INTERVIEW: Detective Pat Postiglione is unforgettable in ‘Deadly Recall’
Photo: Deadly Recall features the cases of Detective Pat Postiglione. Photo courtesy of ID / Provided by press rep with permission.
Investigation Discovery’s Deadly Recall is back with a second season of episodes, premiering Wednesday, April 15 at 10 p.m. on the network. On the reality series, audience members follow Detective Pat Postiglione as he looks back at some of his scariest and most heinous criminal cases, all the while remembering vivid details and exact dates. His memory gives the show its name and is also the hallmark of the series.
Postiglione was a homicide detective for the Nashville Police Department, and the new season takes a second look at cases that grabbed the headlines and others that were quieter, more intimate affairs. The debut episode focuses on Steve McNair, the former NFL quarterback who was found dead in his condominium, according to press notes.
Another episode looks at a homicide at a truck stop, a case in which surveillance footage proves so important. Yet another case shows the investigation into the murder of a night clerk at a Days Inn hotel, while another episode takes a deep dive into a 1987 case that came early in Postiglione’s career.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox talked with the homicide detective about his career and what fans can expect in the second season. Here’s what he had to say …
On whether he was an immediate ‘yes’ for a second season …
“It was all new to me, so when they came to me with the first season, everything I did was new. I had no idea what to expect, what to anticipate, but then the second season, they came and said, ‘Well, we have the approval for a second season, are you interested?’ I said, ‘Well, I know pretty much what to expect now. I kind of know what the process is.’ So it was a little bit easier to go, but more importantly for me it allows us the opportunity to tell six more stories, six more victims and to be able to tell their stories. So that was very important to me, so because we had the opportunity to do that, yes, I was all in.”
On how he and the team choose the cases for the TV show …
“There’s a whole lot of cases I’ve been involved in over the years, either as a supervisor … or as a detective literally investigating the homicide, so you come across a lot of unusual homicides, different scenarios. Ones that you think would be the most interesting, I think, you ask them about that, and then the ID channel, they look through it. And they make a decision, and the big thing is you get the cooperation and the participation of the family members. And if you can do that, then that’s the direction you go in. We had a lot of that. We were very obliged to help the families tell the stories of the victims.”
On his incredible memory …
“Maybe I thought it was kind of normal. I thought maybe everybody had the same kind of memory or the same kind of recall. I began to notice that I was able to recall a lot of details on crime scenes when I moved into the homicide unit. I was able to be inside a crime scene, which was totally brand new to me. I’ve never been inside of a crime scene under these circumstances, so you have to recall every single detail. You’re supposed to write down every single detail, but I was able to recall the detail and make mental notes.
“After I left the crime scene, I was able to produce those mental notes on the paper. I was able to recall all the details whether it was a week later or a month later or six months later — for some reason, even years later, I’m able to recall the specifics of the case, the name of the victim, the type of weapon, the circumstances.
“They call it a blessing and a curse, and I guess to a certain extent that’s true. I think it’s more of a blessing because I think over the years it has helped me and other investigators that I work with solve some of these cases.”
On when he wanted to be a homicide detective …
“I wanted to get my feet wet when I first joined the police department. I wanted to get my feet wet in the patrol setting. When you work in patrol, I worked in a higher crime area, so when I worked in that area, I worked there for seven years, you pretty much get to see and experience literally every single kind of crime there is. You don’t necessarily investigate the crime, but you get to go briefly on the crime scene. You get to understand the circumstances. You get to understand the viciousness of how human beings can hurt and kill other human beings, and that kind of blew my mind. I did begin to go toward homicide, and I felt like once you investigate a homicide, it’s difficult to investigate anything else, at least from my perspective.”
On whether these cases still haunt him …
“I wouldn’t say they haunt me. I would say like every homicide detective I’m sure has all their homicides, crime scenes that they’ve been to, I’m sure they have them all stacked in there. And for the most part you’re able to suppress that, but they’re there. They’re still there, and every so often, a particular one for whatever reason surfaced, whether it’s in the middle of the night, whether it’s in the middle of the day, whatever the deal is. They will periodically surface.
“I recall them, but I don’t think I look at it as though they’re haunting me. It’s just that I’m able to recall what the victims had gone through. I’m very partial for the victims and their families and that kind of thing, so I don’t look at it as a haunting thing. I look at it more as I recall these homicides, and that’s just something I have to live with. I’m sure other homicide detectives go through the exact same thing.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Deadly Recall, featuring Detective Pat Postiglione, kicks off its second season Wednesday, April 15 at 10 p.m. on Investigation Discovery. Click here for more information.
