If you are looking for any Joe Schillaci episodes I have on VHS or DVD to trade just email me.

Almost everyone was introduced to Sgt. Joe Schillaci in 2004 when he appeared right from the start on the A&E Series The First 48. He was in many early  memorable cases in Miami, FL during season 1 & 2 and they even chronicled his promotion to Lieutenant when he went back on the streets and left homicide. He did appear one last time after this in uniform to help detectives with a case in season 3. What people don't know is he is a real TV cop superstar appearing on more different shows than anyone else. He might not even know he first appeared on Real Stories of the Highway Patrol in 1994 on the segment Targeted in episode #166. Trooper Ralph Lola goes to a call of a driveby shooting where a 12 year old girl was shot in the leg and Officer Joe was at the scene sporting a coffee ground beard and long curly, slicked back hair. He says, "I don't know, it was a grey Cadillac, the driver was wearing a black scarf, that's all they could tell me." Ralph asks it was a driveby intended for the girl? "That's what they are saying, but I don't know." Turns out his suspicions were right, all was not what it seemed, it was really a robbery. In another episode with Lola, Joe appeared again in a violent street crimes shirt to put a suspect in his car, but said nothing.
    Nine years later in 2003 he appeared on the series Women & the Badge in the episode Miami Homicide. This chronicles Detective Mayree Fernandez's first homicide case and Joe is there to train her. It is just like a pilot of The First 48, they totally ripped off the format for their show. A year later he appeared on The First 48, then a year after he was last seen he got his own special in 2006 called Miami City Vice making him the first real cop to appear on 4 different reality TV series. The most intense episode is Devil's Candy from the First 48. It has one of the most unbelievable scenes ever shown on TV - Joe walks right up on a man injecting heroin into his friend's neck and has to take them down alone at gunpoint. The whole episode is really hard for him because he reveals about his past as an undercover officer and how his partner was killed right in front of him and he had to kill the guy. Joe goes back undercover for the first time since then and his wife is not happy about it. He goes through a bad time the whole episode and it's amazing TV and shows how real Joe is and how hard the job is in a way not seen before. It can truly suck the life right out of you if you don't have someone to fall back on like Joe does here with his wife.

A note from Joe about him going undercover again instead of just supervising in Miami City Vice:
You are absolutely right about me being a commander overseeing the operation. However, like I explained to Sergeant Morales, I had been out of narcotics for a long time. In order for me to be passionately involved and appreciate what my men were doing, I needed to immerse myself in the world of narcotics again. I also believe that being a good example and leading my guys from the front vs. the rear sets an incredible example for them. During the largest demonstrations the State of Florida had ever had, I watched a man who I have a tremendous amount of respect for sit on top of a police bicycle in front of thousands of demonstrators with his Field Force of men behind him. The amount of courage and leadership demonstrated on that day can't be measured. In conclusion, your advise is well respected and taken. I have since run hundreds of successful operations where I have overseen my men and not actually been involved in the undercover work. You can't understand or appreciate what your subordinates are going through both professionally and personally until you live in their world.

Scan of Joe from Real Stories #166 in 1994

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