9 All-Time Famous Forensic Psychologists [Updated for 2025]

Last Updated: April 8, 2025

Psychologist and expert in the judicial system, a forensic psychologist works with the criminal justice system as an expert witness. Due to their expertise, forensic psychologists assess the potential risk posed by the accused, recommend treatment to the court, and evaluate the credibility of witnesses. They provide evaluations of competency and sanity to the court.

Following is a list of famous forensic psychologists: The criteria for selection include prominence in the field, publication in academic journals and books, and service to the forensic psychology community. Honors, academic brilliance, and international renown are other key factors.

Lee, Henry

When it comes to forensic science and psychology, Dr. Henry Lee is among the most well-known names in the world. Dr. Lee is widely regarded as a leading expert in his profession due to his involvement in several high-profile criminal cases, such as those involving O. J. Simpson, the Kennedy assassination, and Laci Peterson.

He attended both New York University and the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Established the Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science, Dr. Lee is often regarded as the field’s most important figure.

Lee has created or co-produced over 40 books relating to forensic science, crime scene investigation, and crime scene reconstruction, and he has taught these topics all over the globe. He has served as an advisor to various police agencies. In the truTV show Trace Evidence: The Case Files of Dr. Henry Lee, he discussed his involvement in high-profile investigations.

Lee has a recurring role on the small screen. He has been on popular Chinese variety series including KangXi Lai Le and reality competition show The Voice China.

David Wilson

David Wilson, a criminology professor at Birmingham City University, is well respected for his research on serial murderers.

When Wilson was a sophomore at Cambridge, he was approached by a recruiter from Her Majesty’s Jail Service about a position as a junior prison governor. He eventually rose through the ranks to become Warden.

Wilson is a prolific author who has written for both academic journals and the mainstream newspaper, The Guardian. He has written over fifteen books on British crime, incarceration, and serial killers. Presently, Wilson may be heard often on radio and TV and serves as editor of the Howard Journal of Criminal Justice.

During his time as the Prison Service’s Head of Prison Officer and Operational Training, he traveled to both Northern Ireland and the United States. The conditions in British prisons prompted him to resign from the Her Majesty’s Prison Service after a trip to Albania to advise on penal reform for the Council of Europe. Wilson’s autobiography is titled “My Life with Murderers.”

Valerie Jenness

Dean of the University’s School of Social Ecology and a professor in the Department of Criminology, Valerie Jenness is a prominent figure at the University of California. She has done substantial reading on the topics of prison brutality, prostitution, and hate crimes.

Award winners from the American Sociological Association and the Western Society of Criminology include Jenness, who has written four volumes on the subject of criminal justice. Jenness is a frequent expert witness in court cases involving civil law. Her work has received international acclaim and has been published in more than five different languages.

The intersections of deviance and social control (particularly law), criminalization, social movements, and corrections policy are the primary areas of Jenness’s academic inquiry.

Jenness is a professor who lectures on topics like sexual and gender minority violence, as well as introductory criminology, law and society, and hate crimes.

With the help of social constructionism, she has used both quantitative and qualitative research techniques to shed light on the nature of crime responses.

John D. Dombrink

John D. Dombrink, a criminology, law and society professor at the University of California, Berkeley, is an internationally recognized expert on crime, criminal justice, deviance, and social control. He has written extensively on the topic of lawful rehabilitation and is a co-author of the book Sin No More. He is the head of a program that helps first-generation college students succeed academically via a mentor-mentee relationship, and he is a well-respected lecturer.

Dr. Dombrink is a sought-after expert in the disciplines of forensic psychology, criminology, and social ecology, and he regularly gives presentations at conferences and symposiums across the globe.

Both “Dying Right: The Death With Dignity Movement” and “The Last Resort: Success and Failure in Casino Campaigns” were written by Professor Dombrink (with Daniel Hillyard). He has published works on the subject of regulating organized crime and legalizing vice.

Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act of 2000 (SACPA) of California is now being researched by him. He is also researching and preparing a book on the legal framework for victimless crime in the United States, including drug reform and gambling.

Margaret Rombone

Margaret Rombone has a doctorate in clinical psychology from Adelphi University. She is involved in both the American Psychological Association (APA) and the NYS Psychological Association.

Dr. Rombone has been working at the Department of Psychiatry and the Division on Substance Abuse at Columbia University since 2003, and he also has a private practice out of Manhattan and Douglaston.

In a few of her published works, she explores the psychodynamic connections between unresolved childhood trauma and adult decision-making. Her contributions to forensic psychology have been widely published and praised.

Marcus Felson

Professor of Criminal Justice at Texas State University Marcus Felson is well recognized as an authority in developing a realistic and analytical perspective on criminal behavior. His works, Crime and Nature and Crime and Everyday Life, are both concerned with the study and prevention of criminal activity.

Dr. Felson has applied and studied gangs of young people, organized crime, and the drug trade extensively. He often presents his findings at international conferences and writes profiles of offenders at the state and federal levels.

Henry Fradella

Dr. Henry Fradella, a professor of law, forensic sciences, and criminal justice at Arizona State University, is a prominent forensic psychologist who focuses on insanity defenses and mental health concerns among incarcerated populations.

Dr. Fradella studies the relationship between the social and forensic sciences as it relates to law and social control. Fradella has a forensics background and a law degree from George Washington University. His Ph.D. is from Arizona State University and is in integrative justice studies.

‘Punishing Poverty: How Bail and Pretrial Detention Fuel Inequalities in the Criminal Justice System’, ‘Stop and Frisk’, and ‘Mental Illness and Crime’ are among the 11 books he has written or co-written (Sage). He has over 90 articles, reviews, and commentaries published in journals such as the American Journal of Criminal Law, Criminal Justice Policy Review, Criminology and Public Policy, and Federal Courts Law Review.

Dr. Schug Robert

When it comes to the biology and psychology of criminal minds, as well as psychopathy and violent crime, Dr. Robert Schug is an expert.

Dr. Schug is an assistant professor in the departments of criminology, criminal law, and forensic psychology at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), where he lectures on the topic of criminal conduct as it relates to schizophrenia and other significant mental illnesses.

He attended California State University for his undergraduate degree and the University of Southern California for his doctoral studies. He has a Ph.D. in psychology and clinical neurosciences.

He is an expert in traumatic brain injury (TBI), mental illness, and criminal conduct, and he co-directs the CSULB Neuroscience Laboratory.

As a leader in the field, he also established a novel CSULB research program that incorporates interviews and neurocognitive testing of incarcerated serial murderers to better understand etiological factors and brain functioning.

Given his extensive background in the media, Dr. Schug is often sought out to provide analysis on violent news stories. There have been worldwide airings of interviews with him and documentaries on him.

Ivory Toldson

Dr. Ivory Toldson is a renowned forensic psychologist, a senior research scientist for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, and an associate professor at Howard University. Besides that, he is the head editor of The Journal of Negro Education.

After earning his Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Temple University, Dr. Toldson began working as a forensic psychologist at the Federal Correctional Institution for Men and Women.

The plight of black males involved with the criminal justice system was the subject of his dissertation. His current projects explore media bias and the correlation between criminality and educational attainment among black men.

In both 2013 and 2014, Dr. Toldson was included in The Root 100. Dr. Toldson has been recognized as a Diverse Great Mind by Forbe’s magazine. He also received the Equity Champion Award from the New York City Department of Education and the Outstanding Alumni Award from Penn State’s Black Alumni Association.

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