Dr. Pickering joined the faculty in the Department of Criminology at Fresno State
in 2016. Her primary research interests are related to policing in the United States.
She has conducted and published research related to officer decision-making in deadly
force encounters, police-community relations, the impact of technology on police behavior,
and the importance of data-sharing across criminal justice agencies to promote the
use of evidence-based practices.
One of her favorite things about being a professor is the ability to work with and
mentor undergraduate and graduate students. She has supervised undergraduate students
in the College of Social Sciences' honors program and her graduate students have been
the recipients of the Department of Criminology's Outstanding Thesis and Project awards,
the College of Social Sciences' Outstanding Thesis award, and selected as graduate
Dean's Medalists by the College of Social Sciences.
In 2020, Dr. Pickering became the graduate program coordinator for the Department
of Criminology. She looks back fondly on her years as a graduate student and she hopes
that the graduate students in our graduate program feel the same upon graduation.
- Police decision-making related to the use of deadly force
- Police-community relations
- The impact of technology on police behavior
- Mental health issues in law enforcement
- Qualitative research methods
Pickering, J.C., & Klinger, D.A. (2022). Shooting and holding fire in police work: Insights from
a study informed by the Binder and Scharf model of deadly force decision-making. Homicide Studies, 27(1), 34-54.
Pickering, J.C., & Fox, A.M. (2021). Enabling collaboration and communication across law enforcement
jurisdictions: Data sharing in a multi-agency partnership. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 33(7), 732-755.
Pickering, J.C. (2020). Officers’ perceptions regarding the unexpected effects of body-worn cameras.
Policing: An International Journal, 43(2), 390-402.
Fox, A.M., Ogaki, M., & Pickering, J.C. (2020). Beyond police boundaries: Network analysis of multi-jurisdictional crime.
Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society, 21(1), 21-35.
Pickering, J.C., & Klinger, D.A. (2016). “Enhancing Police Legitimacy by Promoting Safety Culture.”
In M. Deflem (Eds.), The Politics of Policing: Between Force and Legitimacy, Society, Law, & Deviance, Volume 21. Bingley, UK: Emerald.
