Dear John,

Over the past two decades, LEAP's Speakers Bureau has grown into one of the most trusted networks of public safety experts in the country and abroad. But the true power of their work goes much deeper than testimony, media interviews, or legislative briefings.

It lies in their stories.

When LEAP speakers go before the public, they come equipped with stories from people who have walked hospital corridors after a shooting; from prosecutors who questioned the meaning of justice; from officers who spent decades navigating systems that often caused harm despite their best intentions. These stories reshape how we understand public safety, and they open doors that data alone never could.

In the year ahead, one of our biggest commitments is to invest in a new approach to storytelling. So many of our speakers carry powerful lived experiences that unfortunately never make it beyond a Zoom screen or a brief introduction at a legislative hearing. We want to change that.

We’re building the capacity to:

• Spend more time with speakers one-on-one;
• Capture their stories through in-depth interviews;
• Create short-form video for platforms like TikTok and Instagram;
• Write in-depth profiles that support testimony, media work, and legislative engagement;
• Share these stories widely so communities, journalists, and policymakers can hear directly from people who know the system from within.

We are making this investment because we know that every story we capture can become a tool for understanding, accountability, and change.

To show you what we mean, here is one of the stories that guides our work:

As a lieutenant at Colorado’s San Carlos Correctional Facility, Major Dylan Hager (Ret.) was an involuntary medications hearing officer. In this role, he worked with three doctors and the patient to determine if the person who was incarcerated needed involuntary medication when they were in distress. This position opened his eyes to a broken system in need of reform. Growing up, Hager believed prisons were filled with dangerous criminals whose welfare could be disregarded in the broader interest of public safety. But after a career in corrections, he learned that mental health is often the catalyst for those behind bars. His experience witnessing the inhumane treatment of incarcerated people with mental health issues has shaped his view of what prisons can and should look like. Although it can still be difficult for Hager to talk about his career, his advocacy for trauma-centered care and building awareness around the mental health needs of both incarcerated people and corrections officers has given him newfound purpose.

"As a speaker, I am honored to contribute to discussions on innovative criminal justice and public safety solutions that align with LEAP's mission to unite law enforcement voices in support of evidence-based reforms, such as promoting alternatives to arrest and incarceration, addressing root causes of crime like substance use and mental health challenges, fostering stronger police-community relations to enhance overall safety, and bringing my experience and knowledge of our incarcerated population to the conversation.” — Major Dylan Hager (Ret.)

Stories like Major Hager’s are why this work matters.

In 2026, LEAP is committed to elevating more voices like his as we work to shape the future of public safety. With honesty, reflection, and firsthand knowledge, our speakers can help create better policy, better understanding, and better outcomes for communities across the country.

Thank you for standing with us as we build a Speakers Bureau that not only informs change, but humanizes it.

With gratitude,
The LEAP Team

Sent by Law Enforcement Action Partnership Inc

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