Dr. Nelson received his B.S. from Texas A&M, his M.A. from the New School (NYC), his J.D. from the University of Miami (Florida), and his PhD. from the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Nelson, a former Coast Guard Commander and JAG officer, has been on the faculty at South Alabama since 2003 and has been the University’s Pre-Law Advisor since 2004. His teaching and research efforts focus on the role of law and courts in society, particularly in the areas of administrative law and criminal justice. He recently presented a paper entitled “Agency Discretion, Judicial Deference, And the APA: New Directions?” at the annual meeting of the Southwestern Social Science Association in Austin, Texas. His most recent article “Evolving Standards of What is Cruel and Unusual: A View from the States” was published in The Criminal Law Bulletin (2016).