
Lou Pimber: The Life of an Undercover Officer and PTSD Advocate/Author of Breaking Badly
07/11/24 • 51 min
Lou tells about living in a garage growing up, smoking cigarettes while watching Scooby Doo AND by age 11 seeing someone stabbed along with women beaten by pimps. He then recalls the moment he knew he wanted to be a police officer along with what pushed him to serve in US Army.
If you have seen the movie, “Colors” featuring Robert Duvall and Sean Penn. Lou was like Penn’s character in real life with the Arizona State Gang Task Force. Being undercover forced him to grow up. Lou admits being addicted to the rush of this position. What is the difficulty of not allowing a criminal to dictate the pace of an investigation?
A graphic story of the extent drug dealers will go to hide drugs and get them to their destination. Complacency can not only get you hurt but killed, Lou retired medically after sustaining career ending injuries during an undercover assignment.
His PTSD went deep and dark, Lou explains all he went through, what he found to help get past it, and what he does today. Traumatic experiences that law enforcement face and their difficulty managing them.
As an entrepreneur, what did he do with that garage he lived in as a child? Being an actor, his own series; “Duress” and being in Jay Dobyn’s short film; “Big Red Friday.” Pimber’s thoughts on what leads to success, what breaking badly means to him, losing his identity, and did he write the book for him or others? COPLINE, what it is and how it serves officers.
Lou Pimber Links:
Official Website: https://loupimber.com/
Buy Breaking Badly: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47PN5XX/
Watch DURESS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdVSmx5eEYA
Watch Big Red Friday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl9p48liC0I
COPLINE: https://www.copline.org/about/who-we-are
Lou Pimber YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LouPimber
Before the Lights Links:
Hire Tommy to Speak: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/public-speaking
Become a BTL Member: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/support
Before the Lights Website: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/
Get Tommy a Glass of Vino: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/beforethelights
The BJ ShowSport Chat (The BJ Show) will cover all AFL games, quiz and more. Subscribe today.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beforethelightspodcast?lang=en
Follow Tommy on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/tcanale3
Rate & Review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/before-the-lights/id1501245041
Email the host: [email protected]
Lou tells about living in a garage growing up, smoking cigarettes while watching Scooby Doo AND by age 11 seeing someone stabbed along with women beaten by pimps. He then recalls the moment he knew he wanted to be a police officer along with what pushed him to serve in US Army.
If you have seen the movie, “Colors” featuring Robert Duvall and Sean Penn. Lou was like Penn’s character in real life with the Arizona State Gang Task Force. Being undercover forced him to grow up. Lou admits being addicted to the rush of this position. What is the difficulty of not allowing a criminal to dictate the pace of an investigation?
A graphic story of the extent drug dealers will go to hide drugs and get them to their destination. Complacency can not only get you hurt but killed, Lou retired medically after sustaining career ending injuries during an undercover assignment.
His PTSD went deep and dark, Lou explains all he went through, what he found to help get past it, and what he does today. Traumatic experiences that law enforcement face and their difficulty managing them.
As an entrepreneur, what did he do with that garage he lived in as a child? Being an actor, his own series; “Duress” and being in Jay Dobyn’s short film; “Big Red Friday.” Pimber’s thoughts on what leads to success, what breaking badly means to him, losing his identity, and did he write the book for him or others? COPLINE, what it is and how it serves officers.
Lou Pimber Links:
Official Website: https://loupimber.com/
Buy Breaking Badly: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47PN5XX/
Watch DURESS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdVSmx5eEYA
Watch Big Red Friday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl9p48liC0I
COPLINE: https://www.copline.org/about/who-we-are
Lou Pimber YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LouPimber
Before the Lights Links:
Hire Tommy to Speak: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/public-speaking
Become a BTL Member: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/support
Before the Lights Website: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/
Get Tommy a Glass of Vino: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/beforethelights
The BJ ShowSport Chat (The BJ Show) will cover all AFL games, quiz and more. Subscribe today.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beforethelightspodcast?lang=en
Follow Tommy on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/tcanale3
Rate & Review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/before-the-lights/id1501245041
Email the host: [email protected]
Previous Episode

Wow! All The Best
Clips are from interviews with:
Lou Pimber
Simon Kirke
Nick Christophers
Jody Lichtor
Michael Green
Michael Fenenbock
Brian Downes
Louis Balestrieri
Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beforethelightspodcast?lang=en
Follow Tommy on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/tcanale3
Rate & Review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/before-the-lights/id1501245041
Email the host: [email protected]
Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beforethelightspodcast?lang=en
Follow Tommy on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/tcanale3
Rate & Review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/before-the-lights/id1501245041
Email the host: [email protected]
Next Episode

Giovanni Rocco & Dutch McAlpin: War Stories From Co-Hosts of "Inside the Life" Podcast from the Mob Museum
Two outstanding guys join the show and talk in-depth about their careers that starts with how these two met at a training scenario. Dutch tells going from football practice for his junior year in high school to ending up in boot camp for the Army! Working at a jail at 19 years old taught him how to speak, which helped him undercover. While McAlpin was at the jail, Rocco was being told at the same age to come down off a telephone pole by Italian guys.
Dutch tells about dealing with the dope epidemic at young age as he was a cop before he turned 21. Giovanni explains what would have happened to his career had he become the manager at the Olympic Garden Strip Club in Las Vegas along with how they handle multiple aliases.
Do you need an attitude when working undercover? Does surveillance teach you anything in addition to the importance of having a good budget and resources to be successful undercover. McAlpin tells a story of a case where he could have been killed while Rocco tells one that could have ended his career.
As adrenaline junkies, how they handle situations when the hair on the back of their neck stands up. The difficulty of being undercover when children are involved or even worse; death and how they debrief. What do they feel like when take the bad guys off the street.
They are the co-hosts of The Mob Museum new podcast: Inside the Life. Stories of not only their career but guests who lived on both sides of the law. New episodes every Thursday.
Giovanni & Dutch Links:
Before the Lights Interview with Giovanni Rocco (9-2-2021): https://www.beforethelightspod.com/beforethelights-episodes/44ik5gp7xcply4yoaayw38b96opbbb
Follow Inside the Life Podcast: https://insidethelife.org/
Mob Museum: https://themobmuseum.org/
Before the Lights Links:
Become a BTL Member: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/support
Before the Lights Website: https://www.beforethelightspod.com/
Please Rate & Review the show!
The BJ ShowSport Chat (The BJ Show) will cover all AFL games, quiz and more. Subscribe today.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/beforethelightspodcast/
Follow the show on Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beforethelightspodcast?lang=en
Follow Tommy on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/tcanale3
Rate & Review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/before-the-lights/id1501245041
Email the host: [email protected]
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