He earned his undergraduate degree in history from Northwestern University and received his law degree from Washington University in St. Louis. He practiced general business and corporate law in Los Angeles from 1980 to 1990, primarily for the entertainment industry. During those years, Crews returned to graduate school and he earned his M.L.S. and Ph.D. degrees from UCLA's School of Library and Information Science. His principal research interest has been the relationship of copyright law to the needs of higher education. Professor Crews is a frequent speaker at conferences around the world and at colleges and universities across the country, whenever copyright and fair use are critical issues.
Crews brings a wide range of experience to the task.
His publications encompass the fields of copyright, constitutional law, political history, and library science. He has worked in a university archives and conducted historical research on windmills and tide mills on Long Island, NY for the National Park Service. In rare moments of recreation Crews enjoys bicycling, hiking, astronomy, archeology, art, and early rock and roll.