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In this episode of the Cops and Writers Podcast bonus series, retired Milwaukee Police Sergeant Patrick O'Donnell reads Chapter 31, "All-City Assist," from his upcoming book:

Police Stories: The Rookie Years - True Crime, Chaos, & Life as a Big City Cop

Rachel and Patrick are processing a routine arrest at District Five when the radio crackles to life: "245B, they're shooting at us! Send us more squads!"

It's Grace—Rachel's old partner—getting shot at in a gangway next to the Blues Oasis Tavern. The dispatcher opens the channel citywide: "Any squad, assist the officers. They are taking gunfire."

An all-city assist. Every cop drops everything and responds.

When Rachel and Patrick arrive, they find three dead bodies, cops returning fire in a gangway, and a suspect shooting at officers with a .357 Magnum. Inside the tavern, they clear a dark basement not knowing if someone is waiting to shoot them. When they come back upstairs, Patrick looks down and sees a sea of bullet casings—more than he'd ever seen in 25 years.

Three people are dead. Cops were almost killed. And a short blurb on the evening news.

All stories are real. Names and locations have been changed where necessary.

⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence, active shooter scenarios, and multiple deaths. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

🎧 This episode includes:

• What "all-city assist" means
• Grace's voice screaming over the radio: "They're shooting at us!"
• The suspect with a .357 Magnum, pretending to surrender while shooting at cops
• A bullet ricocheting off bricks and shattering a cop's glasses
• The Marine who calmly requested backup as if he was "ordering a pizza"
• Patrick tripping over the first body in the gutter
• Two dead victims inside—one still holding his Budweiser
• Auditory exclusion, tunnel vision, and the fight-or-flight response
• Rachel and Patrick clearing a dark basement: "You're going too fast!" "You're going too slow!"
• A sea of bullet casings covered the floor
• "Swede" tearing the suspect off a fence and crushing his collarbone
• Choir practice at Rookies—cops using popcorn and glasses to replay the scene
• Going home to a family who had no idea what had just happened
• A short blurb on the evening news—three dead, but the public never knew the full story

📘 About the Book:
Police Stories: The Rookie Years - True Crime, Chaos, & Life as a Big City Cop is a true crime memoir chronicling Patrick O'Donnell's early career as a big city cop during Milwaukee's crack wars in the 1990s.

Book Release: Mid-March 2026
Book Update: The manuscript is with the editor! Pre-orders are LIVE on Amazon. The book is currently a #1 New Release in the Biographies of Law Enforcement category.

🔗 Pre-order now: Search "Police Stories: The Rookie Years Patrick O'Donnell" on Amazon or check the link below.

📧 Contact Patrick:
Email: sarge@copsandwriters.com
Website: copsandwriters.com
Facebook Group: Cops and Writers

👍 If this story stuck with you:
Subscribe, leave a review, and share with someone who can handle the truth about what cops see behind the badge.

New chapters every Wednesday night.

Visit the Cops & Writers Website!

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Welcome back everyone for the conclusion to my interview with retired Central Florida Sheriff Deputy Michael Dilks.

Mike is a retired Deputy Sheriff and Police Officer with 23 years with experience in patrol, investigations, and undercover narcotics.

Mike was a member of SWAT, the United States Marshals Fugitive Task Force, the DEA Narcotics Task Force and supervised a Street Crimes Unit.

Prior to his law enforcement career, Mike served three years in the United States Army as an Airborne Infantryman.

Michael is the mastermind behind the highly successful and controversial meme page @CopvilleOG and the Lock’d Up with Copville Podcast.

Michael is also the co-host and co-owner of The Anti-Hero Broadcast.

Mike was involved in and was 100% invested in his career, especially doing undercover narcotics work, and it cost him his marriage and sobriety. Mike’s personal rock bottom, that included being the focus of an FBI investigation and his best friend and Sheriff turning his back on him.

He rose above all of it and has turned his energy into a successful podcast and creative content career.

Please enjoy this eye opening, and informative interview with someone who has risen from the ashes.

In today’s episode, we discuss:

· The bitter end to his law enforcement career.

· His wife and daughter working for the crocked Sheriff who forced him to retire.

· What can be done to retore law enforcement today?

· What real community policing looks like.

· Cops fall in love with the job and don’t know what to do when the job doesn’t love them back.

· Where his entrepreneurial spirit came from.

· Copville, The Antihero Podcast, and other businesses. How he balance’s work and family?

· The Antihero broadcast.

· Mike has been exposed to a lot of good and bad stuff. Has it pushed him away or towards God or a higher power?

All of this and more on today’s episode of the Cops and Writers podcast.

Connect with Michael Dilks:
Instagram: @copvilleog
Podcast Instagram: @the_antihero_podcast
Website: www.copvilleog.com
YouTube: / @copvilleog

Visit the Cops & Writers Website!

Check out my newest book! Police Stories: The Rookie Years - True Crime, Chaos & Life as a Big City Cop!

Support the show

Send a text

In this episode of the Cops and Writers Podcast bonus series, retired Milwaukee Police Sergeant Patrick O'Donnell reads Chapter 28, "Wow! That's Realistic!" from his upcoming book:

Police Stories: The Rookie Years - True Crime, Chaos, & Life as a Big City Cop

It's 2:00 AM at District Five. Patrick and his partner Rachel are processing an arrest when a bloodcurdling scream echoes from the front lobby: "Help! He's been shot!"

What they find is a dead body with a gunshot wound to the head, a grieving girlfriend, and—behind the victim—District Five's crime prevention display: a casket surrounded by yellow crime scene tape for Police Week.

Hours later, after the body is removed, but the blood remains, the captain walks through and delivers the perfect line: "Damn, that is one realistic crime scene display!"

All stories are real. Names and locations have been changed where necessary.

🎧 This episode includes:

• Why Rachel didn't want to work with Patrick (Grace told her everything)
• The silent treatment shift: eight hours, no breaks, zero conversation
• A running gunfight between two couples that ends in District Five's lobby
• The anti-drunk driving display with a real casket and crime scene tape
• "Oh, the irony of it all."
• How dark humor helps cops survive the worst nights

📘 About the Book:
Police Stories: The Rookie Years - True Crime, Chaos, & Life as a Big City Cop is a true crime memoir chronicling Patrick O'Donnell's early career as a big city cop during Milwaukee's crack wars in the 1990s.

Book Release: Mid-March 2026
Book Update: The manuscript is with the editor! Pre-orders are LIVE on Amazon. The book is currently a #1 New Release in the Biographies of Law Enforcement category.

🔗 Pre-order now: Search "Police Stories: The Rookie Years Patrick O'Donnell" on Amazon or check the link below.

📧 Contact Patrick:
Email: sarge@copsandwriters.com
Website: copsandwriters.com
Facebook Group: Cops and Writers

👍 If this story stuck with you:
Subscribe, leave a review, and share with someone who can handle the truth about what cops see behind the badge.

🎙️ Next week: Chapter 31, "All-City Assist" - Three dead bodies, cops taking fire, and a sea of bullet casings at the Blues Oasis. The most intense chapter in the book.

New chapters every Wednesday night.

Visit the Cops & Writers Website!

Support the show