Hey Chaplain: The Police Wellness Podcast

Hosted by Jared Altic

Business Careers Society Culture Health FitnessInterviews guests

Website RSS feed

Episodes

246

Latest episode

Jun 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

The Hey Chaplain podcast is where cops encourage each other by sharing their wisdom and experience with the Chaplain. On Hey Chaplain you'll hear from dispatchers and federal agents, Sheriffs and US Marshals, as well as local detectives and patrolmen. From the LAPD to Scotland Yard, the guests on Hey Chaplain deliver advice and insights so that police officers everywhere can survive and thrive. The host, Jared Altic, has almost 30 years of experience serving and counseling military and law enforcement families. The show looks at both the humorous and traumatic sides of police life, sharing wisdom to create healthy cops both at work and at home. New podcast episodes about police life and chaplaincy are available on first, third, and fifth Mondays of each month. Look for occasional special bonus episodes! Share this podcast with a cop or someone who loves a cop.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

June 15, 202631 min

143 - Expert Testimony In 21 Feet Or Less: Doug Deaton

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailImagine that someone with a knife or another deadly weapon is charging at you with intent to kill. How close do they have to be for you to deploy deadly force? Did you say 21 feet? That's what I've always been told. But what if you take that shot and now you're on trial for murder and the prosecutor has evidence that says the assailant was twenty-two feet away when you took your shot. Oh, no! Our guest today is Doug Deaton, and hopefully your lawyer will hire someone like Doug, a veteran cop and expert on use of force issues, to give testimony as an expert witness in court. Doug has done exactly that and I brought him today to tell the story of when a lawyer let him explain the 21-foot rule to a jury.Music is by Chris HaugenHey Chaplain podcast Episode 143Tags:Police, Career, Court, Detectives, Expert Testimony, Guns, Justice, Movement, Shootings, SWAT, Tactics, Dallas, TexasSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

June 8, 202628 min

142.5 - Which Service Is Worse? Cop & Firefighter Twins: Stuart and Steve Littlefield, Part 2

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailToday we're coming back to our interview with identical twin first responders Stuart and Steve Littlefield. Stuart is thirty-year cop, on the SWAT team and also a homicide detective; Steve is the thirty year firefighter. Both worked at the same time in the same city, my home of KCK. Today we're going to to talk about a couple of dramatic critical incidents they were involved in and also answer the question of which service is healthier and which one is worse. Hey Chaplain Episode 142 Part TwoMusic is by DJ WilliamsTags:Police, Fire, Accident, Barricade, Crime, Culture, Danger, House Fire, Injury, Mental Health, Murder, Risk, Rivalry, Shooting, SWAT, Kansas City, KansasSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

June 1, 202630 min

142 - Identical Twins Cop & Firefighter: Stuart and Steve Littlefield

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailIdentical twins but one's a firefighter and the other one is a cop and both have 30 year careers in the same city. That's not a bad premise for a tv show… but it's also the background of the two guests we have on today's show. Returning guest and friend of the show, retired detective Stuart Littlefield, has brought his brother, retired firefighter Steve Littlefield, to talk about the their two paths in fire and policing. These two identical twins have a lot to say about the supposed rivalry between the two services and what it's like to know that your brother is in danger, just down the street.Hey Chaplain Episode 142 Part OneMusic is by TrackTribeTags:Police, Fire, Career, Danger, Detective, Family, Fear, House Fire, Humor, Injury, Risk, Rivalry, Shooting, SWAT, Kansas City, KansasSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

June 1, 20265 min

000.6 - START HERE: Welcome to the Hey Chaplain podcast, Year 6

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailSTART HERE: Welcome to the sixth year of Hey Chaplain, the police wellness podcast.https://buymeacoffee.com/heychaplainMusic is by Wes Hutchinson and by Chris HaugenHey Chaplain Episode 000.6Support the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

May 25, 202629 min

Scotland Yard and Growling Dogs: Follow Ups and Business Checks, Hey Chaplain's Fifth Anniversary, w/ Steve Keogh - Bonus Ep 51

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailThis episode marks our fifth anniversary where we go back and do follow ups and business checks, checking in on some of our past guests to get updates. This year I built the episode around an interview I recently had with Steve Keogh, the retired Scotland Yard murder detective who was on the show a few years ago. We also hear a behind-the-scenes canine for Brotherhood for the Fallen.Links and resources:Steve Keogh - Ep 030, Ep 061: https://stevekeogh.comJason Marsman - Bonus Ep 50: Brotherhood for the Fallen https://www.brotherhoodnyc.orgJim Sutterby - Ep 003, 007, et al.Richard Breshears - Ep 101Ryan Miller - 023, 056, 097, et al.Shawn McGee - Ep 069Music is by Chris Haugen and by Jeremy Korpas and Rick Barry ("Care is Heavy")Hey Chaplain Podcast Bonus Episode 51Tags:Police, Books, Career, Detectives, Feedback, History, Podcasting, Promotions, Retirement, Television, Kansas City, London, Overland Park, Spring Hill, Kansas, England, UKSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

May 18, 202632 min

141 - From Detective to Clinician: Ian Hobbs

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailWhen a cop tries to go to counseling, the counselor typically gets one chance to make a good impression. Either this is going to go fairly well and the cop will come back again or it won't go well and the cop will swear he'll never go to another counselor the rest of his life! A growing number of second-career, cops-turned-counselors are determined to make a meaningful connection on that first attempt. Today's guest is Ian Hobbs. Ian is a former homicide detective and a Marine Corps veteran who is now starting a second career as a clinician. Ian is going to describe what he saw in the military and in law enforcement that made him want to change careers and help in a more direct way.Music is by TrackTribeHey Chaplain Podcast Episode 141Tags:Police, Career, Counseling, Crimes Against Children, Detectives, Education, Homicide, Mental Health, Stress, Suicide, USMC, Kansas City, Kansas, Missouri, IraqSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

May 11, 202635 min

For Every Cop Who's Murdered in the Line of Duty: Jason Marsman, Brotherhood For the Fallen - Bonus Ep 50

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailWhen I was at the line of duty death funeral of Deputy Elijah Ming, I met officers from all across the midwest, but I also ran into uniformed officers from further away, specifically one officer who traveled all the way from New York City. This was my introduction to Brotherhood for the Fallen, an organization of police officers who send representatives to every funeral of an officer murdered in the line of duty. Today we're talking to Jason Marsman from the New York City chapter of Brotherhood for the Fallen. We're going to talk about the strange mission to attend every police funeral in the country and the surprising gift for the family that these officers bring with them.Brotherhood For the Fallen NYC Chapter: https://www.brotherhoodnyc.orgMusic is by the WesterliesHey Chaplain Bonus Episode 50Tags:Police, Death, Funerals, Honor, Line of Duty Death, Memorials, Morale, NYPD, Travel, Brooklyn, Dallas, Kansas City, New York City, Kansas, New York, TexasSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

May 4, 202632 min

140 - Pig Jokes and Punchlines: Cop Comedian Jim Perry

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailSome of the funniest people I know are cops. Comedy is a coping mechanism and humor, even dark humor, helps us regain control over uncontrollable circumstances. So today I want to introduce you to a cop turned comedian, Jim Perry. Jim was an officer near Chicago for several years before a medical retirement and now he's a comedian and comedy club owner in Arizona. We're going to talk about his journey into stand up comedy and why cops are a natural fit to tell jokes, deal with hecklers, and survive when your jokes bomb on stage. Hey Chaplain Podcast Episode 140Music is by Kevin McLeodTags:Police, Alarms, Career, Comedy, Contentment, Family, Grief, Home Security, Injuries, Trauma, Chicago, Arizona, IllinoisSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

April 27, 202628 min

139.5 - I could have used a Chaplain: Phil Reeves

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailToday we're talking again to Phil Reeves. This is part two of my conversation with Phil. In part one we talked about his background, in which he has been a working actor in Hollywood for decades while also serving as a police officer. We talked about the fun stuff last time, here in part two we're going to be talking about the tougher stuff: difficult moral and ethical decisions in leadership, ending a career, and starting a new one as a police chaplain. Phil has become a major voice across the country advocating for officer wellness and the intelligent and professional use of police chaplains. You're going to want to hear the experiences on the street that led him down this path.Music is by Chris HaugenHey Chaplain Podcast Episode 139.5 (Part 2)Tags:Police, Acting, Career, Certifications, Chaplaincy, Compromise, Death, Ethics, Imposter Syndrome, Scandal, Supervisors, Support, Training, New Orleans, California, LouisianaSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

April 20, 202623 min

139 - I've Played One on TV: Phil Reeves

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailOur guest today is Phil Reeves; Phil has been an actor in Los Angeles for decades but he has also been a police officer and is now a law enforcement chaplain and a vocal advocate for first responder chaplaincy. This first part, I'm just going to introduce you to Phil and let him tell you how he went from Hollywood movie sets to law enforcement. In part two, we'll talk about the hard parts of the job and what led him to becoming an advocate nationally for chaplaincy.Music is by Wes HutchinsonHey Chaplain Podcast Episode 139Tags:Police, 9-11, Acting, Age, Career, Casting, Movies, Relationships, TV, Hollywood, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York City, California, Louisiana, New YorkSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain