My research uses mixed methods to investigate the politics of the U.S. criminal justice system across three complementary strands. First, my dissertation uses in-depth interviews to examine the working practices of local crime journalists, whose daily decisions shape audience perceptions of safety and punishment. Second, I analyze how contact with the criminal justice system—ranging from police stops to incarceration—alters political attitudes and civic engagement among affected communities. Finally, I evaluate the real-world consequences of criminal justice policies using administrative data and quasi-experimental designs.
This work has produced publications in venues including Criminology, Sociological Methods and Research, the American Political Science Review, and Sociological Science.