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Board of Directors

Randy Sutton

Founder & Chair of the Board
Lieutenant Randy Sutton (Ret.) is a distinguished figure in the law enforcement community. With 30+ years of service, he brings a wealth of expertise to the table.

Sutton founded the Wounded Blue as a means to support injured and disabled law enforcement officers. As the Chair of the Board of Directors, he leads initiatives aimed at providing assistance and resources to those who have sacrificed for the safety of others.

In addition to his contributions in law enforcement, Sutton is a prolific author, and his insights have earned him appearances in movies and TV shows, solidifying his reputation as the "voice of American law enforcement." 

Jennie Hill

Executive Director
Jennie Hill has been a part of TWB since its inception in 2018. She is passionate about advocating for injured officers after her own on-duty injury as a police officer left her with the reality of what so many injured officers deal with: the feeling of abandonment, loss of a career, dealing with the effects of multiple critical incidents, PTSD, Worker's Comp, EEOC, and having to navigate a new "norm."

Barron is the TWB Peer Support Ambassador pup and Jennie’s own service dog. He is dually trained in therapy and travels the country with Jennie helping other injured officers.

Bret Rawson

Executive Board Member, Vice President

As an attorney specializing in police-related matters, Bret Rawson represents many law enforcement officers in the Intermountain West. Additionally, he serves as a reserve police officer in a local municipality, taking pride in his service to the community of North Salt Lake. Mr. Rawson's law firm, Nelson Jones, PLLC, feels privileged to represent The Wounded Blue.

Betsy Brantner Smith

Executive Board Member, Secretary

Sgt. Betsy Brantner Smith (ret.) was a police officer for 29 years in the Chicago suburbs and is an internationally known law enforcement trainer, author and consultant. Betsy is married to Dave “JD Buck Savage” Smith and is the spokesperson for the National Police Association.


Giovanni Rocco

Executive Board Member, Treasurer

Retired officer and federal, covert operative of 30 years, Giovanni Rocco now contributes his time to developing mental health and reahab programs that are designed to engage and strengthen the law enforcement community. He is also the author of “Giovanni’s Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos” in which he details the years spent as an undercover FBI agent inside the American mafia.




Ron Coury

Board Member

Ron Coury, a former U.S. Marine, relocated to Las Vegas after his active duty stint ended in 1973. He recently released his autobiography, Tenacity, on Amazon. It describes his life as a youth in Brooklyn, New York, his military experience and many of the 20 businesses he founded or purchased throughout his Las Vegas residency in the last 47 years.

Christopher Darcy

Board Member

With over 32 years of law enforcement experience, Chris founded Fairfax Consulting Group, LLC., a consulting company that provides expert opinions, conducts evidence based investigations, and consults in public safety matters with clients across the United States. Undersheriff (Ret.) Christopher Darcy was second in command of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD). Chris has been at the forefront of leading change for the LVMPD in using force, duty to intervene, search warrant service pursuits, and in-custody deaths.

Michael Dichiaro

Board Member


Michael Dichiaro is the founder of Nevada Holdings. With 42 years of business experience under his belt, he has taken a special interest in the success of our Peer Support Teams.

Von Kliem

Board Member

With 30+ years in the criminal justice profession, Von worked as a civilian police officer, attorney, educator, and author. He was a senior policy attorney for Lexipol and is currently the CEO & Director of Consulting at Force Science. As a nationally recognized use-of-force expert, Von has presented training for the FBI LEEDS program, the U.S. Marshals, the American Counsel of Second Amendment Lawyers, the Use of Force Summit, the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigation Division, and countless local, state, and federal law enforcement officers, police executives, and attorneys. Von holds a Bachelor’s in Crime and Delinquency Studies, a Master’s in Criminal Justice Administration, a Law Degree (J.D.), and a Master’s in Law post-graduate degree (LL.M.). He is licensed to practice law in VA and KS.

John Krupinsky

Board Member

Sgt. John Krupinsky has been serving his community as a police officer for 40 years. He is the President of the Connecticut State Fraternal Order of Police and was the recipient of the FOX News Patriot Award.

Travis Yates

Board Member

With over 30 years of law enforcement experience with 27 years in supervision and management, Travis now conducts seminars on risk management, officer safety and leadership. He has have been thousands of law enforcement professionals across the globe including 46 states and 3 countries. The author of the best-selling book, “The Courageous Police Leader,” Travis has a Doctorate Degree in Strategic Leadership from Liberty University and graduated from the 227 th session of the FBI National Academy. His consulting and training in the area of leadership continues to push law enforcement to a mission focused-employee support model that significant enhances employee wellness.

Jason Schechterle

Board of Directors Member

Jason Schechterle is a retired Phoenix Police Officer and Homicide Investigator. Jason sustained life threatening burn injuries in the line of duty in 2001. He now travels the country as a keynote and motivational speaker. Jason also is co-host of the podcast, Badge Boys.




Jean Arrington

Board Member

Jean Arrington is an innovation leader with 38+ years of experience in healthcare and IT, having worked in both large private organizations and Fortune 100 companies. Throughout her career, she has designed and patented 30 analytic products and launched several leading-edge consumer health applications. Jean believes that passion for life and powerful insights are the keys to creating high-performance organizations and meaningful advancements. Outside of work, Jean enjoys hiking, biking, boating, and spending time with her family.

Advisory Council Committee

Anne Carpenter

Advisory Board Member

Anne K. Carpenter was the first female Colonel of the Nevada Highway Patrol. She is recently retired as Chief of the Parole and Probation Division after serving for 27 years.






David Edwards

Director of Spiritual Support and Advisory Board Member

David R. Edwards is employed as the Wellness Officer for the Monroe (MI) Department of Public Safety. He also serves as a Reserve Police Officer and Police Chaplain in SE Michigan. He is the Founder and President of Call for Backup®, a non-profit which focuses on mental wellness as well as suicide awareness and prevention for uniformed services personnel. He is a Certified Trauma Services Specialist and a member of the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress.

Jerome Turner

Advisory Board Member

Chief Jerome Turner began his public service career in 2006 with an executive security protection firm. He then transitioned to the Florida Department of Corrections as a Correctional Officer. Jerome became an officer with the City of Midway Florida Police Department. During his tenure with MPD, he achieved the rank of Chief of Police & Director of Public Safety. In 2016, Jerome relocated to Atlanta, Georgia and joined the Union City Georgia Police Department where he served as Public Information Officer and Assistant Training Commander In 2019, while on duty. Jerome was involved in a high-profile officer-involved shooting where he was shot 6 times. Jerome was subsequently able to return fire, fatally wounding the suspect. Jerome has overcome multiple surgeries, physical, mental and psychological therapy in order to return to duty. Although dealing with lifetime injuries, he continues his work for his agency and the community. Jerome has vowed to utilize his experience and line of duty injury to train and motivate his peers and those wishing to join the profession. Moreover, he specializes in how to overcome unique challenges in the profession when facing a line of duty injury or shooting; to include financial hardships, mental acumen, tactical retreat, suicide prevention and the W.I.N concept (Below 100 Trainer). Jerome has furthered his service to the profession in working with Law Enforcement Officers nationwide dealing with crisis and traumatic incidents by joining The Wounded Blue, as a peer support advocate and Advisory Board member. Jerome continues to serve his community as a law enforcement professional and maintains a family business alongside his wife and children.

Trevor Wilkins, Ph.D

Clinical Director
Trevor Wilkins served 15-years with law enforcement. He is now serving as a licensed, clinical counselor in the Lexington, KY area. He specializes in the symptoms related to trauma, depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Trevor is trained and experienced in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (at The Soldier Center), and Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (at Chicago REBT).

Directors

Tim Putney

Peer Support Director

Tim is currently a Sergeant at a Sheriff’s Office in North Texas. He has been in Law Enforcement for 16 years, working in Narcotics, K9 and Investigations. Tim believes it is important to help injured officers navigate life after a critical incident and walk alongside them through some of the hardest times. His personal experience includes his own on-duty injury in 2017, where he sustained severe spinal cord injuries and being forced out due to his injury by his Police Department he worked for at the time. Tim joined The Wounded Blue in 2022 because he believes advocating for injured officers is a priority. His wife, Chelsea is a part of the Spousal Peer Support team and has been on the team since 2021.

Lisa Ramsey

Ambassador Program Director

Lisa has served as a Texas Peace Officer for 36 years. She has served within the narcotics division (surveillance, undercover, intelligence, and open investigations), gang unit (gang enforcement and gang intelligence), backgrounds unit (new applicants), advanced training unit (instructor), patrol division, reality based training unit (axon cameras and tasers). She is a T7 paraplegic due to having been shot in the line of duty, but it hasn’t stopped her from serving. She serves on ADA Advisory Boards for DFW International Airport,, AT&T Stadium, Globe Life Field, and the remodel of Parkland Hospital. She additionally finds joy in serving several nonprofits as an ambassador for their programs. She has been with The Wounded Blue since graduating for 4 years. Beyond peer work, she also assists persons with ADA equipment, travel, doctors, therapies, and service dogs and finds it very rewarding to serve.

Richard Mack

Co-Director of Training

Lt. Richard Mack (ret.) was born and raised in New York City. He served a total of 26 years with the NYPD and last worked as a lieutenant at the NYPD’s elite Strategic Response Group. During the subsequent riots in 2020, he was assaulted and injured which resulted in his mandatory retirement from the police department. Rich has extensive experience in peer support, crisis counseling and police training. He was a 9/11 responder and has debriefed hundreds of police officers in trauma related matters over the past 24 years. Rich has a MA in Criminal Justice and was a 16-year adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal justice in New York. He also has various training in Critical Incident Stress management (CISM) and related disciplines. Rich has volunteered his time as a Peer Support Officer (PSO) with the Police Organization Providing Peer Assistance (POPPA) for over twenty years and has been volunteering for the Wounded Blue since 2021.

Troy Shuey

Co-Director of Training

Originally from Pennsylvania, Troy landed in Alaska thanks to the United States Air Force. After 8.5 years in the USAF as a Law Enforcement Specialist, he became a Deputy Sheriff in Campbell County, WY and then became an Alaska State Trooper where he retired after 20 years. He held many roles in his career, but the most important to him were that of Sgt and Peer Support Team Member. During his career, he had five work related surgeries, the last of which was a shoulder replacement. His injuries and related critical incidents eventually led him down a dark path, wondering what was going on. He did not want help because he did’t think he had a problem. Fellow peers showed him it was a walkable path and the light at the end of the tunnel was not a train coming at him. He realized that it’s OK to not be OK and it’s OK to ask for help. He is married to Kat Shuey, also a retired Alaska State Troopers with 34 years in Law Enforcement. She is a Wounded Blue Peer Team member as well. Troy has been an instructor in many areas during his career. His most recent instructor certifications are in Mental Health First Aid and ICISF Group and Individual Crisis Intervention. The last several years of his career were specifically dedicated to moving the Peer Support Team and Wellness within the Alaska State Troopers as the Wellness and Peer Support Coordinator. This enabled him to be able to fully research and assist on helping others to understand this career has costs we initially never fully understood, but you can retire healthy if you address those events and critical incidents in a healthy manner ahead of retirement.

Bob Bemis

Administrative Director

(Ret.) Sergeant Robert “Bob” Bemis retired in 2017 as a Supervisor in the Operational Training Division at the Pennsylvania State Police Academy in Hershey, PA. With over 30 years of law enforcement experience, Sgt. Bemis had assignments as a Patrol Trooper and Supervisor, a crime scene investigator, and as a long-time law enforcement trainer. He also served as a Military Policeman in the United States Marine Corps. In 2015, Bob sustained life altering injuries in the line of duty after being struck by a vehicle on an interstate highway.

John Dean Harper

Esq., Legal Counsel

The Wounded Blue’s outside General Counsel has extensive experience forming, advising and assisting with the operation of non-profit organizations, with a concentration in law enforcement associations. For over two decades, Harper was Chief General Counsel with the Las Vegas Police Protective Association Metro, Inc. (outside counsel the last five years) and has represented officers involved in over 350 critical incidents and officers injured in the line of duty.

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  • 3540 W Sahara Ave #451
  • Las Vegas, Nevada 89102
  • 833-TWB-TALK
  • (833-892-8255)
  • info@thewoundedblue.org
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