Michael W. Quinn’s new book, Walking With the Devil: The Police Code of Silence, is a must-read for every ethical person involved with the legal system. Quinn writes in vivid street-cop language, compelling police recuits’—and our—attention with gritty adrenaline-laced descriptions of the life-and-death, “slippery with blood and sweat” survival-mode situations in which gut instincts—“amygdala hijackings”—propel even the most ethical cops into difficult battles with the Code of Silence, the implicit rule that a cop never ‘snitches’ on another cop. When he has our attention, he leads us through the “terrible internal struggles” of honesty and ethics. Quinn is bluntly honest about “cop culture” and institutional pressures toward corruption, including “creative report writing” and “testilying.” Quinn guides his readers into a gut-level understanding of real-life ethics. He addresses the criminally-serious problems detailed in his book, describing outstanding successes of two police units he supervised, “that refused to use the Code,” and debunks the ‘top ten’ “Myths of Policing.” The Police Code of Silence is a profoundly power- ful text book. When studied with the dedicated seriousness of a police recruit at the Academy, Michael Quinn’s teaching builds and strengthens ethics beyond abstract intellectual knowledge, into the very fibers of one’s being. Even in those of us who believe ourselves to deeply ethical, Quinn’s book can awaken and nurture a deeper understanding of ethics as a vital part of life in every moment.
Mike Quinn is a retired Minneapolis Police Sergeant and CEO of The International Ethics and Leadership Training Bureau LLC.
He has been training police officers since 1979. In 2013 he authored and taught a program on Peer Intervention for Law Enforcement that is the framework for the New Orleans Consent Decree training named "EPIC- Ethical Policing is Courageous. (c)"
Mike served his country in the USAF from 1968 to 1975 as a medic. He served the citizens of Minneapolis from 1975 to 1999 in a variety of assignments that included uniformed patrol as an officer and Supervisor, investigations, plain clothes and undercover work. He was an instructor in SWAT, Firearms, Deadly force, defensive tactics, and other specialty skills.
He was the Deputy Director of Minnesota Police Corps Program, a Court Security Officer at the Minneapolis Federal Courthouse, and a Special Deputy U.S. Marshal contract guard.
He is a community faculty member of Metropolitan State University St. Paul, MN and Chairman of the Inver Hills Community College Law Enforcement Advisory Board in Inver Hills, MN.
Mike has lectured and taught on the subject of police ethics and accountability for police managers, street officers, civilian review investigators, and college classes across the United States and Canada.
He has testified in federal court as an expert in police use of force and accountability.
Mike's departmental awards include the medal of Commendation, the FBI Outstanding Service Award, the United States Marine Corps Meritorious Mast (x2), the Association of Training Officers of Minnesota Lifetime Achievement in Law Enforcement Training, and the BCA Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Contributions to Law Enforcement.
