She received her undergraduate degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison, J.D. from Yale Law School, and Ph.D. in sociology from New York University. Her first book, Misdemeanorland: Criminal Courts and Social Control in an Age of Broken Windows Policing, is a mixed method investigation of how New York City’s lower courts have processed the substantial volume of misdemeanor arrests generated by the city’s signature “broken windows” policing tactics. Her current research addresses the methodological and theoretical issues entailed in stating and proving discrimination claims. She also practices law currently with a concentration in parole release, especially for persons serving life sentences for crimes committed as juveniles.