An award-winning, nationally published journalist, Daniel P. Smith left his second career as a high school English teacher behind in 2004 to pursue the writing life. Less than five months removed from the classroom and 23 years old, Smith teamed with Chicago-based Lake Claremont Press to write On the Job: Behind the Stars of the Chicago Police Department, his first book and one inspired by his roots in a Chicago Police family. A 2003 graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he was an accomplished track and field athlete, Smith lives in Chicago with his wife, Tina, and children, Fiona and Gavin.