Mick Unplugged
Sergeant James Booker on Integrity, Prison Politics, and Leading with Character
26 Apr 2025
Sergeant James Booker is a retired law enforcement officer with a remarkable legacy of service, leadership, and integrity. Growing up in a family deeply rooted in law enforcement in Pensacola, Florida, Booker began his public service after leaving the Marine Corps and worked his way from the only true "prison" in Florida—Florida State Prison—to the progressive and challenging Broward County Sheriff's Department. Over the course of his career, Booker earned a reputation for steadfast principles, hands-on leadership, and unwavering commitment to doing what’s right, no matter the cost. His journey includes facing the harsh realities of the correctional system, mentoring future leaders like Raymond Hicks, and providing guidance and hope to those navigating profound personal and professional trials. Takeaways: Character and Standards Matter: Booker emphasizes that maintaining your values and upholding high standards, especially in positions of authority, defines your legacy and influence as a leader. Prisons Run on Complex, Unseen Dynamics: The real-life operations and power structures inside prisons are far more nuanced and disciplined than most people realize—offering a stark contrast to TV and movie depictions. Leadership is Service and Sacrifice: True leadership is shown through mentorship, unwavering support during adversity, tough but fair accountability, and always putting integrity above personal convenience. Sound Bites: "Most people think in Florida that there's a multitude of prisons. It's only one prison in the state of Florida... everything else is a correctional facility or work camp." "At the end of the day, that's all people can judge you on is your character. Nothing else. It's your character." "If something is wrong, just know it's wrong. Nobody can tell you it's right when you know it's wrong." Mick’s Quote: "How you do small things is how you do all things." FOLLOW MICK ON:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mickunplugged/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mickunplugged/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mickunplugged LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mickhunt/Website: https://www.mickhuntofficial.com Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mick-unplugged/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Full Episode
You got a guy out there, a young lady out there, that has probably gone through something similar like you have, and because they heard your story, it gives them hope, it gives them direction, because a lot of people don't know which way to go or which way to turn in order to put themselves in a position to even start the fight.
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Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another exciting episode of Mic Unplugged. And today, we're going deep into a story and a path of legacy. We're talking to a former police sergeant who stood alongside my former guest, Mr. Raymond Hicks, as a decorated Broward County Sheriff who faced wrongful accusations after exposing internal corruption.
Together, they navigated the challenges of integrity with law enforcement, shedding light on systemic issues. Their journey underscores the complexities of upholding justice within the justice system. Please join me in welcoming the courageous, the steadfast, and the principled, Mr. James Booker. Sergeant Booker, how you doing today, sir? I'm fine, sir. How are you? I am great. I am honored.
Now, I was telling you offline, like, you're someone that I look up to and respect. I have family. Shout out to my cousin, Detective Torrence Jackson, in the Pickens County law enforcement department. I have family that's law enforcement, man. So law enforcement is something that I've always held dear to my heart. My grandfather was the first Black sheriff in our hometown.
And so we've always had a tradition within our family of upholding the blue to the highest standard, the highest regard. That also doesn't mean that there aren't issues, right? And those issues, we're not pointing them out per se, but just like anything in the school system, there's issues. In the government, there's issues, right? Like in people's households, there's issues.
So this isn't definitely not an attack on anything law enforcement does. But I just wanted to tell you face to face, man, just honored to know you, honored to be a part of the legacy that you've created. And just would love to hear a little bit about your background.
And then we're going to go into the things that you've done, go into some specific situations and just let you shed light where you want to shed light, brother. Okay. Sounds good. Awesome. Awesome. So let's talk about Sergeant James Booker, man. Like, where'd you grow up? Like, where did this yearning to go into law enforcement start?
Well, I grew up in Pensacola, Florida. I as well come from a law enforcement background. My mother, she was in law enforcement. She retired as a major with the Escambia County Sheriff's Department. My sister, she retired as a lieutenant with the Escambia County Sheriff's Department. And my older brother, he worked for ATF and he also worked with the
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