About
I began my career as a private investigator with Pinkerton’s Inc., working mostly undercover assignments. I finished as the Director of Investigations with the New York State Dept. of Health laboratory division. There were stops as a Sr. Child Support Investigator and deputy sheriff in Madison County, New York, in between.
In 1996, when I was supposed to be retired, I decided to tell the story of what I learned while investigating the operation of a medical examiner’s office. It was an eye-opening experience for me and I felt compelled to share it with others. I eventually produced a fictionalized account called The Morgue. I found to my chagrin that readers didn’t believe anything in the book could actually happen, but they liked the story and my style; rough edges and all. Six more mystery/thriller fictions followed.
But in January 2002, my writing career was at a crossroads. Did I want to continue the uphill struggle for recognition in a genre with a number of well established authors? Or was it time to find another hobby? My question was answered at a writers’ conference when a lady suggested I try my hand at police-related non-fiction. That was the turning point for me. I began writing Policing Las Vegas, the history of law enforcement in Las Vegas and Clark County from 1905 thru 2004. Policing was released in April 2005.
Writing that book opened my eyes to some interesting things about Las Vegas and the mob that I wanted to explore; leading to my second non-fiction, The Battle for Las Vegas. This is the story of the Vegas reign of Chicago mob enforcer Tony Spilotro. In the movie Casino, actor Joe Pesci played a character based on Spilotro. Battle was released on July 1, 2006.
In writing that book, I relied heavily on resources such as retired FBI agents and police detectives from that era, and my conversations with career criminal and former Spilotro lieutenant Frank Cullotta. Those conversations led to my third Vegas-based non-fiction, CULLOTTA – The Life of a Chicago Criminal, Las Vegas Mobster, and Government Witness. That book was released nationally in July 2007.
If you try one of my books I sincerely hope you enjoy it.
Dennis N Griffin
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