Dr. David A. Makin, a Professor at Washington State University and the Principal Investigator of the Washington State Data Exchange for Public Safety, has over twenty years of experience in translational research, helping police departments and other public safety agencies implement and integrate technology to operationalize existing data and implement new data collection practices. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University in 2002 with a Bachelor of Science, received a Master of Science in Administration of Justice from the University of Louisville in 2004, and earned a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice and Criminology from Washington State University in 2012. Dr. Makin’s research, backed by over $17 million in funding from institutions such as the National Institute of Justice, the National Science Foundation, and the Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services (COPS), has had a significant impact on public safety and police departments.
A key aspect of his work involves developing private-public partnerships to support the development, implementation, and integration of technology within police departments. He is part of a select group of researchers actively collaborating with police departments to integrate body-worn camera (BWC) footage into supervision, risk management, and training. Under his direction, as the Principal Investigator, the Complex Social Interaction Lab has processed over 60,000 hours of body-worn camera (BWC) footage for police departments on various projects, including improving the use of procedural justice, examining differential decision-making within police-community interactions, enhancing CIT training, examining the application of trauma-informed practices within domestic violence contacts, and most recently projects seeking to understand the use of de-escalation and non-escalation strategies and tactics via biometric markers.
His contributions to research, teaching, and service have been recognized with numerous awards, including the Alumni of the Year, the Martin Luther King Exceptional Service, and the President's Award for Leadership. In addition to his academic and professional achievements, Dr. Makin has completed a 40-hour POST-certified Crisis Intervention Team training and a 2-year Fellowship at the Southern Police Institute at the University of Louisville.