Silver Linings

Marcella Piersol grew up in California's San Fernando Valley, "living on the edge". She surfed, skateboarded, and basically was "super active". Her parents divorced when she was young, and her father was granted custody which was unusual for the early 70's. He had a huge impact on her life. Marcella is a first generation American as her father emigrated with his parents from Germany in 1938 at the age of 5 to avoid WWII. He only spoke German. Putting himself through school, he became an engineer then later an attorney. Ultimately, her father worked for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Marcella graduated from college with a degree in business marketing. Because she has been physically active over the years, she didn't think a "regular job" would be right for her. Before she graduated, she heard that the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department were hiring. She applied and three months later entered the LA Police Academy. In 1984 when she joined LAPD, there