Wendell has over 31 years of experience in public safety serving as a firefighter paramedic, fire captain, and battalion chief. With over 18 years of experience investigating fires, Wendell has personally conducted over 700 fire investigations involving residential, commercial, wildland, vehicles, and human fatalities. As a Chief Officer in the fire service, he was responsible for the development of a 13-city regional fire investigation task force and served as the task force coordinator, where he participated and supervised investigations involving large losses, serial arson, and homicides. His experience as a Deputy Fire Marshal has provided him with a solid ability to understand and interpret the fire code, as his duties included the management of a fire prevention bureau. His experience extends beyond the public sector, where he has worked for four years as the lead fire investigator for a private forensic firm concurrently with his public service. Wendell has testified as an expert witness 27 times in the Superior Court of California for fire origin and cause in both criminal and civil cases.