Faculty Bio & Interests
David A. Klinger, Associate Professor
David A. Klinger is an Associate Professor. He received
a B.A. in History from Seattle Pacific University in 1980, a Masters
in Justice from American University in 1985, and a Ph.D. in Sociology
from the University of Washington in 1992. Prior to joining the
Criminology and Criminal Justice faculty at UMSL, Professor Klinger
was Assistant (1992-1998) and Associate (1998-1999) Professor of
Sociology at the University of Houston.
Prior to pursuing his graduate degrees, Professor Klinger worked as a patrol officer for the Los Angeles and Redmond (WA) Police Departments. In 1997 he was the recipient of the American Society of Criminology's inaugural Ruth Caven Young Scholar Award for outstanding early career contributions to the discipline of criminology. Professor Klinger's research interests include a broad array of issues in the field of crime and justice, with an emphasis on the organization and actions of the modern police. He has published scholarly manuscripts that address arrest practices, the use of force, how features of communities affect the actions of patrol officers, and terrorism. He has conducted two federally-funded research projects dealing with the use of force by police officers; one on officer-involved shootings and the other on police special weapons and tactics (SWAT) teams.
Professor Klinger serves as the Director of the department's Masters program.