Christopher J. Marier

Christopher J. Marier is Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in the department of Government and Justice Studies at Appalachian State University. He earned his Ph.D. in Criminology from the University of South Florida. His teaching and research focus primarily on race, policing, and theories of social control. He is a recipient of the University of South Florida Graduate Fellowship Award, the ACJS International Section Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award, and the Appalachian State University Undergraduate Research Council Grant. His research has been published in leading journals, including Justice Quarterly, Criminology and Public Policy, and Homicide Studies.

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Racial Bias Predicts More Black Prisoners, Fewer White Prisoners in County Jails

Purpose: This study builds on the body of research examining whether racial disparities in criminal justice can be attributed to bias. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether there is a relationship between aggregate levels of bias and race-specific incarceration rates in U.S. counties.    Methods: With data from the Vera Institute …

Schools create safe spaces amid gun violence, but students want more security : NPR

The students at North Community High School in Minneapolis have seen a lot. Some things, morbid curiosities: a bullet, freshly fired, spinning and melting the rubber on the track surrounding the school’s football field. Others, much more painful: the murder of Deshaun Hill Jr., shot and killed two years ago just blocks from the school. …

Thousands of people seeking help did not get a police response. That’s a good thing.

Three years ago, the county launched a pilot program to replace ill-equipped law enforcement officials with mental health experts for those in crisis. The effort started small with just a handful of professionals responding to calls in North County. But it quickly expanded. Today, there are nearly four dozen Mobile Crisis Response Teams countywide handling …