Florida State University criminology professor George Kirkham left the classroom to work as a rookie cop on the rough streets of Jacksonville. Nicknamed “Doc” by fellow officers, he quickly learned the dangers, stress, and raw realities of police work—far different from the theories he taught. His experience, chronicled in his book Signal Zero and later on 60 Minutes, revealed both the monotony and sudden terror that define the job. Kirkham went on to balance academia with real-world policing, becoming a nationally recognized author, consultant, and expert on law enforcement.
With a career spanning over five decades, Dr. George Kirkham has uniquely bridged the worlds of academia and law enforcement. A former police officer turned professor, he served as Professor Emeritus at Florida State University’s College of Criminology and Criminal Justice and went on to consult on more than 2,000 police-related cases nationwide. His groundbreaking training programs, nationally recognized publications, and extensive service with law enforcement agencies—from the FBI to local police departments—have shaped modern policing and officer training across the country.
Negligent Security & Premises Liability
Dr. Kirkham has served as a civil liability consultant and expert witnessin well over 1,000 cases across the nation during his long career. His skilled testimony at depositions and trials has contributed to substantial verdicts for many plaintiffs.
For example, over a four-month span in 2025, he testified in three trials that produced a combined $118,000,000 in verdicts: $100,000,000 in a wrongful death suit (Campbell v. Akam, et al.), $7,000,000 in a closed-head injury case resulting from injuries inflicted by a nightclub bouncer (Herron Fields v. Munchies Pizza Club), and $11,000,000 in a wrongful death action (Estate of Vinh Chung v. AK Family Holdings). In addition, Dr. Kirkham works extensively as a consultant and expert witness with major defense firms and their insurance carriers nationwide, having been retained by approximately equal numbers of attorneys representing both plaintiffs and defendants.
Dr. Kirkham has extensive experience in all aspects of police malpractice litigation, including excessive force involving firearms, takedown maneuvers, K-9 deployment, Tasers, chemical sprays, baton use, “bean bag” rounds, positional asphyxia, and vehicular pursuits (including “PIT” tactics). He has evaluated training and supervision failures, improper evidence handling, negligent retention, and violations of investigative procedures. His expertise extends to crisis de-escalation, SWAT and hostage negotiation, probable cause determinations, high-risk vehicle stops, handcuff-related injuries, and deaths or injuries from vascular neck restraints or use of “stop sticks” and air assets during pursuits.
Dr. Kirkham is thoroughly familiar with professional police standards and procedures promulgated by organizations such as the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF).
A former board member of Americans for Effective Law Enforcement, Dr. Kirkham has served as a lecturer, consultant, and trainer to more than fifty law enforcement agencies. He has received numerous professional honors, including the Freedom’s Foundation at Valley Forge Award, the J. Edgar Award, the Distinguished Service Award of the Reserve Law Officers of America, and a Letter of Commendation from FBI Director Clarence M. Kelley.
George Kirkham began his career as a 22-year-old criminologist at one of the nation’s toughest prisons, Soledad (Spanish for “solitude”). Having never before seen or spoken to a criminal, he was assigned as a counselor to the 300 inmates of the “R” cellblock. He quickly learned that two major forms of violence at the prison were the sexual assault of new inmates (“fish”) and suicide. During his two years at Soledad, he wrote his master’s thesis on the problem of rape behind bars. Years later, as a university professor, he convened a national seminar on suicide in prisons and jails. After enduring a major riot at Soledad, Kirkham went on to the sprawling Santa Clara County Jail in California, where he served as project director for the nation’s largest evaluation of placing minimum-security inmates into work-furlough programs.
Two of Dr. Kirkham’s three degrees in criminology emphasized corrections, and throughout his career he has frequently been qualified by courts across the country as an expert on jail and prison standards—including intake, classification, use of excessive force by security personnel, and failure to provide indicated emergency medical or psychiatric care. He is thoroughly familiar with the standards of both the American Correctional Association (ACA) and the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC).
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