Good day, my friends! Welcome to another episode of America’s Criminologist. I’m Dr. Currie Myers, bringing you the latest insights and developments in criminal justice from across the United States.
My Podcast is brought to you by the Howard Wagyu Ranch. Raised on a family ranch in Central Kansas, Howard Wagyu serves Wagyu beef with the highest quality and excellence. Just go to their website Howard Wagyu! Now featuring Wagyu Tallow Lotion!
If you’re looking for more, I’m hosting two additional podcasts you might enjoy. The first is The St. Michaels Group Podcast at stmichaelsgroup.substack.com, where we focus on restoring the pillars of faith, family, and formation. The second is a gripping exploration of criminal psychology called Wired to Kill, available at wiredtokill.substack.com. This one dives into real criminal cases, laced with my professional insights into what may have been going on in the mind of the killer. Both these podcasts are also available on Spotify!
🎙️This Tuesday, drive time live on the Lou Desmond & Company, I was the guest host for Lou and my guest was Kevin Murray, retired KCPD officer turned law enforcement wellness crusader. After 26 years on the force, Kevin traded his badge for a barbell and is now on a mission to save 1,000 cops from the “Dead at 57” pool. As the Wellness Coordinator for Clay County, MO, he’s already helped dozens of officers shed pounds, reverse diabetes, and kick meds to the curb — proving that fit cops are fierce cops. Simple. Sustainable. Successful. That’s the coaching model Kevin and his wife Tara are using to transform lives across the badge. Don’t miss this inspiring story of second acts and saving lives! Next week we will talk mental health and wellbeing with Coach Mark Potter, a retired long time college basketball coach who’s organization D2UP.org helps bring attention to this serious epidemic.
And speaking of KMET, I’m proud to announce that starting Tuesday, August 5, 2025, KMET 1490-AM/FM 98.1, the California Inland Empire's premier ABC News Radio affiliate, America's Criminologist with Dr. Currie Myers will be featured live on the Tuesday afternoon lineup at 1:00 PM Pacific. The show will air immediately following The Dave Ramsey Show and just before The Kevin McCullough Show, delivering compelling discussions on crime, criminal justice, and public policy to an estimated 3.5 million listeners in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. All shows are also streamed both audio and video for use across social media and the world wide net! So, tune in to KMET every Tuesday at 1:00 PM Pacific for America's Criminologist with Dr. Currie Myers, your new destination for hard-hitting discussions on crime and justice. So I will see you on weekly starting August 5th!
I am a breakout speaker on August 10th at the Salina Diocese Eucharistic Conference in Hays, Kansas at the Gross Coliseum, were I will be speaking on faith, family, and formation. So check out their website for more information and see you August 10th!
💥 New Policy Brief
Policy Brief | Organized Digital Payment Fraud
Organized crime evolves with technology, and in 2025, digital payment scams have supplanted traditional bank robberies as the most prolific threat to American households and small businesses. The FTC reported $12.5 billion in payment fraud losses nationwide in 2024—a 25% increase over the previous year—even a smaller, populated state like Kansas logged 15,000 reports and $59 million in losses (FTC, 2025). These figures underscore an urgent need for a comprehensive policy framework to empower law enforcement, regulators, and financial institutions to collaborate effectively against transnational scammers exploiting digital anonymity. Payment scams have evolved into sophisticated, transnational criminal enterprises that leverage digital platforms and exploit human vulnerabilities at scale. The TRAPS Act, a current bi-partisan piece of legislation in Congress presents an opportunity for rigorous, evidence-based framework designed to fortify interagency collaboration, optimize resource allocation, and integrate private‑sector capabilities—all within a fiscally responsible model that upholds principles of accountability and stewardship of public funds. By consolidating federal regulators, state and local law enforcement entities, and industry stakeholders under a unified strategy, the Act should deliver measurable reductions in monetary losses, enhance victim restitution, and dismantle organized fraud networks. Implementing a coordinated, proactive posture is essential to safeguarding consumer confidence and financial integrity across the United States. See my full Policy Brief | Organized Digital Payment Fraud
Speaking of this Policy Brief it is always nice to receive a shoutout from a U.S. Senator on my work. Thanks Senator Crapo!
💥 New Policy Brief
The Illicit Vape Crisis — A Criminological, Economic, and Public Health Imperative
Vaping, once promoted as a tobacco harm-reduction tool, is now a national security concern. Unregulated vape products, many produced overseas and trafficked through cartel-controlled networks, now dominate illicit trade pipelines. As the National Sheriffs’ Association warned in its 2024 resolution, the combination of chemically unstable products, youth-targeted marketing, and organized crime infiltration necessitates urgent federal intervention. The illicit vape crisis is not just a regulatory blind spot—it is a metastasizing threat that combines public health negligence, economic destabilization, and organized crime. With Chinese manufacturers flooding the market, Mexican cartels exploiting border vulnerabilities, and American youth becoming the primary consumer targets, this issue demands urgency. Just as America responded to the crack epidemic, meth labs, and fentanyl pipelines, so must we rise to this new challenge with equal resolve. The time to act is now. See my full policy brief here.
Speaking of this Policy Brief, Police 1 Magazine published my Op Ed version of this policy paper.
💥This week’s Riff !
I want to speak plainly to the American people about something that should chill us all to the bone: the ongoing criminal investigation of two former heads of our most powerful government agencies—former CIA Director John Brennan and former FBI Director James Comey.
Let me be clear—this isn’t about left or right. It’s about right and wrong. It’s about whether the institutions charged with protecting our nation have crossed a line that no free society can afford to tolerate. The Justice Department’s probe into these men—one referred for potential perjury, the other under scrutiny for deeply troubling actions—raises one critical question: can we trust the very institutions designed to protect us?
Let’s remember what the FBI and CIA are supposed to be: nonpartisan defenders of our nation, not political weapons for whichever ideology holds the reins. These agencies are built on a foundation of oath—an oath to the Constitution, not to any party, platform, or political leader. That oath is sacred. And when it’s violated, the entire architecture of public trust begins to crumble.
Trust and accountability are not luxuries in these roles—they are the currency. Without them, the entire justice and intelligence systems collapses into suspicion, cynicism, and social decay. I’ve served at all levels of law enforcement and I know firsthand that when an officer—or a director—violates public trust, it stains the badge for all of us.
This is about formation—about how leaders are shaped before they ever wear a badge or raise their right hand. When the formative pillars of faith, family, and virtue are abandoned, what’s left? Men like Brennan and Comey—have achieved high levels of office, but are rudderless. They were skilled at politics, but untethered in service to Country. What we’re left with is the “Feral Man”—untamed by virtue, unanchored by truth, and driven by ideology over oath.
The Russia collusion debacle, which they helped foment and now we learn was directed by the President of the United States at that time, Barack Obama, was not just an error—it was a willful distortion of truth. It distracted this nation, vilified innocent people, and weaponized national security for political gain. That is unacceptable.
I say this with reverence for the many honorable men and women in the FBI and CIA who wake up every day to serve with integrity. But when those at the top violate their oath, it puts everyone at risk—agents on the ground, informants in the field, and citizens at home. These agencies must be purified, re-centered, and recommitted to their constitutional duties. I believe that the current leadership at the FBI and CIA will do that. And it’s not a reflection of the men and women in the field at these agencies that work hard for the America people everyday. But it is obvious that there is a deep state in government that needs rooted out.
Political neutrality isn't optional—it is essential. And accountability isn't a punishment—it's a moral necessity. If we’re going to restore the people's trust, we must start by demanding transparency, enforcing oaths, and returning to virtue.
This is a moment not just for justice—but for national self-reflection. What kind of republic are we going to be? One ruled by partisans in dark suits—or one upheld by principled leaders who understand that public service is a sacred calling?
Let’s get back to faith. Let’s rebuild family. Let’s recommit to the kind of moral formation and compass that produces true leaders—not feral men. In the meantime, out eyes are will be wide open! And that’s my Riff for the day!
For 2024, the total line of duty deaths in law enforcement was 145 officers. So far in 2025 there have been 48 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Since last week’s episode we have had four officer deaths as of this date. St Michael Pray for them, their families, and us!
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Okay here is Dr C’s top five blitz on CJ News and Information for this week:
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd told members of the State Board of Immigration Enforcement that part of the problem is while county jails have space for illegal immigrants, they are only supposed to hold them for up to 48 hours. If it is longer than two days, Judd said the national detention standard becomes "onerous" and state officials have “been at loggerheads” with ICE, according to NBC Miami. “We asked simply for a waiver that we could house these folks according to the Florida model jail standards. After all, if it's good enough for those that are innocent until proven guilty, and they're United States citizens, certainly those housing rules should be sufficient for those that are in this country illegally,” Judd continued.
Dr C’s Take: Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd nailed it. Local jails have room. Deputies are willing. But the feds say, “Hold them only 48 hours unless you follow our 300-page detention novella.” Sheriff Judd asks a reasonable question: “If it’s good enough for citizens presumed innocent, why not for illegal immigrants who broke federal law?” This is the bureaucratic compassion con — strict on the lawmen, soft on the lawbreakers. What we’re seeing isn’t just inefficiency; it’s a breakdown in Formation—when agencies forget their purpose and moral clarity fades. Local control, moral courage, and accountability are traded for red tape and DOJ memos. This isn’t just bad policy. It’s also bureaucracy at its worst.
The nation's largest teachers' union plans to promote a version of Holocaust remembrance that does not mention Jews, according to its 2025 handbook, which references "victims of the Holocaust from different faiths" and teaches that Israel was founded through "forced, violent displacement and dispossession," its most recent guide for members shows. The handbook says the union will "promote the celebration of International Holocaust Remembrance Day" by "recognizing more than 12 million victims of the Holocaust from different faiths, ethnicities, races, political beliefs, genders, and gender identification, abilities/disabilities, and other targeted characteristics." The description does not mention the attempted extermination of the Jewish people by the Nazis.
Dr C’s Take: The largest teachers’ union in America just redefined the Holocaust without mentioning Jews. That’s like teaching 9/11 and forgetting planes existed. Their 2025 handbook praises “Holocaust victims of different faiths” and then pivots to framing Israel’s founding as an act of “violent displacement.” This isn’t education—it’s ideological subversion wrapped in moral relativism. This is what happens when Formation is hijacked by woke politics. Truth is no longer transcendent; it’s malleable. Facts yield to feelings, and the foundational virtue of honesty is replaced by sociopolitical storytelling. This isn't just historical revisionism—it’s moral cowardice, and it breeds the Feral Mind, untethered from reality and hostile to truth. And to the educators pushing this? If you're too afraid to name the persecuted, you're unfit to teach about persecution and eventually history will repeat itself if you don’t acknowledged that evil is evil.
Federal immigration authorities arrested 243 illegal immigrants across the Denver area during a targeted enforcement operation that concluded Sunday, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as reported by Fox News. Federal immigration authorities arrested 243 illegal immigrants across the Denver area during a targeted enforcement operation that concluded Sunday. The agency confirmed that every individual taken into custody during the operation had either been convicted of or was currently facing charges for crimes beyond illegal entry. Arrests included suspects wanted for murder, human trafficking, sexual assault, and membership in violent transnational gangs.
Dr C’s Take: ICE picked up 243 illegal immigrants in Denver in one sweep. That’s not just a number—it’s a flashing neon sign that the system is broken and porous. But let’s be clear: this wasn’t a “raid.” It was targeted enforcement. That’s called doing your job. Yet watch how this will be spun—ICE as the villain, the lawbreakers as victims, and the local jurisdictions as “sanctuaries” rather than co-equal partners in public safety. This is where Formation and Faith intersect. A nation without borders isn’t just insecure—it’s morally confused. When lawfulness becomes controversial and criminality is nuanced, you don’t get compassion. You get chaos. Enforce the law. Protect the innocent. Stop coddling criminals.
A newly issued report from the California Department of Justice trumpeted a massive decrease in violent crime statewide and was hailed as “transparency,” and a “critical part” of regulating state responses and providing lawmakers and law enforcement with “the tools they need to make informed decisions,” by California Attorney General Roy Bonta. However, according to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Danielle Echeverria, there is a major problem: the data that undergirds the report is “substantially flawed,” and the DOJ is fully aware of this fact thanks to a 2024 Chronicle report.
Dr C’s Take: California AG Rob Bonta celebrates a “massive drop” in violent crime. Confetti falls. Press releases fly. But here’s the problem—the data is flawed, and they know it. According to investigative reporting, the DOJ’s own numbers are compromised, yet they continue to trumpet them as gospel. That’s not transparency—that’s propaganda. Data, like law, should illuminate truth—not camouflage it. When state officials knowingly peddle faulty stats to drive narrative, they aren’t informing lawmakers—they’re misleading them. This isn't a crime report. It's a political press kit. And in that vacuum of accountability, the Feral Man thrives—because the state no longer tells the truth, even to itself.
During their June National Conference, the National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) issued a powerful resolution condemning China for targeting America’s children with their illicit vape products. In addition to aiding and abetting the Mexican cartels in the smuggling of fentanyl into the United States, China has been targeting America’s children with potentially fatal untested ‘e-cigs’ for years. Without a modicum of shame, China continues to make millions of dollars while sneaking their ‘death in a candy barrel’ into our country.
Dr C’s Take: The National Sheriffs’ Association just said what too many won’t: China is flooding the U.S. with unregulated, dangerous vape products aimed at our kids. It’s fentanyl all over again—cheap, addictive, and deadly. Let’s stop calling this a public health issue. It’s a national security threat, cloaked in fruit flavor and false innocence. Every puff funds foreign profiteers and cartel pushers, while our government dithers with studies and soft language. This isn’t just bad policy—it’s a failure to protect. Parents, cops, and communities are on their own, again. This is why I just wrote a policy brief of the topic and Police 1 just published my editorial on the subject.
Texas man Charles Byrd is accused of killing his wife, Angela, and living with her decomposing body for over a month before being arrested. Deputies discovered the remains wrapped in blankets, carpet, and trash bags after Byrd allegedly confessed to a relative and later admitted to a violent confrontation with his wife. Byrd is currently in jail without bond, charged with evidence tampering, and may soon face a murder charge pending autopsy results.
Dr C’s Take: Charles Byrd didn’t just kill his wife—he lived with her corpse for over a month, buried under blankets and trash bags. This isn’t just depravity—it’s decay, moral and literal. The tragedy isn’t just the murder. It’s that no one noticed. No system intervened. No red flags triggered a response. No neighbors or friends wondering where she went. This is what happens when the social fabric frays and personal accountability vanishes. Domestic violence isn’t just a private issue—it’s a warning sign of deeper collapse.
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And on the lighter side. A family in Oak Brook heard a person laugh in the attic above them when the husband told a joke. Turns out a burglar had broke into the home earlier and was waiting for them to leave when he couldn’t control his laughter.
This is Dr. Currie Myers, America’s Criminologist—Good Day!
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