USF College of Public Health’s (COPH) Dr. Karen Liller, an expert in injury prevention, has taken on a leadership role in the university’s new Center for Justice Research and Policy (CJRP). 

The interdisciplinary, collaborative center, launched in January, is devoted to the study of social and criminal justice issues around the Tampa Bay region. Those lending their expertise to the center include faculty, researchers and scholars from the three USF campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Sarasota-Manatee as well as community partners and leaders in local law enforcement. 

According to its website, the CJRP’s goal is to “apply rigorous research and evaluations to enhance the evidence base of policing, corrections and court practices.”

Liller said she was asked to be part of the leadership team by the center’s co-director, Dr. Edelyn Verona, a USF professor of psychology with whom she has collaborated before.

“I was selected, most likely, for my research and advocacy on gun-violence prevention, my work with law enforcement and the Florida Violent Death Reporting System [a data collection system exploring the details of violent deaths in the state], and for the development of the Activist Lab,” Liller said. The Activist Lab provides seminars, webinars, and other educational opportunities for students and faculty to learn public health advocacy skills and competencies.

The CJRP will focus on creating policy change and action. Liller said she hopes to contribute to its efforts by:

• Developing strategies that promote safe communities and policies that support gun violence prevention.
• Working to better understand the events surrounding violent deaths through the Florida Violent Death Reporting System.  
• Working with the center on advocacy issues related to the reduction of crime and incarceration.

The CJRP is being funded, in part, by a five-year, $1.2 million grant from the National Institute of Justice.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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