Candace McCoy

Criminal Justice Generalist

"My research and teaching interests grow from foundational concepts of rule of law, democratic governance, and due process. The operations and impacts of legal institutions in achieving social justice are explored in almost all my work. I have published in law reviews and peer-reviewed journals in the field on topics broadly grouped under police practices, punishment and sentencing, plea bargaining, drug courts, and accountability in public organizations. Because these subjects often arise in current affairs, I am often called upon to write op-ed essays or comment in popular media outlets."

Candace McCoy is a professor of criminal justice at the Graduate Center. Trained in law, she applies legal concepts to social science research on a variety of criminal justice operations and organizations. She has published widely and held several fellowships for research and teaching. From 2016 - 2018, while on professional leave from the university, she served as the Director of Policy Analysis for the Inspector General of the New York Police Department. Dr. McCoy has taught hundreds of students in a career spanning four decades and has worked with government agencies for research and training. She is a member of the Ohio bar and has been a proud New Yorker for the past fifteen years.

Awards and Grants

• 2018: National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement, fellowship. Topic: The Impact of Riots.
• 2003: American Society of Criminology, Herbert Block Award for distinguished service to the profession

Professional Associations and memberships

• Law and Society Association
• American Society of Criminology
• American Political Science Association

Courses Taught

• Survey of Criminal Justice Policy and Law
• Courts
• Policing
• Punishment and Sentencing
• Criminology and Public Policy
• Criminology, Law and Society
• Policing (doctoral)
• Policy Analysis in the Justice System
• Issues in Criminal Justice
• Law and Criminology (master’s)

Publications

• 2019, "She Could Steal But She Could Not Rob: Punishment Inflation in Burglary Statutes Nationwide,” Notre Dame Journal of Legislation, Vol. 46, No. 1 (with Phillip M. Kopp)
• 2015, “The Problem with Problem-Solving Justice: Coercion versus Democratic Participation,” Restorative Justice, Vol. 4, No. 4 (with Wolf Heydebrand and Reka Mirchandani)
• 2013, "Does Law Matter? An Old Bail Law Confronts the New Penology,” Punishment and Society, Vol. 15, No. 1 (with Lila Kazemian and Meghan Sacks)
• 2011, “Prosecution,” Oxford Handbook of Criminal Justice, Michael Tonry, ed. (New York: Oxford University Press)
• 2011, “Justice Without Trial Fifty Years Later,” preface to the third edition of Jerome Skolnick, Justice Without Trial: Law Enforcement in Democratic Society (electronic edition: Quid Pro Books).
• 2010, “Do Drug Courts Work? For What, Compared to What? Qualitative Results from a Natural Experiment,” Victims and Offenders, Vol. 5, No. 1