Russell L. Bintliff

Russell L. Bintliff is a former federal investigator and the author of Police Procedural: A Writer's Guide to the Police and How They Work (Writer's Digest, 1993), one of the original Howdunit series titles and a long-running standard reference for mystery and crime writers researching American law enforcement. Before turning to writing-craft and law-enforcement reference books he served in federal investigative and security roles, including work with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and built his career around the working procedures of state, county, and municipal police agencies.

Police Procedural takes mystery writers inside both police investigations and the day-to-day reality of police work: how officers actually work, when they work, what they wear, who they report to, how they move through the ranks, the equipment they use including firearms and investigative gear, the laws that govern and restrict investigations including probable cause, the structure of a detective division, the rules of evidence, the investigation of crimes from burglary and arson through homicide, arrest and booking, interrogation, and the working interface between police and the courts. It covers jurisdictional questions (state police versus county sheriff versus city department), suspect descriptions and lists, evidence room procedures, and the preparation of cases for grand jury and trial.

His other published law-enforcement and security titles include the Training Manual for Law Enforcement Officers (1990), How to Write Effective Law Enforcement Reports (1991), and Crimeproofing Your Business: 301 Low-Cost, No-Cost Ways to Protect Your Office, Store, or Business (1994). The combined body of work has placed Police Procedural on writing-craft reference shelves for more than three decades and made the book a frequent companion volume to the other major Howdunit titles.