xx Acknowl­edgments I have dedicated this book to William Parsonage, who has been my men- tor, professor, colleague, coauthor, and friend since I was assigned to be his teaching and research assistant in gradu­ate school nearly 30 years ago who, as a former police and probation officer turned academic, taught me how to conduct research in criminal justice with ­great re­spect for criminal justice prac­ti­tion­ers, concern for the needs of justice-­involved individuals and vic- tims of crime, and the importance of asking questions that ­matter and of con- ducting primary data collection to find answers. Bill threw me into the fire to teach his probation and parole course my first days as a gradu­ate student, opened doors for me to get data collection access in the prisons, took me into prisons to meet prisoners and correctional staff, brought me into his ­family to meet his wife, Sue Parsonage, who inspired my interest in prison art, and has been in my corner cheerleading me ever since, and served on my disser- tation committee. I am now the same age as Bill was in 1989 when I started gradu­ate school. I hope I can be half the mentor to my students that he has been to me over the years. Thanks to my long-­time colleague Dr. Faith Lutze who has been my friend since we ­were grad students together at Penn State and Dr. Fran Bernat who started as a professor at Penn State when I got ­ there as a grad student and has become a lifelong friend, colleague, and mentor. Faith and Fran—­the nights chatting in conference ­ hotel rooms with you have made me a better person and a better scholar. Thanks to my Seattle University criminal justice faculty colleagues—­the best faculty colleagues a person could dream up—­Drs. Matt Hickman, Steve Rice, Pete Collins, and ­Will Parkin, and especially Elaine Gunnison who has been the most incredible friend and colleague a person could ask for. Elaine—­you are one of the most incredible ­ people I know, and I ­don’t know what I would do without your daily “You got this” texts telling me to get off my e-­mail and get back to work. Thanks also to Dr. David Con- nor whose tips about waking up at 4 a.m. got me through the final stages of this proj­ect, although in the course of writing this book, I’m pretty sure I went to sleep at 4 a.m. more times than I ever actually woke up at 4 a.m. I would also like to acknowledge friend and colleague Jerry Westby, for many years of support and encouragement for this proj­ect. Much appreciation to the psychopathy scholars who have influenced my work. To Dr. Robert Hare whose work on psychopathy and developing the PCL-­R set the groundwork for the enormous research surge on the topic. To Dr. Reid Meloy whose theories have been a major force driving my thinking and research, whose work I naturally gravitate ­ toward, and whose name is imprinted on the brain of ­ every student who ever completes one of my classes. And to Drs. Adrian Raine, Philip Jenkins, Mary Ellen O’Toole, Dave Kosson, Stanton Samenow, Carl Gacono, and ­others who have inspired me and whose work is cited throughout this book. A final warm gratitude to the late true-­ crime author Jack Olsen whose book Son: A Psychopath and His Victims was a
Previous Page Next Page