Charles "Sid" Heal

For reasons that I have never understood, I've always been called by my second name, as did my father. I grew up on a very small farm in mid-Michigan and walked to a country schoolhouse with my brothers and sisters until I was in 7th grade. All the grades were in the same room. When I was 18, I joined the Marine Corps and experienced my first bus ride, my first taxi ride, my first plane ride, and stayed in my first hotel. I saw my first movie in boot camp and met the girl who became my wife en route to Vietnam. We have been married 50 years now and have five kids, who married five great spouses, who provided us with 15 wonderful grandchildren. I retired as a Commander from the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department in 2008 after nearly 33 years of service, more than half of which was spent in units charged with handling law enforcement special and emergency operations. I have been personally present for the operations at the Oklahoma City Bombing, the 1992 Los Angeles Riots, the 1994 Northridge Earthquake, and the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center in 2001. In addition, I retired from the Marine Corps Reserve after 35 years and four tours of combat. I am the author of "Sound Doctrine: A Tactical Primer" and "Field Command," as well as more than 190 articles on law enforcement subjects. I hold a bachelor’s degree in Police Science from California State University, Los Angeles; a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Southern California, and a master’s degree in management from California Polytechnic University, Pomona. I am also a graduate of the FBI’s National Academy and the California Command College. I just retired (December 2019) as the President of the California Association of Tactical Officers but remain the national chairman for Strategy Development for the National Tactical Officers Association. I often teach at the U.S. military war colleges and many countries throughout the world. My work focus during retirement has been on understanding and applying the science to support sound planning and decision-making during law enforcement tactical operations and disaster responses. To that end, I've written four books and have been teaching throughout the United States and other countries. I plan on spending my remaining years teaching the things I wished I'd known in my younger years.