Hi friends! Reef the fox here with your weekly “Reef’s Report.” I have a super special interview for you all today: none other than Chief Sean Brandenburg of the Key West Police Department. If you’ve been following along for a while, you know that KWPD has become like a second home for little Kai fox. Kai has met the mounted unit, sat on a motorcycle and even had a professional photoshoot with KWPD staff. So I’m super thrilled to share this with you today!
Reef: Hey Chief! Thanks so much for taking the time to answer some questions today. I read you were born in Indiana, aka the Corn Belt State. What was it like growing up there, and did you move to Key West specifically to continue your law enforcement career?
Chief: My family moved around a lot when I was younger for my father’s work, but always within Indiana. I lived in very small towns (one stoplight) to very large cities, like the state capital of Indianapolis and Fort Wayne. In junior high, my parents divorced and I moved back to my mother’s hometown (two stoplights). It was a rural environment, but we lived in town. I have worked since I turned 15. I enjoyed hunting, fishing, working on cars and working. After 12 years of being a police officer in Indiana, I did move to the Keys to continue my law enforcement career with the Key West Police Department.
Reef: Two stoplights, eh? Sounds like Key Largo! Do you miss directly handling a K-9?
Chief: Absolutely, 100%! Some of my most rewarding times as a police officer were during my time as a K-9 handler. Unless you’ve done it, there are no words to fully describe the bond between a K-9 and their handler. I was very lucky and had an amazing partner. I spent 12-18 hours a day, 7 days a week with my K-9. We found a lot of narcotics and put a lot of bad guys in jail.
Reef: I too have a powerful snoot, and even some of my fox friends out in California are scent-trained. But the problem is—we’re one-use only. If you let us go sniff, we don’t come back. Do you have any pets?
Chief: My girlfriend and I have two dogs and a cat, all rescues. The first dog is Bea Arfer. She is a Maltese/Chihuahua mix—six pounds of ferocious. The other dog is Betty Moon. Betty is a Chinese Crested who is epileptic, which requires special food, medication and frequent neurological vet visits. The cat is Henry Pawlins. Henry is polydactyl, and one of his back feet even has almost two full feet that are turned up. Trust me, this does not slow him down!
Reef: Woah, “Bea Arfer”! Believe it or not, I’m a fan of “The Golden Girls!” My favorite character is Sophia: “Picture it: Sicily, 1922.” I’ve heard feedback from Kai after his visits that your officers and staff are pretty fun to hang out with. Do you feel that their good energy is a direct result of your leadership? Chief: I am truly blessed to have an amazing team of professionals who care immensely for this community here at the Key West Police Department. They are the ones out there making the community a safer and friendlier place to live, work and visit. As far as my leadership, I’ve worked for the Key West Police Department for 23 years. I’ve worked my way up through the ranks and have worked directly with most of the command staff at various times in our careers, so I think that gives me an advantage in the sense that we all know each other and what the expectations are from each other.
Reef: Well, I’d say the fact that no one got mad or reached for the cuffs when Kai dropped a bomb on the deputy chief’s floor says a lot about the department as a whole. It clearly takes more than a foxy stink bomb to ruin the mood! And lastly, how would you feel if I started referring to myself as Chief Reef? Chief: I’m good with it. Next time you come to visit, I’ll let you borrow my chief badge for the day. Reef: Well, as you may know, I don’t travel to people — people travel to me. But hey, I might be persuaded to make an exception if there’s a badge involved. Throw in a cup of Cuban coffee and a chicken I can chase, and I’ll have my mom fire up the foxmobile and chauffeur me down.
