My name is Jeremy Stafford and I am the President of Vindico Training Group. I want to tell you a little bit about myself because I think that it’s important that you, as an educated consumer, be able to get a real picture of who is designing your training. It’s also important because I think that credibility in the firearms world is paramount. You should see why I see things the way I see them, and know why I do things the way I do them.
I became a Police Officer with the LAPD in January of 1998, and consider myself lucky to work for what I think, is the finest “big city” Police Department in the world. I’ve worked Patrol from Rampart to the Valley, as well as working as an undercover narcotics officer, a field training officer, a counter–terror operator, and finally, as a Senior Firearms Instructor at the Academy. I currently write many of the Firearms lesson plans and am a co-author of the Departments Multiple Attack Counter Terrorism Action Capability (MACTAC) plan. My boss keeps me busy.
I spent almost 131/2 years in the Marine Corps and Marine Corps Reserve. I dropped out of College and enlisted in the Marine Corps the day we started bombing Iraq, January 17, 1991. By the time I hit boot -camp, that conflict was done and over! Fate is a funny thing though and exactly 12 years later to the day, January 17, 2003, my boots hit the ground in Kuwait as a member of the First Marine Division’s advanced party in preparation for the invasion of Iraq. During that 13 ½ years, I was deployed all over the world, including several tours in Southeast Asia as an advisor and a trip to the Horn of Africa as an advisor. The time spent in Iraq though, was the pinnacle of my Marine Corps career. I was involved in several Combat missions and was awarded the Bronze Star with a “V” device for valor under fire. I was also involved in the initial re-building of the Baghdad Police Department and developed the first joint US-Iraqi patrol program. The development of this program was featured on CNN, Good Morning America, and Fox News. There was also an article written about it in POLICE magazine.
During the course of my career, I have conducted training for thousands of Military and Police personnel around the world. I have trained specialized units within the LAPD, the Thai Royal Marines, The Iraqi Police, the DOD, and the DHS. More importantly, I am a perpetual student, having been trained by some of the finest firearms instructors in the world, including Giles Stock and Larry Mudgett from Gunsite, and the man I consider to be my mentor, Bill Murphy from the Surefire Institute and Gunsite. Bill also runs Firearms Training Associates; a family owned training group located in Orange County, CA.
I am also one of fewer than 100 certified Black Belt Krav Maga instructors in the United States. I say this not to boast, but rather because the Krav Maga has influenced the way that I design my firearms curriculum. I regard firearms training as a part of a larger personal protection program, and I teach it as such. Everything should work together, building on principles that work as a system, not competing against each other and causing entropy.
I am a court-qualified expert in the field of firearms and the last case I worked on resulted in the conviction and 22-year prison sentence of a murderer.
I also write for several national publications including Guns and Ammo, Tactical Guns and Gear, Personal Defense Magazine, Combat Arms and the website PoliceOne.com. In this vein, I have also worked as a consultant for several TV shows, including Wild World of Spike and Shatner’s Aftermath.
I have recently re-enrolled in College to finish the degree that I started 20 years ago. It was long over due, and I want to set the example for my kids. I constantly tell them how important education is, and deeds always trump words. Besides, I promised my Grandmother I would come back and finish when I dropped out way back when. When I’m not busy (rare occasion…) I spend time with the reasons that I feel compelled to work so hard, my wife Julie, my daughter Jessica, and my sons, Jack and Joseph.
Some (but not all) of the my certifications include:
- USMC Primary Marksmanship Instructors course
- LAPD and California POST Certified Handgun Instructor course (train the trainer
certified) - LAPD and California POST Certified Shotgun Instructor course (train the trainer
certified) - LAPD and California POST Certified Rifle Instructor course (train the trainer certified)
- LAPD and California POST Instructor Development course
- Department of Homeland Security Certified First Responder Instructors course
- USMC/DOD Certified Range Officer
- LAPD and California POST Certified Police Field Training Officers course
- LAPD and California POST Certified Less Lethal Instructor
- Glock Certified Instructors course
- Surefire Institute Low Light Instructors course
- Springfield Armory certified Armorer
- Smith And Wesson certified Armorer