05-16-25 *INTERVIEW* Vinnie Montez of the Boulder County Sheriff's Office and Comedian

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
He's torturing me with Neil Young.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
Maybe I like that beerd You remind me of a
lot of our fire guys, you know, at the Sheriff's office,
they all have those.

Speaker 1 (00:08):
I'm so pleased to.

Speaker 3 (00:09):
Be joined in studio again, second time in studio by
Vinnie Montes. And the first time I heard Vinnie speak
was at comedy Works and he was opening for I
don't remember who, but maybe Vinnie was more memorable than
the headliner, because I don't remember who it was.

Speaker 1 (00:27):
And so we had Vinnie.

Speaker 3 (00:29):
Inn because he's such an interesting dude. At the time,
he was a commander in the Boulder County Sheriff's Department
and still at Boulder County doing another thing that we'll
talk about in a second.

Speaker 1 (00:41):
And the reason Vinnie's back is a very strange thing.

Speaker 3 (00:43):
I emailed the Boulder County Sheriff's Department to ask a question.
It doesn't matter what the question was. I emailed to
ask a question, and then the email I get back
from the public information officer assigned Vinnie Montes PIO.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
I'm like, dude, I know we over Let we come
and we find each other in the most remote places.

Speaker 3 (01:04):
You know, how did you we'll get to comedy in
a second, but tell me about going from commander to
pio and and how are you digging that?

Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah, I have a background on social media, uh, doing
all my own social media. But also I love talking
to people and that is a big part of being
a PIO is to communicate with people. And you know,
with comedy growing, I had an opportunity to apply for
the supervisor role for the public Information. I got that,
and I had a lot of responsibility as commander and

(01:39):
it was quite a bit so it kind of works
more of a balance and it's just it's the right
place for me in the career. And I'm just very
happy that the Sheriff's given me the opportunity, so pretty
excited about it.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
And hey, I got to talk to you again, diorrectly right.
I just felt like, oh my gosh, what a small world.
I can't get rid of us, I can't get rid
of you.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
Wherefore I go, You're just trying to find me and
again think you're trying to sock me.

Speaker 1 (02:01):
He's honestly, what's going on?

Speaker 3 (02:05):
Also, but one other thing before we get to comedy,
you were telling me before we went on the air,
just you've been interested in law enforcement since you.

Speaker 1 (02:11):
Were a little kid.

Speaker 2 (02:11):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I started as law enforcement explorer at
the age of fourteen. I joined the Sheriff's office when
I was sixteen.

Speaker 1 (02:18):
I started.

Speaker 2 (02:18):
I was with another agency for a few years because
I couldn't get on the Sheriff's office. Yeah, they're cadet
program until you turn sixteen, and so I've been there
for like a long time I started. I was also
a dispatcher while I was in college at CU with
the Sheriff's office.

Speaker 1 (02:30):
Wow. Yeah, I've got a lot.

Speaker 2 (02:32):
I've worked almost everywhere in the entire regency, I think,
except for Sevil. I've worked in the jail, patrol, detectives,
and you name it, I've done it.

Speaker 1 (02:40):
So yeah, So.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
I if there's somebody listening, I doubt there's a lot
of kids listening right now. But if there's parents who
have kids listening right now or like kind of and
the kids are kind of interested in law enforcement, can
you tell them a little bit about the explorer programer
And it might be a little different from county to county,
but what they can do.

Speaker 2 (03:00):
Their kids, So it's not just for law enforcement, it's
a it's a growth program. And what I mean by
that gives people experience young people, so young people between
the ages of fourteen to twenty one. For our agency specifically,
they meet on the first and third tuesdays of the month.
They go to Chandler for competitions every year. They have
great mentors and advisors. They get to ride as volunteers
with officers, not only in the jail, but in patrol.

(03:21):
They're not cops by any means. This is a great
mentorship program. It builds life skills like the ability to communicate,
you know, how to conduct yourself. And it's just a
great opportunity to be around people who are of good
nature and to have good mentors.

Speaker 1 (03:34):
And I got to tell you.

Speaker 2 (03:35):
I wouldn't be where I'm at today if I didn't
have those people in my life when I was that young, What.

Speaker 1 (03:39):
Did you have? A childhood was a little challenging or my.

Speaker 2 (03:43):
Parents, you know, they did the very best they could
come from a traditional Mexican family, but they didn't really
know about why to be a police officer and that
so this provided me an inn. And then my parents
didn't even have a college education, and let alone high
school educations. And that's not trying to be very negative
about that because I love my parents. It's very much Sure.
I had people who I could lean on and ask
those questions. I mean my mentor Phil. Uh the time,

(04:05):
when I was pretty young, he would rewrite pretty much.
I turned it in an essay for college and I'd
get it back and it would just be nothing but red.
So so I'm just saying that, not that that would
be the experience for a young kid today, but maybe
it would. Uh they probably just use chat GDP. But uh,
the thing about it is is it's a great opportunity
to grow. And you don't have to want to go

(04:26):
into law enforcement, but if you are interested. I used
to watch Chips as a kid. Yeah, sure that was
my instruiration. Yeah, you know Eric Castrada and.

Speaker 1 (04:32):
Yeah you had you had the Mexican role model there anyway. Yeah,
in addition to whatever.

Speaker 3 (04:37):
The other dude's name is John John, we're talking with
Vinie Montes Viniemontes dot com. V I N N I
E M O n t e z dot com. Uh,
tell me a little about the new documentary about you
and why is there a documentary about vinieisms and so on?

Speaker 2 (04:55):
So I got approached by Lightning Entertainment film company, and
they wanted to see if be possible to film me
and follow me around. So we started this project like
in twenty twenty three. It starts with me at the
Sheriff's office and goes all the way back to my
young childhood explorers all the way to current day, and
they just thought it was really a unique role.

Speaker 1 (05:15):
Jason Harney, the film maker, It's weird.

Speaker 2 (05:18):
To find a cop doing stand up comedy, right, and
so why is that cop doing stand up comedy?

Speaker 1 (05:22):
Taking the funny and the things that I see in my.

Speaker 2 (05:24):
World as a police officer and translating that to the
general public and making it funny, but also the dark
humor that goes along with it, and where I was
in my career, seeing the experiences that were over time
traumatic to me, and what I did and found in comedy,
especially stand up comedy, to get to where I'm at
today and just to you know, self, heal myself, so
you know, I stay mentally sound now struggle still.

Speaker 3 (05:47):
So what's the name of the of the film and
where can people see it?

Speaker 1 (05:51):
Great question?

Speaker 2 (05:52):
So it's Vinyisms, the story of the cop comedian and
you can watch it now on Amazon Prime.

Speaker 1 (05:57):
Hey, thanks for the plug.

Speaker 3 (05:58):
Yeah, No, happy to and Dragon. I just want to
share a listener text with you, Ross, what is that
a dying stork? And another listener text, Neil Young is
a crime against humanity?

Speaker 1 (06:09):
And another listener.

Speaker 3 (06:10):
Text, what's going on at the Kowa Blowtorch? All this
Neil Young music and Sockshoe sock shoe business. I'm trying
to have a nice, relaxing Friday, but you're making it.

Speaker 1 (06:19):
Hard for me. Wow, blame Ross just got an eighty
six this producer. Oh my gosh, that's some hate right there.
I love you, bro, don't worry. I got you. I
love your baldpad too, only because I can relate, you
know what I'm saying.

Speaker 3 (06:34):
All Right, So let's let's do a little bit of
the intersection of cop life and comedy. That sort of
took a little bit what's in the documentary, But it's
also your your daily life, right Yeah, I mean, like
more so when I was in patrol. Yeah yeah, But
there's always that intersection because those experiences, you know, wherever
I perform around the country, like I just did an
all women's Law Enforcement summit and Fargo, North Dakota and.

Speaker 2 (06:56):
That was so I had a special tale that I,
oh my gosh, I learned.

Speaker 1 (07:00):
I thought it was gonna be rough, like were they
going to handle it?

Speaker 2 (07:02):
Like, I was a little worried, So I wrote some
special stuff and they were like it was they enjoyed
the dirty, which kind of surprised me. I was like,
I was a little worried because I'd never been in
that situation before. But it was an awesome show and
I'm looking forward to come Dome doing another.

Speaker 3 (07:15):
But tell us I don't like to, you know, say
make me laugh, but like, tell me like a story
from your cop life that, as you think about it
was so ridiculous that, like you could have written it
as a comedy.

Speaker 1 (07:28):
Bit.

Speaker 2 (07:29):
Well, I did you know the story I talked about
the bear? My buddy Sam Hard, he is a sergeant
for the Sheriff's office to this day. Yeah, him and
I get dispatched up to this bear, like literally this
bear in this house and like, we have no experience
dealing with bears. What training do they give you an
academy to deal with bears?

Speaker 1 (07:44):
Right?

Speaker 2 (07:44):
So you got this big swat guy and either going
inside the house, and you know, thank god, literally. The
funny part about it is in real life he's like here, bear, here, bear, bear, Bear,
like literally calling out to this bear like a child,
and I'm I'm I'm wondering, like are we gonna get
eight up?

Speaker 1 (07:58):
And like destroyed? Here Thankfully the bear had left. And
then I take the.

Speaker 2 (08:02):
Comedy part of it and I talk about, you know,
the bear leaving and leaving an after trail after eating kale.

Speaker 1 (08:07):
Chips and stuff.

Speaker 2 (08:08):
And so I've been able to take that world of
comedy or another one. It's actually a story that was
based on him, but I've told it so many times
I believe that actually happened to me. And it talks
about a loof on Halloween being on the side of
the roadway and this interaction between her.

Speaker 1 (08:22):
She's like, are you a dirty officer? And I'm like,
oh my god. Maybe.

Speaker 2 (08:26):
And so you just find those connection points, right and
taking the things that we experienced in real life and
just translating that to stand up comedy, and for me,
that has been such a healing piece.

Speaker 1 (08:38):
It's so powerful because there's.

Speaker 2 (08:39):
Nothing that will bridge people together quicker that somebody who
was able to relate to them, especially when they're funny
it's hard to be mad at somebody when you're funny.

Speaker 1 (08:47):
You're like, here's your ticket. But how do I be funny?
You know you do that.

Speaker 3 (08:50):
When you were on patrol. Would you make a joke
when you're giving someone a tickets?

Speaker 1 (08:54):
Just keep it light. I would always keep it light.

Speaker 2 (08:55):
I think the most interesting thing about that is I
was at the Boulder Dairy Center and I can't remember
what function were there, Yeah, and I saw this lady.
She's like, oh, I remember you. You pulled me over.
And I was like, oh, I don't give you a
ticket and she's like no, but you told her. Boyfriend's like,
I love you because you told her that she didn't
get rid of all of our old registration and insurance cards,
that you would write her a ticket.

Speaker 1 (09:13):
So where can you find the funny?

Speaker 2 (09:15):
Right? People don't find cops very funny oftentimes because they're
having that connection with them at the most crisis point
in their life. Yeah, and so being able to keep
it light and cops are very funny. If you ever
get to sit in on a briefing for patrol, all
they do is give each other a hard time because
that's just the world we grow up in. You know,
we're just funny. We'd like to have a good time.
People don't always see that side of a cop, sure,

(09:36):
but that's what exists. And I'm telling you I am
not the funniest cop that's out there. There are more
funny people, but they just this is not where they
find themselves.

Speaker 1 (09:42):
Do we stand up comedy. But there's funnier people that
I work with than me.

Speaker 3 (09:46):
We're talking with Vinnie Montes and he's at the Bowler
County Sheriff's Department, been there for more than two decades,
and you know very much up and coming comedian.

Speaker 1 (09:57):
In fact, you're gonna be headlining. So it comedy Why
twenty fourth of comedy works here down here at this
twenty Yeah?

Speaker 3 (10:03):
This okay, comedy works South July twenty fourth.

Speaker 1 (10:05):
Yeah, I'm sure we'll.

Speaker 3 (10:07):
We'll get back to that, like the a few days
before you're on. Maybe you'll come back with Mel or
whatever and we'll we'll just make sure to promote that
a little bit.

Speaker 1 (10:16):
Love mel love Mel by the way, yeah, mel. So
let me ask you this thing.

Speaker 3 (10:20):
So, I just before you got here, I had to
apologize to the audience, and I had forgotten I had
already apologized for this because I felt so bad about it.
And I think the first time I apologized, I was
feeling so bad that I even blacked out, blocked out
that I had apologized. And I did it again just now, uh,
just before you got here, and I should I should note.

(10:42):
So Vinnie's not in uniform. I don't see cuffs. I
don't think. I don't think my day off. Yeah, so
I don't. I don't think.

Speaker 1 (10:50):
This is going to end up with uh, you know,
mean being taken away.

Speaker 3 (10:53):
But the other day I accidentally accidentally There's got to
be something there right as not intentional.

Speaker 1 (11:00):
I know, I'm a mandatory reporter. I know, I know.
This is what I'm worried about it. I accidentally did
sock shoe, sock shoe. You did sock shoe? Socks shoe?
You mean like putting them on? Yeah?

Speaker 2 (11:16):
Wow, that's a violation of the Code conduct. There's somewhere
up there that you put your socks on first, see,
then you put on your shoes.

Speaker 1 (11:23):
That's the way I do it. I'm just telling you
the way I do it. I know, well, this is
the way any decent human does.

Speaker 3 (11:27):
The controversy out there in the world round a little bit,
a little bit, and it's a thing that I ask
a lot of my guests. Now. I do find from
time to time there are folks who were either in
the military or folks who were in the gym.

Speaker 1 (11:42):
A lot they.

Speaker 3 (11:43):
Do sock shoe because they didn't want to put a
sock down on a wet floor in the gym, or
they didn't want to put a sock down in the
sand and then get sand in the boot in the military.

Speaker 2 (11:51):
Oh yeah, I had a little well it also for
like when I wear a uniform every day. Yeah, I
were attachments that would hold my shirt. I can't remember
the fasteners wherever you call them. So I put on
my socks and then I clip these things onto the
bottom of my uniform shirt and then they go around
my foot before I ever put my shoe on. So
I had I had a little thing that I did
before I put my shoe on. Yeah, So it would

(12:13):
have really nice, and it would have really messed you
up if you did sock shoe.

Speaker 1 (12:17):
That just what. Yeah, you can't do it.

Speaker 3 (12:19):
You can't have to take a moment to put on
the fast You can't do a thing. H hi Ross,
Please tell Vinnie. It's so cool. He is able to
embrace role models and not idols. It's an interesting yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 (12:32):
Let's see what was the other one?

Speaker 3 (12:33):
Ask him about the topless trespassing pool bit.

Speaker 1 (12:40):
Do you know what this is about? Yeah? Yeah, it's
it's a bit that I wrote.

Speaker 2 (12:45):
It talks about hot tubs and people after hours and
what it would look like if well when we show up. Uh,
that's as far as I'm got to go. It's a
dirty bit. Yeah, it's a little bit. It's a little
bit blue.

Speaker 3 (13:00):
Are you Are you likely to do that bit when
you headline in July?

Speaker 1 (13:04):
Or is that come see it comedy works. I will
do that bit. Yeah, well I called I called the
hot tub bit hot tub. Did you see this story
from a couple of.

Speaker 3 (13:12):
Days ago where a hot tub and centennial.

Speaker 1 (13:14):
Caught on fire?

Speaker 3 (13:15):
No?

Speaker 1 (13:15):
I didn't. I didn't. And then there's a.

Speaker 3 (13:17):
Picture of the of a hot tub on fire, which
I really didn't didn't think could be. And then I
made a comment about the album cover of Pink Floyd
wish you were here, and I figured that was just
you know, the album cover of Pink Floyd which you
were here with the guy on fire.

Speaker 1 (13:29):
Have you seen this thing. I've seen it, but I'm
not like I can't just picture.

Speaker 3 (13:32):
It turned out the guy really was on fire for
the picture, and I just thought it was, you know,
like some they didn't have CGI then but something, and
the guy really was on fire. Uh.

Speaker 1 (13:41):
What's your listener?

Speaker 3 (13:42):
And what's your favorite police movie? Oh's Mandy Hi Lethal Weapon?

Speaker 2 (13:47):
The original leth Weapons is I just like, you know,
the relationship between Merktop and Riggs was just me and
sam My buddy, Sam, you know that is.

Speaker 1 (13:57):
The relationship you like, He's fully to like risk more.
Uh huh, I'm.

Speaker 2 (14:03):
Always like, you know, more like we're cautious, like what
happens if this happens, and I'm always worried about everything.
So uh yeah, Sam and I are that wonderful pair
of like punching John.

Speaker 1 (14:11):
We just we feed off each other.

Speaker 2 (14:12):
We're very different personality, very loud and present, but we
think a lot differently.

Speaker 4 (14:18):
So do you two know each other? We've been before
before before? Yeah, Black Quality radio show that comes on
right after yours. He was on mine first. I just
will throw that out there.

Speaker 1 (14:27):
That is true. That is true. Really how long ago
was that was that?

Speaker 2 (14:31):
Like?

Speaker 1 (14:31):
I think it was what last year no.

Speaker 2 (14:33):
Because we were cuts on with you last year, maybe
more than an year though more.

Speaker 1 (14:39):
I think it's been like before COVID, wasn't it I
it could have been.

Speaker 4 (14:42):
I'm not I'm honestly not good at times.

Speaker 1 (14:44):
Wow, yeah, I'm right now. It's very.

Speaker 4 (14:49):
Linear thinking.

Speaker 1 (14:50):
It's not it's not how the old brain works.

Speaker 3 (14:52):
So if you in your p IO job and your
public information officer job for Boulder Sheriff, you might from
time to time, if there's a big enough store you
have to like go in front of a rouma media
or something.

Speaker 1 (15:03):
I answer questions and say stuff.

Speaker 2 (15:04):
Some of the fires we've had, I've been out, you know,
like a press conference kind of thing.

Speaker 1 (15:07):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (15:08):
So do you ever get nervous at that? Do you
ever get nervous when you're doing stand up? Do they
feel about the same to you or is that a
very different feeling.

Speaker 1 (15:14):
So I always have a ritual.

Speaker 2 (15:16):
I always say, right before I go do anything, I'm
gonna punch this crowd right in the I can't say
it online, but.

Speaker 1 (15:23):
I get nervous for like maybe thirty seconds.

Speaker 2 (15:25):
But once I'm in the moment, it all goes away
and I just get right into it because it's what
I've been doing.

Speaker 1 (15:29):
You know, it's what I do.

Speaker 4 (15:30):
Get a little Excel spreadsheet of cliches to use in
cop press conferences.

Speaker 1 (15:34):
No, no, no, curious.

Speaker 2 (15:36):
Although my partner, Carrie, she loves a good pun, she
loves that.

Speaker 4 (15:41):
I've been to my share of cop press conferences and
there's generally speaking, you get a lot of the same
sort of lines about stuff.

Speaker 1 (15:48):
Yeah, you do, because it's it's what you insigation. It's
an active investigation.

Speaker 3 (15:54):
It's like how you know Bill Belichick or any of
those guys are going to say the same thing no
matter what the question is, do you it's always about
the teamwork and we're.

Speaker 1 (16:02):
Gonna leave it all out on the field. Throw one
of those in in your next press.

Speaker 2 (16:06):
I do want to, like I have my mind works
comedically all the time, and I always want to just
come out there instead of just starting get in English.

Speaker 1 (16:12):
I want to be like I guess have been eat,
I said, press conference and let's just on.

Speaker 2 (16:15):
My key and everybody like what's going on when young
guys like now, you.

Speaker 1 (16:25):
Guys know, I swear said my mother's listening right now,
you know, mother, I love that. I love it.

Speaker 2 (16:35):
Yes, actually because a Rod's mom wife, yeah, yeah,