Author name: Michael Earl Simmons

By Michael Earl Simmons The Gulf Coast’s secrets aren’t forgotten; they tend to hang around, like humidity settling into your bones after a long afternoon. Down in the Panhandle, where […]

By Michael Earl Simmons From the “Old Gulf Coast Crime Stories” chronicles, here is a story that highlights the spirit of the Florida Panhandle in its early years. Panhandle Lawmen

Why Training New Criminal Justice Officers in Department History Shapes Pride, Ethics, and Leadership By Michael Earl Simmons When a new recruit pins on a badge for the first time,

A Night of Fire in Allentown There are places along the Gulf Coast where the pines grow tall and the wind carries secrets. North of Milton, beyond the sandy roads

A Family That Shaped West Florida’s Criminal Justice Training In West Florida, we grow many things well—longleaf pine, stubborn pride, and young men and women who feel the pull of

An Announcement About a Name Change For several years, many of you have known my work under the name Old Police Stories. That name reflected exactly what I was doing

By The Old Southern Murders Storyteller There are creeks you fish.There are creeks you cross without thinking.And then there are creeks you remember. Murder Creek is the kind of place

By Michael Earl Simmons Down here, every little community has its stories.Most are quiet ones: family names, old churches, sandy roads worn smooth by time.And then there are the stories