Q&A with Richland County deputy Curtis Wilson about new police show, ‘On Patrol: Live’

The State Media Co. talked with Deputy Curtis Wilson with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department about his role as an analyst on a new show, “On Patrol: Live.”

The new show is a rebooted rendition of a Midlands’ favorite, “Live PD,” which aired on A&E from 2016 to 2020 and prominently featured the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.

Wilson, who has been with the department for 12 years and also works as a television news anchor for ABC Columbia and radio personality on 101.3 “The Big DM,” will sit alongside Dan Abrams and Sgt. Sean “Sticks” Larkin as an analyst on “On Patrol: Live.” The show will follow several police agencies across the country — including the Richland County Sheriff’s Department — largely in real-time, as law enforcement officers patrol their communities.

Here’s what Wilson had to say ahead of the “On Patrol: Live” premier Friday night on Reelz.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

The State: What was it like when Richland County was super popular on “Live PD?” How was the fame around the Midlands?

Wilson: It was crazy. In a good way. You know, when it first started, Richland County was a part of it before they even had the name “Live PD.” And we had selected certain deputies to be a part of it and so forth. And then once that show kicked in, we became a mainstay with it and became the longest-running agency that was a part of the program. And it turned out to be good both ways for the community and also for the department.

The State: Did you expect the responses that you got?

Wilson: When you put people on TV, they sort of become superstars. But the good thing is that they stayed level headed. These deputies knew that they had a job to do, and their job was to get out there and patrol and take care of the community. And that’s first and foremost; the cameras were secondary. To the extent of it becoming as popular as it had, after the first year, where Richland County was on, we did the first year anniversary party. And people came from all over — and when I say from all over, all. Different cities, different countries, to come be part of the celebration. As a matter of fact, it was overwhelming, but deputies handled it well.

The State: Could you give a summary of “On Patrol: Live” and compare and contrast that to “Live PD?”

Wilson: “On Patrol: Live” is going to be similar to the show; they’re going to add a couple of different elements. They’re going to add an element of a missing person, we’re going to be working with the Missing and Exploited Children. We’re also going to do ride-alongs, which hadn’t been done before, where they’re going to let citizens ride along with the deputies in the different cities that they’re located, (and) citizens will also be invited to come on set and talk about their experiences. But other than that, it’s going to be what you’ve seen before. Deputies out there, law enforcement out there, ...patrolling. And anything can happen in the show, anything can happen, which makes it unique.

The State: “Live PD” was canceled during the Black Lives Matter movement in June 2020. What are some pros and cons for this TV show?

Wilson: Citizens get to see what law enforcement officers do. You know, whether they’re deputies, or whether they’re patrolling for the city, they get to actually interact with them. They get to see what goes on when they do a traffic stop, or when they go to a domestic call, or if they get a call about a noise disturbance. People actually get to see the interaction. And it’s not always that little clip that somebody made posted on social media. Watching the show, you’re gonna see what happens from the beginning to the end. And the biggest part of this too is not every officer is out there to create an issue, to create a problem that’s going on in the community. Now we know that there’s a small percentage that happens, but the majority of officers who put the uniform on, they do it for the right reasons. And that’s what we want to highlight. That’s what we want to showcase.

The State: Is the show going to address the Black Lives Matter movement?

Wilson: Black Lives Matter is going to be there no matter what. And we understand their cause and what they’re trying to do. But law enforcement also has a job that they’re trying to do. So, hopefully, we’ll all get to work together. And the whole point of this to, again, is to create that bridge that’s going on, bring it together, bring the communities together, bring any, I guess, anti-law enforcement folks to see what we do. And of course, understand, we all want to work together. We don’t want to have issues and drama and things of that nature. It’s all about working together for the common goal. And we don’t want to escalate the situation, our job is to de-escalate. And that’s what’s important.

The State: Some people have highlighted that these shows negatively reflect poorer areas or Black neighborhoods. Do you agree, disagree?

Wilson: I disagree. When law enforcement officers get a call, they’re going for a reason. Whether it’s a noise complaint, or whether there’s loitering or a suspicious person, or somebody speeding in this neighborhood, we’re coming there for a reason. It’s not because we just go in there because it’s a high crime factor. For the most part we’re dispatched, deputies or law enforcement are dispatched to calls. So it’s not that we’re targeting. I keep saying ‘we.’ It’s not that law enforcement is targeting those certain areas. But you got to handle it, you can’t just bypass it (neighborhoods) just because you have cameras with you. So we don’t want people to think that we’re just going into these neighborhoods to create an issue or something like that, whether it’s a well-to-do neighborhood or whether it’s a low-income neighborhood, we have to do our job the same no matter where we are. And it’s tough for me not to separate, but I have to do it.”

The State: What do you want people to get from this new rendition,“On Patrol: Live?”

Wilson: People have been very vocal about law enforcement, and a lot of issues have been going on. And it puts a spotlight on every single officer, not just from where that incident took place, but all of them. And so a lot of them have to go that extra mile to make sure that they’re handling the situation the best that they can, without going from zero to 100 without escalating. So for me, I think that (it) is going to show how officers are really trying to do their job.

The State: What are you looking forward to on this show?

Wilson: I’d like to see everyone come together. I’d like to see, for those who feel like we don’t need police officers, we really do. The majority of people don’t want that to happen. They want law enforcement around because, if not, we have the wild, Wild West. We don’t want that. We want to be able to work together. The thing that people also should understand is that police officers are human too. They have families, they have children, and they’re all in that same community. So it’s not like officers are just popping up with a uniform on. They actually live in this community. They actually work in this community. So we understand the plight, we understand that things are going on. And in this day and age, we have to also understand, we can’t handle things the way things probably were handled back in the day. You have to change with the community, you have to change with the culture and be able to understand what people.

The State: What did you learn from being on “Live PD” that you’re going to carry onto “On Patrol: Live?”

Wilson: Being on “Live PD,” you have to forget the cameras. Again, because when you stop playing to the cameras, now you’re not doing your job. So you again, you already know what you’ve been trained to do. You understand what the situation is that you go into, and you just handle it in the sense that ‘treat me like I want to be treated.’”

The State: What were some of your favorite moments from “Live PD?”

Wilson: There were quite a few, actually. There was one when they saved the dog, which was like the highly rated one. I mean, because you had officers crawl into this hole and get a little puppy out. That was touching, as people love kids and animals. (There) was one with Kevin Lawrence and Chris Mastriani, and it was a party going on in the neighborhood. The deputies got a noise complaint, and when they pulled up, one car took off, high rate of speed. Mastriani follows this car through downtown Columbia, Main Street, I believe in North Main. The car hits the pole and flips. The guy gets out of the car with a baby. With a baby. Now the guy is fighting with the baby in his hand, and still trying to fight with the deputy. We had the crew on scene, but they can’t get involved. But at this point, they had to get the baby. So they do and now Chris, Deputy Mastriani, is on the ground with this guy and everybody, instead of helping to assist, they’re doing this, you know? (Wilson holds his phone up, like he’s recording something.) But fortunately, nobody was hurt. Baby wasn’t hurt, the suspect wasn’t hurt, Chris wasn’t hurt. And it all came out pretty well. But that was a really scary one, because you can see the guy kind of reaching into his pocket. That was a big one.

The State: What does it mean to bring a show about cops to the nation?

Wilson: It’s important for the citizens to actually see how officers are going to interact with the citizens, especially because of all the issues that have been going on. I think this is going to help be a positive thing for citizens, and it’s also a positive thing for law enforcement. It helps with recruiting, it also gives transparency as well.

The State: Do you have anything that you would want to share with our readers that we didn’t ask about?

Wilson: Over the years, with this police show, because a lot of people love the crime stuff, but with this show, it became like a cult — in a good way. When the announcement came back that it was coming back, oh my gosh, social media just blew up with it. People are ready and they want this to come back. So it’s a good thing. I’m glad I’m going to be a part of it.