Pick up your badge, program etc. and head to the Welcome Reception.
Meet SMILE Conference® sponsors, speakers and fellow delegates at the Scottsdale Plaza Resort.
Check-in at registration desk
Opening Ceremonies, Scottsdale and Paradise Valley Police, LAwS Communications
Sheriff Mark Lamb, Pinal County AZ
Maintaining transparency means we will eventually weather PR storms. But your agency’s image can survive, and even come out stronger.
Sheriff Lamb will share his strategies for getting out in front of challenges and successfully setting your own narrative. He will get you thinking outside the box and challenging the norms of social media for law enforcement, ultimately, helping you keep your public trust “bank account” in the black.
Deputy Chief Jose Salcido, Officer Paul Cruz, Wichita Police
Officer Paul Estrada Cruz, with the Wichita Police Department, will highlight how social media had an impact on Operation Save-A-Casing, a Bureau of Justice Assistance-sponsored program that allows for local residents of a community to provide critical ballistic intelligence to law enforcement in the event that their firearms are stolen or lost. The purpose of this presentation is to highlight the program, its implementation by WPD, and how social media has been used as a tool to educate the public on how Operation Save-A-Casing works. Since the start of the program through social media WPD, has seen a reduction of 50% in the number of guns stolen per year. WPD located in the heart of Kansas, was awarded a $500K grant to become a NIBIN (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network-ATF) hub for the state.
Michelle Proffitt, Public Safety Information Director, University of South Carolina Division of Law Enforcement and Safety
Is your messaging getting lost? Like our private sector counterparts, branding and identity play a large role in how an audience defines and interprets our interactions with the community. From the patch on our shoulders to the verbiage on our website, we’re sending a signal to citizens—but, is it the right one? Good branding communicates what our agency stands for; it strengthens reputations, depicts values and instills trust. In this session, communication professionals will get an overview of how branding impacts public perception, how to set the foundation for a strong brand and discuss the tools you need for a successful strategy. You’ll walk away with a greater understanding of the need for consistent, cohesive assets and how to identify brand touchpoints that tell your story the right way. Be prepared to put what you learn into action!
Anthony Guglielmi, Public Affairs Bureau Director; Howard Ludwig, Public Affairs Bureau Deputy Director; Fairfax County Police Department, VA
The hate crime initially reported to one of America’s largest police departments by a celebrity incensed many and took on a life of its own among the nation’s media and politicians. When that reported crime turned out to have been a hoax, the Chicago Police Department effectively and transparently reported that the entire city, residents and police officers alike, were the true victims. The Jussie Smollett case is an example of thoughtful and strategic law enforcement messaging from the beginning of the investigation through its conclusion. Former Chicago Police Department Chief Communications Officer Anthony Guglielmi and CPD Public Information Coordinator Howard Ludwig will lead a presentation on the social media strategies, tools and messaging decisions in the high-profile Smollett investigation. Both Guglielmi and Ludwig now serve as the director and assistant director of the Fairfax County Police Department, which is the largest police department in Virginia.
Constable Jay Murray, Winnipeg Police
In June 2020, the Winnipeg Police Service responded to a controversial video that showed an officer kicking an male suspect on the ground. The video had been widely shared on social media, and the incident happened less than a week after 15,000 Winnipeggers had demonstrated in solidarity with global protests after the death of George Floyd. Constable Murray will discuss the strategy and approach the service took to defuse public anger over the incident.
Assistant Chief Mike Pooley, Detective Natalie Barela; Tempe Police
Learn how social media has been used and has become a critical component for the Tempe Police Department during special events. The City of Tempe hosts over 300 special events a year with thousands of visitors at each event. Social Media plays a vital role in special event management, and is key in effectively communicating with the public leading up to the event and through the conclusion of the event, especially during an emergency situation. From the Executive Staff to our line level employees, social media is a known platform to get messaging across to our communities especially during major special events.
Donna Rossi, Communications Director; Sgt Ann Justus, Stacie Hainke, PIO; Phoenix Police
Social media allows law enforcement agencies to tell their own story, increase transparency and humanize their personnel. Hear about best practices in visual storytelling across a number of platforms. Learn some tricks of the trade to increase engagement and motivate an audience to action.
Howard Ludwig, Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Fairfax County Police
Journalist turned PIO, Howard Ludwig will share lessons learned from within Chicago’s newsrooms. Learn what reporters are looking for from law enforcement on social media. Find out what questions will be asked BEFORE you post, and how to best answer those questions for your agency.
Constable Sean Shapiro, Toronto Police
Join Constable Sean Shapiro as he discusses how he rode the wave of the pandemic and entered a brave new world called TikTok. Sean will share his experiences, challenges and lessons learned. With over 183 K followers and 23 M views, the opportunities for more engagement are endless. No dancing required.
Donna Rossi, Communications Director; Sgt Ann Justus, Stacie Hainke, PIO; Phoenix Police
More and more law enforcement agencies are using Critical Incident Briefing videos to put into context the events surrounding officer involved shootings. This presentation will take you through the step by step process of creating a CIB video to help increase transparency for your agency and strengthen public trust.
Laurie McCann, Constable; Large North American Metropolitan Police Service
It’s happened to all of us. You put out a post with good intentions only to have someone reply to that post with hate and anger?
In this interactive session, we’ll talk about how we have handled those situations and the best practice approach.
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Dustin Sternbeck, Director of Communications, Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia
It had been over 200 years since the last insurrection attempt at the United States Capitol, but on January 6, 2021, a violent mob stormed the grounds with the intentions of interrupting our country’s democratic process of counting electoral votes. The heroic actions of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) that evening contributed to restoring order and saving Democracy. MPD’s head of communications will highlight their strategic messaging approach connected with this historic event, demonstrate the influence of social media and detail how they helped shift the national sentiment towards law enforcement.
Steven McGhee, Community Resource Officer, Paradise Valley Police
Officer McGhee will discuss social media content creation. Learn how to create original content to include regular social media posts, designing themes, implementing seasonal campaigns, and take on special assignments. Officer McGhee will share tools and strategies to consider for videos, images, audio clips, and music. Come prepared to learn how to maximize available resources and create your social media presence.
George Klippel, LiveU
George Klippel is an expert in the government space and has worked with law enforcement, first responders, and agency officials regarding their social media strategy. His session will highlight the use of bonded Ip cellular technology and how it delivers reliable, high-quality streams from almost any location in the world. George will also dive into how to maximize your streams for Public Information Officers, community outreach, command center communications, and more!
Michelle Proffitt, Public Safety Information Director, University of South Carolina Division of Law Enforcement and Safety
You’re not on the road or out in the field every day; you’re not on the other end of a call into dispatch or at the front desk of your agency. Sure, you get the comments, calls, and emails that come in from the public, passed on by others. Maybe you hear about citizen complaints and commendations from Internal Affairs. But, how do you gauge public sentiment? How do you put out the rumor fires before they start? People take to social media to vent and share—when they’re happy, upset, and concerned. If you’re not actively listening to what’s going on, you’re missing out big time. Social listening allows agencies to view, analyze and respond to conversations involving their communities and services that may have otherwise been missed. In this session, we’ll discuss ways for you to better connect with your public online, discover social listening tools to help you hear what’s being said about your agency in real-time and evaluate what happens when you don’t engage in active social listening.
Ryan Hendrickson, Green Beret (Ret.)
“Five minutes or so after stepping on the IED, I knew I was hanging on for dear life. I knew they’d print my Army photo – my ‘death’ photo – alongside the obit.” It is easy to adopt a victims mindset or an entitlement thought process but it is very hard to take charge and understand that life is not easy, and you are owed nothing for free. This presentation is about how Hendrickson, against all odds, survived, healed and even returned to active duty.
Always a popular event! Join fellow SMILErs for a no-holds-barred conversation about whatever you want. Bring your questions and topics and talk with those who have gone through whatever you’re struggling with.
Share your knowledge and your challenges.
Heavy appetizers will be served.
We will also welcome the iSMILErs who are joning us.
Salvador Zamora, Communications Director, United States Border Patrol (Ret.)
An insightful account with best practices and lessons learned offered by the recently retired Communications Director of the United States Border Patrol, Salvador Zamora. He shares how a social media communications strategy helped him and the US Border Patrol, the nation’s largest federal mobile uniformed law enforcement agency, successfully address monumental communication challenges during unprecedented organizational turmoil, public and congressional scrutiny of the organization, all the while dealing with the high volumes of illegal immigration, and persistent border and national security crises.
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Nelly Miles, Public Affairs Director; Natalie Ammons, Deputy Director of Public Affairs; Georgia Bureau of Investigation
Nelly & Natalie are a two-women team handling media relations and legislative affairs for the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the criminal investigative agency for the state. The summer of 2020 proved to be their busiest and most challenging yet: In May 2020, a cellphone video from a South Georgia incident that occurred in February went viral, leading to demonstrations and inquiries from the media and the public from around the world. Later that month, events in Minneapolis sparked civil unrest worldwide, including Georgia. During the height of these protests, another incident occurred in Atlanta that led to even further unrest…all during a global pandemic.
Laurie McCann, Constable; Large North American Metropolitan Police Service
Everything is going mobile these days, including crime. Sooner or later every law enforcement officer will be called to handle a crime that has been committed through a mobile app or at least has an online element to it.
This breakout session will introduce attendees to the latest apps that youth and adults are using. We’ll review how they work, the challenges they pose to law enforcement and best practices for capturing evidence on them.
Carlos Rodriguez
This presentation will discuss best practices used in interviewing those that wish to sexually exploit children through social media applications such as Meetme, Skout, Whisper, Facebook Messenger and Grinder, etc. These applications are all legal, yet suspects use them as pathways to conduct illegal activity. This is not a stand-alone interview training presentation. It will discuss developing your own investigative process and using best practices while interviewing suspects. Learn from our mistakes and our successes. Topics include team building, initial set-up, personnel issues, interview site selection, investigative techniques, pitfalls to avoid, and identifying areas of improvement. The presentation includes real audio and video interviews from suspects that were seeking to exploit children using social media applications.
Scott Foster, Communications Director, United States Border Protection Agency, PAIG
Overview on the use of open source information in support of CBP operations and investigations.
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Salvador Zamora, Communications Director, United States Border Patrol (Ret.)
An insightful account with best practices and lessons learned offered by the recently retired Communications Director of the United States Border Patrol, Salvador Zamora. He shares how a social media communications strategy helped him and the US Border Patrol, the nation’s largest federal mobile uniformed law enforcement agency, successfully address monumental communication challenges during unprecedented organizational turmoil, public and congressional scrutiny of the organization, all the while dealing with the high volumes of illegal immigration, and persistent border and national security crises.
Scott Tuma, IP Program Director, Penlink
This session will start from a historical standpoint and discuss useful tips on what to ask for on search warrant returns from Google, Facebook, Instagram, Apple iCloud, and Snapchat in order to successfully gain intelligence on today’s criminals. It will also help you gain an understanding of some of the data Google can provide in addition to email and login information—such as search and location history, device information, and storage—and show you how useful Apple iCloud search warrant returns can be to a case.
You’ll then take a deep dive into live intercept data for targets and learn how often data is sent by social media providers like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. You’ll discover effective ways to easily monitor and decipher this data as it flows in for a case, along with all the information that can be acquired from it. Lastly, you’ll see how precision location can positively impact a case, using integration tools to make your life easier.
Brian Novotny, Crime Analysis and Research Unit Supervisor, Maricopa County Attorney’s Office
In 2017 Brian Novotny returned to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, where he previously worked as a Paralegal Bureau Chief, to help establish the then named Crime Strategies Section, now called the Crime Analysis and Research Unit. During the next several years various factors influenced the success and failures of this newly created unit. In his class Brian will discuss the challenges of creating a Crime Analysis and Research Unit with a specific focus on Social Media concerns. Brian will discuss creating and supervising this unit inside a prosecutor’s office versus a law enforcement agency and how these issues may impact your investigations.
Tuyet Nguyen, Web Intelligence Analyst, Cobwebs
The session will cover Geo grade signals investigation flow in conjunction with deep and dark web data for identity resolution.
Anthony Iafrate, Law Enforcement Liaison, Tiktok
The presentation begins with a general introduction to the app, including a walkthrough of how it works, with a focus on the most common screens you will come across while using TikTok. It also provides information regarding TikTok’s Legal Policy Operations team and the various ways that they interact with law enforcement. The presentation will also give instructions on how investigators should submit legal processes, preservation requests, and emergency disclosure requests, as well as our internal requirements that must be satisfied for any data to be disclosed.
Ryan Locklar, Government Solutions Architect, Skopenow
Information on the surface web is very valuable for open source intelligence and investigations; however, failing to account for information on the dark web from sources like Tor, IRC/I2P, and Zeronet can be an incredible missed opportunity. Join Skopenow as we look at the value of data breaches, paste sites, and other content for digital investigations.
By attending this presentation, delegates will learn about the value of content from the dark web in the context of your investigation;
they will see how the use of dark web-enabled technology can increase your efficiency, serve as a work force multiplier, and allow you to add more value to your organization; and they will understand the value of information within data breaches and how it can enhance your investigation with open source information.
Scott Foster, Communications Director, United States Border Protection Agency, PAIG
Overview on the use of open source information in support of CBP operations and investigations.
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The Trace Labs Search Party CTF is a non theoretical, gamified effort that allows for the crowdsourcing of contestants to perform a single task: Conduct open source intelligence operations to help find missing persons. In this CTF you will be collecting OSINT on actual missing persons cases. This combined intelligence will be synthesized in to a report for law enforcement afterwards.
Public Safety Command Centers or Emergency Operations Centers have been used for decades to collaborate units and resources in the department to support incidents and special events. Today’s technologies are allowing these centers to be turned into fully operational RTCCs to turn these resources to support every call for service for their individual department. The mission of the RTCC is to compliment the services of your Communications Center and provide tactical information to your first responders to help them with the decisions they need to make to keep them and our community safe on every call. This course will show each attendee how a RTCC works closely with Patrol and the other units in the department to help solve crimes. Online resources are a key ingredient for RTCCs to be successful, this course will show a variety of paid and free online resources that can help you with your investigations.
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Officer Glackin will cover constitutional issues to include current case law, locked accounts, facebook privacy as they apply to social media investigations. He will demonstrate investigative techniques and methods which are commonly used, how we use snapchat, Instagram and Facebook. As an investigator with the Arizona National Guard Counter Drug Task Force, his presentation will refers mostly to drug investigations. Glackin will present case studies of drug investigations using social media as well.
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The City of Tallahassee Florida partnered with Quadrant 2 to launch a mobile bystander app in August of 2021. This multipurpose technology can be used for public safety, collection of evidence in a large-scale crime scene or disaster, as well as documenting real-time video police-civilian interactions. Quadrant 2 has been developing this platform since 2012, and it is the most robust, secure and private platform of its kind.
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Tom Tardy, CEO; Gingersec
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Sam Palmer, Private Investigator / Retire Police Detective with guest presenter Detective Shonda Nadzakovi
In this class we will discuss the ever changing world of open source and law enforcement. We will look at how combining data sources with social media/osint can help lead to investigative leads, talk about tools you can use for real-time (RTCC & Fusion Centers) events with a look at a real-world crisis. A candid discussion will be had about best practices to include documentation, 1st Amendment considerations, and open source tools.
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