Violence Prevention Conference Speakers

Featured Speakers

  • Brooke Brittain is a combat veteran, coach, and campus athletic coordinator known for her ability to lead others through challenges with courage, grit, and heart. A retired sergeant first class in the US Army Military Police Corps, she served three overseas deployments to Iraq and throughout the CENTCOM theater, earning the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, and the Order of the Marechaussee (Silver) for a career forged in the extremes of war—where leadership meant courage, clarity, and care for those beside her. 

    In addition to two decades in uniform, Brooke brings her mission mindset to Texas high school athletics, where she has spent more than eighteen years building teams, mentoring coaches, and leading through both victory and heartbreak on and off the court. As a campus athletic coordinator at Mansfield High School, she has become known for cultivating cultures rooted in integrity, discipline, and human connection—principles she believes are as essential in locker rooms as they are in combat zones. 

    As a respected coach in Texas high school athletics, Brooke was selected by the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA) to serve as a representative on the Basketball Advisory Committee. She is a frequent speaker for coaching clinics, leadership summits, and professional development events, sharing stories and tools for leaders who serve from the front lines of education, athletics, and crisis. She believes the best leadership doesn’t come from theory—it comes from people who’ve been in the trenches and come back to share what they learned on the other side of adversity.  

  • Michael is a veteran of three decades of crime-fighting, retiring from law enforcement as Chief Deputy. During his law enforcement career, Chief McQuerrey worked his way up through the ranks, serving in many capacities including Patrol Officer, K-9 Handler/Supervisor, Department Trainer, and Commander of a Multi-Jurisdictional Federal Violent Crime Task Force. 

    Michael was instrumental in multiple violent criminal enterprises and gangs being dismantled.  The development of practical, continuing training programs enabled the core skills of fellow officers to increase their competencies to better serve their communities. 

    Michael was honored to be selected to attend, and graduate from, the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy (FBINA) in Quantico, VA. The FBINA involves 11 weeks of advanced investigative, management, and fitness training, and is only offered to selected officers with proven records as professionals within their agencies. During his FBINA training, Michael acquired graduate credits from the University of Virginia.  He is an Honor Graduate of the Arkansas School of Law Enforcement Supervision, Federal Driver Training Instructor, and Federal Counter Drug Investigation Course.

    Michael earned his MBA from Texas A&M Texarkana, and Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Oklahoma City University. 

    Michael is married to Sandy; they have four adult children and three grandchildren.

  • Mike Johnson is a graduate of the FBI National Academy with an emphasis in Behavioral Sciences and has spent over three decades leading law enforcement criminal investigations, undercover narcotics teams, patrol, SWAT, and previously, in the Unites States Military leading criminal investigations. 

    Mike retired as a Lieutenant in his agency’s Command Staff, has successfully lead people for over 30 years, and is one of the most genuine people you will ever meet.

    The United States Air Force formed Mike’s early experiences including service in Operation Desert Storm, time as a Criminal Investigator, and membership in the Joint Drug Enforcement Team (AFOSI) and Anti-Terrorism Teams.

    Mike continued to serve and protect people, dedicating twenty-eight years to leadership roles in most every aspect of the civilian law profession.  Starting on the streets as a Patrol Officer, then in undercover Narcotics, and later as a supervisor over the Drug Task Force and an assignment to the Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force.  Because of Mike’s leadership, he was promoted to Lieutenant serving as Patrol Watch Commander and as Assistant Commander over the Criminal Investigation Division.  Mike’s broad experience over the years includes SWAT, Crisis Negotiations, Public Information, Defensive Tactics, and as a Certified Law Enforcement Instructor.

  • Detective Sergeant Mike Ruggiero has over 35 years of experience in law enforcement. Much of his career was spent with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Orlando, Florida. His primary areas of expertise included investigating major cases such as narcotics, sex crimes, internal investigations, robbery, and homicide. During that time, Mike developed a unique skillset to help him determine when and how people were being forthcoming, were omitting, or were fabricating information. He now uses those skills and experience to provide training on Detecting Deception and Interview and Interrogation across the U.S. to police detectives, private investigators, and Human Resource professionals.

    In addition to his decades of experience, Mike also has a BA in Criminal Justice. He is the founder of The Police Training Institute and author of “Uncover the Truth-Unlocking the Skills of Body Language and Statement Analysis.” Mike is an in-demand speaker, adjunct instructor for the Public Agency Training Council and instructs sworn and corporate investigators across the US.

  • Monte’s valiant 12 years of military service as a Combat MP in the United States Army included over 400 combat missions, serving in major combat operations: Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom as well as Operation Nobel Eagle protecting top secret military locations in combat hazardous zones, and protection details of United States Dignitaries and Ambassadors.

    Monte was selected to serve in critical protection details, and as logistics supervisor, at the National Security Agency and the Pentagon responsible for the protection of high value protectees around the world.

    Monte Mills is highly experienced with strong skills in security, safety, facilities and risk management and crisis planning.

    After his military career, Monte managed physical risk and data center operations security for a financial institution for over 17 years. Today, Monte is a Consultant with SafeHaven Security Group responsible for advising and protecting a wide range of clients and regularly speaks on topics related to keeping people safe and protecting their brand image.

  • Steve Spurlock brings more than 20 years of experience in law enforcement, corporate security, and emergency management, with a proven record of leading high-stakes operations and advising organizations on complex security risks. His career spans counter-terrorism liaison work, aviation security, custody operations, workplace violence prevention, and executive protection. In both the public and private sectors, Steve has developed and delivered training in active assailant survival, threat response, and defensive tactics.

    Retiring as a Captain with a California law enforcement agency in 2022, Steve transitioned to the private sector to meet the growing demand for experienced security professionals. He has since specialized in enterprise security risk management, corporate investigations, behavioral threat assessment, protective intelligence, and data-driven security analysis. His expertise allows him to identify vulnerabilities, analyze emerging threats, and design tailored strategies to protect both people and assets.

    Steve is a Certified Threat Analyst, an active shooter response tactics instructor, and a seasoned trainer in arrest control and defensive tactics. In 2024, he joined SafeHaven Security Group as a consultant, where he applies his extensive background to advise clients, conduct investigations, and develop security programs that balance prevention, preparedness, and resilience.

    Throughout his career, Steve has remained driven by a passion for safeguarding communities and organizations. His ability to combine investigative rigor, intelligence-led security practices, and real-world leadership ensures that clients receive actionable insights and practical solutions to today’s evolving security challenges.

  • Sandra L. Cobden is a strategic litigator and senior legal executive with more than two decades of experience managing high-stakes investigations and litigation, building ethics and compliance programs, and mitigating enterprise-wide risk across complex, high-profile organizations.

    As Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at two multi-billion dollar manufacturing companies, Sandra managed litigation across product liability, class actions, OSHA, EPA, and antitrust matters while building compliance infrastructure — including ethics hotlines, Codes of Conduct, and policy frameworks. She also founded the Global Security Committee and was the primary legal liaison to the Threat Assessment and Management Program.

    Prior to her work in manufacturing, she was Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Christie's, the global art auction house, where she managed dispute resolution globally, conducted sensitive internal investigations in coordination with the SDNY, FBI, DHS, and NYPD, and developed compliance programs addressing complex regulatory and reputational risks across the international art market — also serving as the company's liaison to foreign governments, legislative bodies, and law enforcement agencies worldwide.

    She began her career with Debevoise & Plimpton before serving as Executive Director for Rosie's For All Kids Foundation, where she implemented a multi-million dollar fund to provide services to displaced children impacted by Hurricane Katrina. She holds a JD summa cum laude from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, where she also taught as an Adjunct Professor, and a BA cum laude from Amherst College.

  • James Atchley has over two decades of protecting people, retiring from law enforcement as a Captain in his agency’s Command Staff. During his law enforcement career, James served in many capacities including Patrol, Undercover Narcotics, Special Operations, Criminal Investigations, and SWAT.

    During his tenure, he stepped into leadership roles in every aspect of the civilian law profession. He served as Commander of the Criminal Investigations Division, Services Division, and ultimately the Operations Division. On the SWAT team for 21 years, he managed high-risk situations and was promoted from the entry team to the Commanders’ position.

    He is a certified Law Enforcement Instructor and has experience in surveillance operations, operations planning, and SWAT tactics. James earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice at Texas A&M University.

    James currently lives in southwest Arkansas with his wife Rachel. He has three children and enjoys operating a food truck in his off time.