(WXYZ) — The real-life story behind Netflix’s "Narcos" is coming to life in Pontiac Thursday night — and it’s all for a cause that’s hitting close to home for the men behind the event.
Steve Murphy, the retired DEA agent who helped take down notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar, will speak at a public event at the UWM Sports Complex. But this time, he’s not just talking about history — he’s talking about healing.
Murphy has teamed up with Brian Sizemore, a Woodhaven father who lost his son, Lucas, an officer in Atlanta, to suicide earlier this year. The two men met through a work connection, but quickly realized they shared a devastating bond.
“It’s not something you want to have in common with somebody,” Murphy said. “But it gave Brian and me a connection. We’ve both been through very traumatic events in our lives.”
Murphy, who began his DEA career in 1975, says mental health was never something openly discussed in law enforcement. Officers were expected to be “tough guys,” even after life-altering experiences in the field.
“My partner got shot, and by the grace of God, I’m alive,” Murphy said. “Did I go to counseling? No. I thought I was a tough guy.”
For Sizemore, the tragedy struck when he received a phone call no parent ever wants.
“He said, ‘Dad, you gotta sit down,’” Sizemore recalled. “And then he said, ‘Luke’s dead.’”
At first, he couldn’t believe his son had taken his own life.
“In my head, I’m thinking it was some kind of accident,” he said. “You go through every emotion — guilt, immense sadness. We just try to get through today and wake up to try to get through tomorrow.”
Out of that grief, the LUCAS Foundation was born — named in memory of Brian’s son, with a mission to destigmatize mental health support in law enforcement.
“Mostly it’s to get the law enforcement community to bond together to try to do something very difficult,” Sizemore said. “But it’s going to put this crisis in the public’s face, and they won’t be able to ignore it.”
Murphy said he still relives traumatic memories from his DEA career — including the day his partner was shot in 1989.
“I had dreams, not nightmares, just dreams reliving that day until I retired in 2013,” he said.
The foundation aims to promote mental health as a routine part of wellness for officers, starting with new recruits.
“If we can get those recruits to see that it’s okay — and accept the fact they’re probably going to have to talk to somebody — 20 years from now it will be like going to get your foot X-rayed,” Sizemore said.
“There is nothing so bad, or nothing that can’t be fixed, that it has to get to that point,” Sizemore said.
