We have assembled a team of exceptional professionals to lead Alternative Ballistics and change the landscape of less-lethal options for today’s policing.
TEAM SPOTLIGHT:
We have assembled a team of exceptional professionals to lead Alternative Ballistics and change the landscape of less-lethal options for today’s policing. Drawing on decades of expertise in business and law enforcement, our team and board bring knowledge, experience, and a desire to improve trust between police departments and the communities they protect, all while saving lives.
Steve Luna - Chief Executive Officer and Director
Mr. Luna’s career began in 2009 in the legal industry working in the investigations division for one of the nation’s leading litigation support companies. He later transitioned from legal into the marketing technology sector as a regional account executive providing web development and search engine optimization services for key clients in Los Angeles and Orange County, California, with his first exposure to the public markets through a company named LiveDeal (NASDAQ:LIVE). In 2013, Mr. Luna became Senior Advisor of Investor Relations for a Las Vegas firm and from there, launched a consultant group with two of his partners focusing on business development and investor relations for private and public entities. His expertise in the public markets enabled Mr. Luna to assist over two dozen publicly traded companies on OTC and NASDAQ to create investor awareness and maintain or increase operational efficiencies. He has exhibited acumen in business execution, public and investor relations, product launch, effective go-to-market strategies, and realized revenue.
With his wide range of business skills from various sectors of the legal and technology industries and his time as Vice President of his own business and investor relations consulting firm, Mr. Luna brings experience and insight valuable to our board of directors.
Jason LeBlanc - Chief Operations Officer and Director
Over the course of a decade, Mr. LeBlanc ascended the ranks from a Court Department Manager to the San Diego Senior Division Partner of First Legal, a premier litigation support company working with some of the largest law firms in the world throughout its 13 locations in California, Nevada, and Arizona. Serving as the Regional Director at First Legal overseeing all aspects of the company from sales and business development to operations, he led a team of over 30 employees and was responsible for the San Diego region’s P&L, which ranked in the top three performers out of all company locations in profit margin and client retention.
After his ten-year tenure at First Legal, Mr. LeBlanc moved onto an OTC fintech company as Director of Business Development and then as Chief Operations Officer, where he helped the company realize millions of dollars in processing volume and revenue within his first year as a C-level executive. He then moved on to become Chief Compliance Officer where he was instrumental in government relations activities, presenting to regulators and lawmakers in several states including California, Washington, Nevada, Ohio, and New Jersey.
Mr. LeBlanc brings a wide range of professional acumen to our executive team and board of directors from his expertise in business development, operations, and compliance, built through his experience in the legal, fintech, and finance industries.
Vanessa Luna - Executive Vice President and Chairperson of the Board
Throughout her over 20 years of professional experience, Ms. Luna has held multiple C-Suite, Director, Board, and management-relation positions where her keen business acumen has been crucial in driving significant growth and profitability as well as the development and launch of initiatives focused on maximizing internal processes and procedures to create productivity. This experience includes executive and management roles at OTC, NASDAQ, and Fortune 500 companies, the American Red Cross, and some of the nation’s leading service organizations in the private sector including legal, prepaid card, financial, construction, technology, real estate, high-risk, and other service industries. Most recently, Ms. Luna worked at GreenBox POS, now, RYVYL, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYVL) from 2021 through 2022 (NASDAQ:RYVL); Global Payout, Inc. from 2016 through 2020 (OTCPINK:PSYC); Luna Consulting Group, LLC from 2015 to present; and LiveDeal Inc. in 2013 (NASDAQ:LIVE).
Ms. Luna’s prior and ongoing experience is as CEO to Luna Consulting Group, LLC (LCG), a private corporate strategy, communications, and business development firm which she co-founded in January 2015 where she works to drive profitability and bring awareness to small-to-mid-cap companies across a diverse range of professional sectors representing both public and private clientele. She has worked with over two dozen publicly traded companies and continues to consult.
Ms. Luna’s extensive experience and background in business development, operations, and organizational growth initiatives for both private and public companies makes her an ideal Chairperson for the board of Alternative Ballistics.
Law Enforcement Consultants
Alex Perez - Strategic Law Enforcement Consultant
Chief of Police Alex Perez (ret.) is a 28-year veteran of the North Las Vegas Police Department (NLVPD) and recently completed his honorable and decorated career serving as the city’s top law enforcement leader. He started as a Patrol Officer in the early 90s and rose steadily to working as a Narcotics Investigator on an FBI Task Force and then to a position with the Joint Terrorism Task Force shortly after 9/11. Perez continued to earn promotions to Sergeant and Lieutenant before graduating from the FBI National Academy #245 in 2011. He became Assistant Chief shortly before settling into his executive leadership role in 2015 as Las Vegas’s first Latino Chief of Police.
Through his cultivation of inclusivity, mutual trust, transparency, and respect within both the department and the public, Chief Perez’s success was defined by his ability to bring the community together through dialogue and action. As one of his remarkable achievements, he started the Hispanic Citizen’s Academy to educate Spanish speaking citizens about how law enforcement works, successfully forging a stronger relationship between the two groups.
Widely regarded as one of the most effective chiefs to serve the City of North Las Vegas, Chief Perez remains a member of various law enforcement associations such as the Nevada Sheriffs & Chiefs Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the Latino Peace Officers Association. Perez is a current board member of 10,000 Kids and Nevada Child Seekers, nonprofits focused on locating missing children and putting an end to child trafficking.
As the Lead Law Enforcement Strategist for Alternative Ballistics, Mr. Perez plans to leverage his extensive experience as a police officer and public official to guide, articulate and lend credibility to the Company’s mission.
Board of Directors
Bruce Culver - Director
Throughout Bruce Culver’s decades-long career, he has been a distinguished entrepreneur, investor, executive, and scientist reflecting a blend of innovative leadership, strategic investment, and scientific expertise.
Mr. Culver began his career in the scientific instrument industry where he worked as a marketing executive, product manager, and scientist for such companies as Bausch & Lomb/ARL, Hach Company, and Varian Associates. Mr. Culver then ventured into the staffing industry by founding the company Lab Support, Inc., leading as CEO, Chairman, and Director. Under his leadership, Lab Support attracted venture capital and grew into a significant player in the industry, going public on NASDAQ in 1992 as On Assignment, Inc. (ASGN), and is currently listed on the NYSE.
Mr. Culver then went on to found Professional Staff plc, a UK-based specialty staffing business, where he again raised venture capital and led the company as CEO and Chairman. Professional Staff plc went public on NASDAQ and was later privatized. During his tenure, the company expanded through acquisitions.
Mr. Culver later acquired California Distribution, Inc. (CDI), a logistics and distribution company serving over 50 businesses in Southern California. He managed CDI until its sale. He also entered the technology sector with the acquisition of IdealHire, Inc., a disruptive SAAS recruitment technology firm. As CEO and Chairman, he spearheaded the development of IdealHire’s Military to Civilian Skills Translator, which received acclaim from the Department of Defense and the military, as it placed 245,000 veterans in jobs in just over a year.
As an angel investor, Mr. Culver has made significant contributions to over 25 start-ups and remains an active investor, advisor, mentor, and director for various companies. Notably, he served on Taser International’s Audit and Compensation Committees when the company went public and played an integral role in the company’s growth and launch. As one of Taser International’s first investors, his belief and desire to see the company succeed led him to fund the company through its early stages as one of only two financing sources. Through those efforts he was the largest shareholder when the company went public and believed so adamantly in its future growth and success that he held his position for years and joined the Board of Directors.
Alternative Ballistics enthusiastically welcomes Mr. Culver to the board and is elated to have his advisory capabilities and expertise to provide guidance throughout the launch of Alternative Ballistics’ flagship product, The Alternative®.
Bruce Amaro - Director
Mr. Amaro is a seasoned Project Accountant with over 20 years of financial management experience at organizations such as Gensler, JWT, David Yurman, and Everyday Health Inc. At Gensler, he oversees financial operations for high-profile projects across the Southwest United States, including tracking expenses, labor costs, and project contracts.
His expertise includes revenue analytics, client billing, SOX compliance, and financial forecasting, which he honed through leadership roles at Kaltura, Everyday Health, and BGB Group. Known for managing large, complex accounts in dynamic environments, Bruce brings strategic insight and operational efficiency that we believe will be helpful to ABC’s growth and success.
Kevin Faulconer - Advisory Board
Kevin Faulconer is a distinguished expert in governance, public policy, and operational improvement in large organizations. He served as the 36th Mayor of San Diego from 2014 to 2020 and also served in several national organizations including as the vice president at the global public relations firm, Porter Novelli, specializing in strategic crisis management and public affairs. Mr. Faulconer is currently a strategic advisor at Collaborate for California and Visiting Fellow at Pepperdine University School of Public Policy.
