Southern Storm (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781987628012)

I grew up in the sixties during a period of social change and cultural upheavals. I was impressed by the strong moral voices that arose during this period such as MLK and RFK. I was a vociferous reader of books on political subjects from an early age and pored over the daily paper. I imagined myself making a mark on society through politics. My interest in law enforcement grew from my early experiences of my grandfather being assaulted in a robbery and eventually dying of his wounds and my father being struck by a drunk driver and disabled for two years. He lost his dream of being a professional golfer which caused him to become an alcoholic. He left our family when I was young and eventually died of the disease. My Mom was left to go back to school and become a nurse to support us. She never gave up and her persistence drives me each day. I was elected Sheriff for two terms in Flagler County, Florida. I served as a prosecutor in Suffolk County, New York and was assigned to a task force investigating Mob influence on Long Island. I graduated from Fordham University, where I met my wife Cornelia. I also graduated from St. John's University School of Law. I moved to Flagler County to start a real estate development company and somehow became a sheriff instead. I always dreamed of writing a book about my experiences as sheriff. One day I will write the real story of how a New York attorney became the sheriff of a rural southern county.