Department of Justice, Law & Society Faculty

Associate Professor

Professor Addington’s research interests include the nature of violent crime and its impact on victims (especially students and juveniles), measurement of crime, and utilization of national crime statistics. Her recent publications have addressed the... [More]

Professor

Professor Bennett's research interests include comparative criminology, comparative criminal justice, and police organization and procedures. He has published extensively in the area of cross-national crime, policing and comparative police systems. H... [More]

Assistant Professor

Professor Bonderman brings her eclectic career experience in Washington to her classrooms, teaching both Justice and Law & Society courses. She’s been a Senior Policy Analyst for the Department of Justice, Associate General Counsel of the Internation... [More]

Lecturer

Joshua M. Chanin is a Ph.D. candidate in Public Administration and Justice, Law, and Society. His dissertation, “Negotiated Justice? The Legal, Administrative, and Policy Implications of 'Pattern or Practice' Police Misconduct Reform,” uses three di... [More]

Research Professor

Caroline Cooper has been involved with the provision of technical assistance, evaluation, and training services to courts and other adjudication system agencies engaged in judicial improvement efforts. She has also been a practicing attorney, an assi... [More]

Assistant Professor

Dr. Bill Davies is a legal historian, focusing on the transnational nature of legal ideas and systems. His particular field of expertise lies in the law and institutions of the European Union, but he finds equal enjoyment in embedding this supranati... [More]

Professor

Professor Dreisbach's principal research interests include American constitutional law and history, First Amendment law, church-state relations, and criminal procedure. He has written extensively on these topics. He has authored or edited five books ... [More]

Associate Professor

Professor Fagelson's research interests include global ethics, constitutional rights, law and development, political theory and human rights. He has published a book and numerous articles in journals of law and politics concerning the meaning and mor... [More]

Professor

Brian Forst joined the American University faculty in 1992, following three years at George Washington University. Before that, he was director of research at the Institute for Law and Social Research (1977-85) and the Police Foundation (1985-89). Hi... [More]

Department Chair, Justice, Law and Society

Professor Golash's research interests center on the philosophy of law, particularly the moral justification of criminal punishment. She has published numerous articles on these subjects. Before coming to American University, Professor Golash served a... [More]

Professorial Lecturer

Gregory A. Hunt, a member of the adjunct faculty of the Department of Justice, Law and Society, and also works with the Justice Program Office in the conduct and development of research and training programs in the field of community corrections. Dur... [More]

Professor

Professor Johnson's areas of expertise include the prison and other institutions of punishment and confinement, the death penalty, institutional violence, and race and justice in America. He has published extensively in these areas. He has testified ... [More]

Assistant Professor

Dr. Kristine Kalanges is a lawyer and scholar whose principal research interests include legal and political philosophy, as well as the intersection of law, religion and politics in the United States and around the world. She is especially interested... [More]

Assistant Professor

Currently, I am Assistant Professor of Justice, Law and Society at American University. I have both a PhD in modern European history and a JD in law from Stanford University. My approach to issues of law and policy reflects this inter-disciplinary ba... [More]

Associate Professor

Edward R. Maguire is Associate Professor of Justice, Law, and Society in the School of Public Affairs at American University. He received his Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the State University of New York at Albany in 1997. He has held previous posi... [More]

Assistant Professor

Professor Marr, an Assistant Professor of Justice, Law and Society, was named Director of the SPA Leadership Program in April 2008. The Leadership Program is a four-year certificate Program established in 1990 to give students the knowledge, skills a... [More]

Associate Professor

Lecturer

Sharon Melzer a member of the adjunct faculty of the Department of Justice, Law and Society and is writing her dissertation, Trafficking in Counterfeit and Contraband Cigarettes: Illicit Organizations, Criminal Opportunities, and Transnational Govern... [More]

Associate Professor

Professor Savage currently teaches History and Philosophy of Criminology and Introduction to Justice Methods. She is interested in a variety of topics related to criminological theory and in particular to violent crime (cross-national variation in cr... [More]

Assistant Professor

Professor Schaler’s work is focused on the “therapeutic state”—the union of medicine and state. He completed his doctoral and master’s degrees in human development at the University of Maryland College Park, where the major emphasis of his research w... [More]

University Professor

Professor Simon's research interests and primary areas of concentration in academic work are law and society; the jury system; immigration policies and public opinion; trans-racial adoption; women and the criminal justice system; women's issues; and ... [More]

Research Professor

Joseph Trotter, an attorney, is a Research Professor on the faculty of American University's School of Public Affairs, and is the founder, in 1989, and director of SPA's Justice Programs Office. He received a BS in International Relations from the Ge... [More]

Professor

A pioneer in the field of victimology, victims rights, and an expert in the field of transnational crime, Professor Viano is recognized internationally for his contributions to justice and human rights. He has authored countless articles and books, t... [More]

Assistant Professor

Jessica Waters is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Justice, Law and Society teaching Introduction to Law, Justice, Law and the Constitution, and Reproduction and the Law. Prior to joining to joining the AU faculty, Professor Waters was a l... [More]

Lecturer

Kevin Wozniak is a doctoral student in the School of Public Affairs.  His concentrations are justice, law, and society and American politics.  His research interests revolve around the politics of punishment in modern Americ... [More]