Edward Lawson, Jr, successfully defended his dissertation, “Causes and Consequences of Police Militarization,” on April 2, 2019. The dissertation examined how local racial demographics affect police militarization, and how militarization increases the number of civilians killed by police. It also studied the adoption and effects of body-worn cameras. The committee members were Christopher Witko, Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at Pennsylvania State University (chair), Susan Miller, Associate Professor of Political Science, Kirk Randazzo, Professor of Political Science, and John Burrow, Associate Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice.