don't remember his name, but he was a poster child for law enforcement. You know he was six foot three, 230 pounds, v-shaped, chiseled, 45, 50-year-old, 45-year-old dude. He was a motor cop. He had on a perfect uniform, he had on tall motor boots, seattle Police Department. He was just a good-looking poster child for law enforcement. And he starts telling his story. And he tells his story and he says you know, I've been a cop for X amount of years.
Speaker 1:During my time as a police officer, I've battled with PTSD and depression. I started turning to the bottle, I started drinking, I started abusing my family in multiple different ways and it got to the point, you know where I was suicidal. I was at my garage. I was holding myself hostage. I had let my family out. I was on the SWAT team, but my SWAT team members were actually on the outside trying to negotiate with me to get me to come out. He's like, and I was embarrassed and I just wanted to end my life, he said, but I finally surrendered. I came out, I got help. Life, he said, but I finally surrendered. I came out, I got help, I was able to get back into the line of duty, I was able to mend things with my family, with my two kids, and I was able just to become a productive member again. And I'm here to tell you guys that no matter what you're going through, there is another tomorrow and in law enforcement it's going to affect you in ways that nobody else can understand unless you're actually doing the job. And suicide prevention suicide is preventable.
Speaker 1:And he put this list up on the board and it says go through this checklist and say there was 20 items on it. And it was like if you are drinking, if you are having affairs, if you are fighting at work, if you are separating and isolating and isolating from friends and family, if you're avoiding church, all these things, out of all those things I was able to check off 18 out of 20 of those items and that told me that was my indicator that there was something wrong. And I left that class that day and I thought I am so thankful that he had the experience that he had and brought this information to me. That was the day I recognized that I was the problem and it wasn't my family, it wasn't my friends, it wasn't work, it was me and that as a result of that day, I started to take an inward look at myself and trying to find healing. And as a result of that class and as a result of that spreadsheet that he put up there, I went and sought some counseling and tried to better myself. And for years I have always been thankful for that man. I've always been thankful for that man and I've always been thankful for his class that he put on that day and his words of wisdom that he poured into me personally. He was speaking to me that day in that crowd of 400 people and if nobody else got the message, I did.
Speaker 1:So today I'm thinking I'm going to find him, you know, and one of the things that he did is he started this thing called Code 4. Code 4 in the police world, if you don't know means we're cool, everything is good, I don't need any help, I'm solid. Well, he started a Code 4 program and it was essentially law enforcement and firefighters crisis line. But the people that answered the phone are trained law enforcement and firefighters crisis line. But the people that answered the phone are trained law enforcement and firefighters, so they know what you're going through. So anybody in the state that was mentally having some issues could call and talk to another firefighter or another cop and explain where they were at to get out. This was such this is still such a cool program. So this guy formed this program and that these are the things that I remember about him. So today I thought I'm going to have Steve on the show and I'm going to tell him the impact that he made in my world.
Speaker 1:So I start looking and I can't remember the name of code four, but I use AI, chat, gbt, and I put in some parameters and it comes up that this is a peer to peer mental health crisis line called code four. So code four had a phone number and when I read through it I had some I had a little bit of information on there, but it wasn't a ton pointing me towards this guy, but I'm like this has got to be it. So I call code four and I'm like, hey, there's no crisis. So I go through the whole thing with this guy and I'm like, hey, in 2012, I went to this DRE school. There was a motor cop there who taught this class about mental health and suicide prevention. And he was it was Seattle PD.
Speaker 1:And the guy cut me off and he says, yeah, that is, uh, that's Steve, that's Steve you're talking about. And I'm like, cool. I said, can you please give me an email or a phone number or an email address or something for this dude so I can talk to him? And he's like, um, no, you're not going to be able to get ahold of Steve, he's no longer with us. And I said, well, uh, no longer with us, as in passed away, or no longer with us as in no longer with the organization. And he said Steve is dead. And I'm like, okay, I said well, thank you for your time. And hung up the phone. So then you know just the way he said it. I had to start looking and again, turning to chat GBT, I found this. I found this the Code 4 Northwest was founded by Steve Redmond in 2012. It's a non-profit organization that's got 24-7 crisis line for first responders in Washington state.
Speaker 1:As the founding president, he would share his story of PTSD. He would share his story of peer support, training, education and responses, all trying to reduce the stigma of PTSD and assisting colleagues and their families in their worst times of need. Went on to say that on December 31st 2022, steve tragically passed away by committing suicide. Okay, he started his law enforcement career in 1989 as foot patrol, bike patrol and then finally, motors. He was honored by the Washington House of Representatives for his advocacy towards PTSD addiction and peer support.
Speaker 1:I don't know what happened. He saved my life and it kills me that he took his own. The country lost a good man. He lost somebody that literally lost the fight and the battle with the demons inside him that this job puts in us and I just want to say this goes out to Steve Redman. Steve, thank you so much for what you did and for sharing your message and pouring your message into me that day. You literally saved my life in the moment did and for sharing your message and pouring your message into me that day. You literally saved my life in the moment you allowed me to see things for reality, as to what they really are, and thank you. That is a murders to music snapshot.
