Page 8 - Aug Sept 2016

Michael Bery: Master Underwater Criminal Investigator Instructor Trainer

Sonya Trippett: What is a PADI Master Instructor?

Michael Berry: PADI stands for the Professional Association of Diving Instructors
and they are the largest dive training agency in the world. PADI Master Instructors

are recognized as elite scuba diving educators who have taught hundreds of people
to dive and teach a wide variety of scuba related programs.

Sonya Trippett: I understand that you are the only certified Master Underwater

Criminal Investigator Instructor and PADI Master Public Safety Diver Instructor
in the world. This is a fantastic accomplishment please tell us more about how you

accomplished this goal.

Michael Berry: One way to get these ratings is to be “OLD”. Seriously, most
police divers get into this special area of diving and devote anywhere from 1 to
10 years at the most, then move on to other aspects of our profession by getting

promoted or transferring to another field.

I have been around for a long time and have no plans on stopping any time soon.

I’ve been an Underwater Criminal Investigator for 35 years and have been teaching
it for over 30 years. I have taught literally thousands of divers in these related topics
and still conduct underwater criminal investigations for my department as an active

member of their dive team and their team leader. I guess you earn those titles and
certifications through years of actually doing it and literally thousands of operations.

It helps when I’m up in front a group of police divers and I’m the most experienced

one in the room. I’m not teaching something I did 10 years ago before I retired like
you see everywhere. I’m teaching them techniques I used last week on an actual
operation.

Sonya Trippett: While working with UCI, because you work mainly underwater
and this can cause issues with some people who may not be used to working in

water all the time, Did any of your students every experience any anxieties or close
calls while working underwater during their training?

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