The Squad Room

＂This compelling murder mystery offers everyone a small glimpse into life in law enforcement.＂ -- Foreword Reviews

Bill Morrison’s life is falling apart. He is a shadow of his former self, consumed with grief after his son was killed in the line of duty. Captain of the New York City Police Department and a world class investigator, Bill is still well-respected by his peers. Yet, his second marriage is in shambles and he finds solace in an affair and the numbing effects of alcohol.

Amidst these personal struggles, Bill and his team are tasked with hunting down a ferocious serial killer and sexual predator that is terrorizing New York City. If that wasn’t enough, corrupt officers threaten to derail the investigation as Bill and his Detective Squad race against time to bring the murderer to justice.

There have been countless crime dramas written about murder mysteries, but rarely written by two actual Police Chiefs. Co-written by retired NYPD Chief John Cutter and retired City of Stamford Chief of Police Bob Nivakoff, The Squad Room touches on their real life experiences through the lens of fiction.

Born and raised in Nassau County, Long Island, Chief John Cutter started his 24+ year career in law enforcement in 1980 as a police officer working in New York City’s gritty Public Housing Projects. Starting as a Foot Patrol officer during the Crack-Epidemic, Cutter rose through the ranks of the NYPD serving as the Commanding officer of the famous Major Crimes Unit and later of Manhattan North Detective Operations. Cutter continued to be promoted through the ranks, eventually achieving the rank of Deputy Chief and was tasked with implementing and overseeing all counter-terrorism activities within the NYPD’s illustrious Criminal Intelligence Division. In addition to his position within the NYPD, Mr. Cutter was also designated the commanding officer of the New York/New Jersey Regional Intelligence Center, a multi-agency command center which collected, analyzed and distributed intelligence materials from a local, state and federal level.

Born and raised in Queens, New York, the son of a New York State Trooper, Chief Bob Nivakoff started his 40-year career in law enforcement in 1973 as a Patrol Officer in the New York Port Authority Police Department, walking a beat in the gritty Port Authority Bus Terminal. In 1980, Nivakoff transferred to the City of Stamford Police Department where he rose through the ranks serving as an Undercover Narcotics officer, a Patrol Sergeant, a Major Crimes Unit Detective and Lieutenant and as Patrol and Operations Commander/Chief. In 2009, Nivakoff was appointed Chief of Police and served in that role until retiring in 2012. At the time of his retirement, Stamford had the lowest crime rate in the Northeast and the 9th lowest crime rate of any major city in America. In 2011, Nivakoff was named Connecticut Police Chief of the Year by the Connecticut State Police Commission.