CNA Team
Thomas Christoff, Ph.D.
Tom Christoff is a Senior Research Scientist with the Center for Justice Research and Innovation at CNA. He has extensive experiencing working with local and state law enforcement agencies, providing technical assistance in all facets of police operations, including hiring, training, policy development, oversight, community relations, and accountability. For CNA, he serves on two monitoring teams: for the consent decree between the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois, and for the settlement agreement between the City of Portland, Oregon, and the Department of Justice. Dr. Christoff also leads a study for the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) on technology in law enforcement agencies and is project director for an assessment of the Michigan State Police Department, evaluating policy, training, and operations related to disparate traffic enforcement.
Previously, Dr. Christoff led assessments of the San Jose Police Department, evaluating use of force and adherence to principles of 21st Century Policing; the Little Rock Police Department, evaluating policies, training, and operations; and the East Lansing Police Department in Michigan, focusing on early intervention systems.
Dr. Christoff holds a PhD in criminology, law, and justice from the University of Illinois at Chicago, a Master of Arts in criminology and criminal justice from the University of Memphis, and a Bachelor of Science in law enforcement and justice administration from Western Illinois University.
In his time at the University of Memphis, Dr. Christoff worked with Dr. Randy Dupont and Major Sam Cochran in the CIT Center. Dr. Christoff’s personal research focuses on the creation of bonds and reduction of social distance during police-community interactions. Dr. Christoff has also published works on constructs of procedural justice as well as using such constructs in screening potential law enforcement recruits.
JANIE GULLICKSON, MPA: HA, CRM II, PSS
Janie is a person in long-term recovery and for her means she has not used alcohol or other drugs in over 15 years. Janie is in recovery from both addiction and serious mental health issues as well as homelessness, incarceration, and criminal justice involvement. She navigated all types of systems and institutions that can accompany such life experiences, from frequent hospitalizations to prison.
Janie first began her work as a Peer Support Specialist/Recovery Mentor in 2011. Janie joined the peer-run organization Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO) as a project assistant in 2014 and in May of 2017 Janie became MHAAO’s Executive Director. She also earned her B.S. in Social & Behavioral Health Sciences from Linfield College in 2014 and her Master of Public Administration: Health Administration (MPA: HA) degree from Portland State University in June of 2017.
Janie is passionate about social justice issues with a focus on mental health and addiction issues, recovery, peer programs and services and advocacy in these realms.
Melissa A. Gutierrez, M.S.
Melissa A. Gutierrez is a senior research specialist in the Center for Justice Research and Innovation within the Institute of Public Research at CNA. Melissa has more than eight years of experience in criminal justice-related research and federal funded research, including statewide surveillance of violent deaths and unintentional overdose deaths, police program evaluations, and qualitative studies. She holds both master’s and bachelor’s degrees in criminology and criminal justice, two minors in justice studies and statistics, and a certificate in Homeland Security from Arizona State University.
Currently, Melissa provides training and technical assistance for several Bureau of Justice Assistance-funded programs, including the National Public Safety Partnership, Smart Policing Initiative, and Project Safe Neighborhoods, in which she works directly with local law enforcement agencies and partners to implement violence reduction initiatives. She also serves as an analyst on an Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services-funded project that examines the use of technology in law enforcement through a semi-systemic review and case studies, and as an analyst on a National Institute of Justice-funded study that examines the impact of Covid-19 policies on Juvenile Justice facilities. Melissa also serves on the monitoring team for Chicago’s consent decree, aiding in data collection, analysis, and management.
Dr. Steven Holt
Dr. Steven Holt is the principal of Try Excellence, LLC. He strategically consults and facilitates conversations on national, state and local reinvestment projects. Dr. Holt was instrumental in the establishment of a national affordable housing model for giving preference to historically marginalized and displaced people groups. He has provided strategic counsel, leadership development and facilitation for governmental agencies, for profit and non-profit organizations, C-suite leaders and professional athletes. He has expertise in establishing committees, boards, leadership processes, and community engagement.
Megan Mohler, M.A.
Megan Mohler, M.S., is a research analyst with the CNA team. She earned her Master’s degree from the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Portland State University. She is currently working on completing her Doctorate in Criminal Justice from Temple University. Her Master’s thesis examined the interaction between social media and procedural justice and the influence these have on public perceptions of police legitimacy. She has extensive experience with data collection, management and analysis for a variety of projects in different Criminal Justice realms. As a researcher, Megan has experience with both quantitative and qualitative approaches, including, but not limited to, observation, interviews, assessments, surveys and secondary data analysis.
Shayleen Morris, M.P.P.
Shayleen Morris has been working in police oversight and reform for the past five years. During her time with the City of Chicago Office of Inspector General, she authored and assisted on reports published on topics such as school resource officers, supervisor reviews of body-worn cameras, the collection and use of gang related data, and the recruitment and hiring process of police officers. In a prior role as Policy Director for the Seattle Community Police Commission, she focused on policy analysis, program management, community engagement, and involvement in police oversight and reform from the community perspective. Shayleen earned her B.A. in Political Science and B.A. in Sociology from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte and her Master of Public Policy from Adler University in Chicago.
Michael A. Pfeiffer, J.D.
Michael Pfeiffer, Capt. Ret. received his BS in Engineering from The United States Merchant Marine Academy (1976) and his Juris Doctor from Loyola University (1980). He has been involved in law enforcement continuously since 1981 in the field, teaching officers and in command and administration at various ranks. He currently works for the New Orleans Police Department as an Innovation Manager under their Consent Decree. His principal responsibility has been policy drafting and has authored over 240 policies which have been reviewed and approved by the DOJ and the Consent Decree Monitor. He has also focused on police pursuits and developed methodologies for detecting “ghosted pursuits”, presented at IACP on ghosted pursuits and worked with PERF on a comprehensive approach to police pursuits (to be released fall of 2023). Current projects include review and analysis of discretionary field contacts, both written and on body worn camera, by officers for policy issues, constitutional policing and conformity with best practices. He has worked with the Portland Police Bureau COCL on use of force and accountability report reviews.
Amy Ruiz, B.A.
Amy Ruiz brings the experience of a 20-year career in journalism, policy work, communications and campaign direction to the COCL team, including several years in policy advising, communications, and management roles for Mayor Sam Adams. In her role on the COCL team, Amy serves as a local liaison, previously working with the COAB and subcommittees on the goals outlined in the Settlement Agreement, and currently monitoring the community engagement work of PCCEP.
JULIE SOLOMON, MSW, LSCSW, MBA
Julie Solomon has spent the last fourteen years consulting with police departments and community stakeholders around the country as a subject matter expert on police reform and best practices related to crisis intervention, response to persons in mental and behavioral health crisis and officer wellness. She serves as the Associate Monitor for Crisis Intervention on the Chicago Police Department Consent Decree. The Chicago Independent Monitoring Team is responsible for compliance in seven key areas, structured around policy, training and operational practice. In addition, Ms. Solomon is an FBI trained Crisis Negotiator.
Ms. Solomon previously served as Vice President of Emergency Stabilization Services at Wyandot Behavioral Health Center in Kansas City. Ms. Solomon was instrumental in developing Justice and Behavioral Health Initiatives including: Crisis Intervention Team (CIT); Police / Mental Health Clinician Co-Responder Program; Jail Diversion Program; Justice Involved Case Management Teams; 24/7/365 Crisis Center for Law Enforcement Drop Off; Non-Person Felony Behavioral Health Court. She served as the County CIT Coordinator and on the leadership team of the Kansas State CIT council.
In addition to the above accomplishments, Ms. Solomon is the recipient of grants including: Sequential Intercept Mapping (SIMS); Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA); Trauma Informed Care in the Criminal Justice System. She has presented nationally on topics related to best practices with law enforcement response to mental and behavioral health crisis and building successful justice and mental health partnerships. She is the author of a Community Guide to Best Practices for Alternative Response to Persons in Mental and Behavioral Health Crisis produced by Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELE4A). She is an instructor of a law enforcement e-learning on Recognizing and Responding to Persons in Mental and Behavioral Health Crisis, produced by Training Response Network, Inc.
Ms. Solomon served as a key stakeholder in writing, testifying and ultimately passing a state statute (House Bill -Crisis Intervention Act) revising the involuntary commitment statutes in Kansas to create a 72-hour involuntary treatment option at the local crisis center rather than law enforcement transport to the state hospital over an hour away.
Ms. Solomon is committed to supporting law enforcement and communities in the implementation of evidence-based practices which serve to strengthen policing, while building community trust. She graduated from Western Michigan University with a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice and Psychology, from Smith College School of Social Work with her Master’s in Social Work and from the University of St. Mary with her Master’s in Business Administration.
Former COCL
Prior to the CNA team assuming the role of Portland COCL, Rosenbaum & Associates—led by Dr. Dennis Rosenbaum—fulfilled the Portland COCL role.
Dennis Rosenbaum, Ph.D.
Dr. Rosenbaum was Professor Emeritus of Criminology, Law and Justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and President of Rosenbaum & Associates, LLP. At UIC, he served as Department Head and Director of the Center for Research in Law and Justice. He also served as Dean of the School of Criminal Justice, State University of New York, Albany. In 2014, Dr. Rosenbaum was elected the inaugural Chair of the new Division of Police for the American Society of Criminology, helping to promote police research and knowledge utilization worldwide.
Dr. Rosenbaum's areas of research expertise in policing include organizational behavior, public perceptions of the police, police-community relations, community policing, police training, police oversight, multi-agency partnerships, and police performance metrics. He has directed many national evaluations for the National Institute of Justice and has coauthored eight scholarly books. Collaborating with seven universities, Dr. Rosenbaum created and served as Executive Director of the National Police Research Platform, a longitudinal research program in 100 American cities to advance the current state of knowledge, innovation and measurement in American policing.
Dr. Rosenbaum regularly serves as an advisor to local, state, federal and international agencies in the public safety field. He has developed, evaluated, and consulted on police training that encourages fair, respectful, and compassionate interactions between police officers and community members, thus helping to prevent the escalation of conflict and use of force and strengthening community trust in the police. Dr. Rosenbaum is a member the Police Executive Research Forum’s National Research Advisory Board. He has consulted with, and testified before, the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. Dr. Rosenbaum has also provided training in procedural justice for law enforcement officers from around the world at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC).
Dr. Rosenbaum served as President of Rosenbaum & Associates, LLP, a consulting group specializing in police accountability and evidence-based practice. He has considerable experience with police reform initiatives. Dr. Rosenbaum also served as the Associate Monitor for Impartial Policing on the Chicago Police Consent Decree, monitoring efforts to minimize police bias against constitutionally protected and marginalized members of the community. Prior to August 2023, Dr. Rosenbaum was the Compliance Officer and Community Liaison (COCL) for the Settlement Agreement between the City of Portland, Oregon and the U.S. Department of Justice, monitoring the compliance of the Portland Police Bureau and the City with the terms of the agreement. Dr. Rosenbaum grew up in the Portland area and attended Central Catholic High School.