Firearms Consultants: 4

AGR Police Practice Group provides robust professional Policing Services to a mix of criminal justice entities and communities. AGR counsels and collaborates with organization leadership on risk management strategies, setting the highest Law Enforcement Performance Standards. They have the proven professional law enforcement experience.to achieve case-specific goals. 

Consulting Services:

• Organizational Assessments - Policy Model Review & Future Impact

Create sound and robust policies and practices for police leadership to advance a department’s ability to deliver the highest quality services to the community. AGR has experience with single – agency police implementation and reviewing national police organization model policies. 

• High-Risk Investigations - Independent Monitoring. Oversight. Auditing

Has a crisis, such as a police shooting or police misconduct, resulted in the loss of community trust and placed the agency on the defensive? AGR has broad experience in assisting agencies in complex and sensitive investigations.

• Auditing and Inspections - Enhance Accountability, Reduce Liability, Improve Compliance

Ensuring your police agency is doing what they say they are doing, by providing auditing and inspection services.

Chief Chet Epperson, (Ret.), MBA, principal of AGR, is a law enforcement veteran with over 40 years of active service. He served with the Rockford Illinois Police Department for 33 years and the last 10 years as chief. Chief Epperson serves as an expert with two Federal Police Consent Decree Monitoring Teams with special emphasis on use of force, police shootings, training, and policy oversight.

View Chief Epperson's Expert Witness Profile.

Daniel G. O'Kelly has over 46 years of experience as a range instructor, firearm designer, builder, auditor of licensees, collector, and expert on firearms and ammunition. 

Mr. O'Kelly served for 11 years as a Police Officer and for 23 years as a Special Agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). As one of ATF’s leading firearm experts, he was Lead Instructor of Firearm Technology at the ATF National Academy. Since his retirement from the ATF, he has served as a Senior Corporate Manager for Cabela’s, the then largest firearm retailer in the world, where he co-developed a firearm technology and ATF compliance training program for that company, and is the Founder/Director of IFSA. 

Mr. O'Kelly then founded and is the Director of the International Firearm Specialist Academy (IFSA), a guild of award-winning experts, former Federal Agents, Investigators, Police Officers, Medical Doctors, and an Attorney, in the Firearm and Forensics field. IFSA is the first and only company to offer a simplified step-by-step program that takes learners from their present knowledge-level to become a demonstrated safe, accurate, and competent Certified Firearm Specialist.

Online Training Courses:

• Toured and done research at numerous firearm and ammunition factories and museum firearm reference collections across the U.S., and in Europe and Africa.
• Consultant for several firearm manufacturing/designing companies.
• Regularly presents multi-day seminars to thousands of law enforcement personnel and licensed dealers, manufacturers, importers, and collectors nationwide on firearm enforcement, ID & technology, interstate nexus, and ammunition to law enforcement, the legal profession, and the firearm industry.
• Holds a firearm patent.
• Training program has been contracted numerous times by the Police Departments in many major cities, as well as the FBI, The U.S. Marshals, and Homeland Security. It is also approved by the IAI, ABMDI, and he is a Technical Advisor to AFTE.

View Daniel O'Kelly's Expert Witness Profile.

Roy G. Taylor is a current Chief of Police with over 40 years of experience in a wide-range of federal, state, local, and private criminal justice positions. He delivers comprehensive and intelligent Law Enforcement and Security Services to federal, state, and local governments, and is authorized to work on private or government properties including parks, any government owned buildings, land, public housing communities, hospitals, schools, or similar areas. 

Dr. Taylor's experience and expertise includes use of force and firearms instruction; recruiting, selection and assignment; employee supervision, evaluation and retention; curriculum development; policies and procedures design and implementation; canine utilization; budgeting; public relations; and emergency management. 

Current Positions:

• Chief of Police Blue Ridge Public Safety (2014)
• President/CEO Signal 88 Security of Charlotte (2012)
• President/CEO Capitol Special Patrol (2012)
• Chief of Police Capitol Special Police (2002)
• LT. Colonel – Provost Marshal, Army National Guard (2000)
• Antiterrorism / Emergency Management Branch Chief DoD (2007)
• Provost Marshal Joint Civil Support Task Force, Joint Chiefs of Staff (2014)

Specific Services:

View Roy Taylor's Expert Witness Profile.

Emanuel Kapelsohn is an internationally recognized Firearms Training and Use of Force consultant who has instructed thousands of police and security officers, federal agents and others throughout the U.S. and abroad since 1980. He currently serves as a consultant to

• Manufacturers of Firearms and related products regarding design, human factors, safety and training issues; product literature including warnings and owner's manuals; development of user, instructor and armorer training programs, materials and training aids; marketing issues; and risk management
• Cities, States, and Governmental Entities regarding development, review and implementation of use of force policies, law enforcement training programs and issues, response to critical incidents, and risk management
• Law Enforcement and Security Agencies regarding selection of firearms and related equipment; design and implementation of training programs; safety surveys and safety protocols; qualification standards; development and review of written departmental firearms and use of force policies; and evaluation of specific use of force incidents and firearms accidents

A graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law School, Mr. Kapelsohn is a practicing attorney in addition to his consulting work. As vice president of the Internat’l Assoc. of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, he is a certified in force science and shooting scene reconstruction, and as an instructor in numerous law enforcement disciplines. 

Mr. Kapelsohn is a featured presenter at national and international instructor conferences. He has authored over 130 published articles, is Associate Editor of "Standards & Practices Guide for Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors," and principal author of "Firearms Training Standards for Law Enforcement Personnel," and "Guidelines for Simulation Training Safety."

View Emanuel Kapelsohn's Expert Witness Profile.