Ryan J. Williams, Ph.D.
Location
UNE Courses
SOC 170: Deviance and Crime
CRL 205: The Criminal Justice System
CRL 206: Juvenile Justice
CRL 215: Media, Crime & Politics
SOC 268: Practice of Social Science Research
Bio
Ryan Williams received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. His research and teaching focus on American criminal justice, judicial politics, political institutions, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. His work has appeared in peer-reviewed journals such as Law & Social Inquiry, Studies in American Political Development, PS: Political Science and Politics, Justice System Journal, and the Journal of Political Science Education. He has also contributed to edited volumes published by Routledge, Palgrave Macmillan, and Equinox.
Ryan is the co-author ofThe U.S. Criminal Justice System: A Reference Handbook, which was named to the 2025 Outstanding References Sources List by the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). He previously served as the pre-law advisor for the University of South Alabama, where he received the 2021-2022 Academic Advising Award for the College of Arts and Sciences.
Publications
Williams, R. J. (2026). Simulating opinion assignment in the U.S. Supreme Court.鈥 In Short Games and Active Learning in the Political Science Classroom: Beating the Clock. Routledge.
Williams, R. J. (2025). Order in the court: Teaching US criminal trials and procedure through a mock trial. Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 1-23.
Koon-Magnin, S., & Williams, R.J. (2024). The U.S. Criminal Justice System: A Reference Handbook. Bloomsbury.
Williams, R. J., & Christiani, L. (2023). Are You Talking to Me? How Ideological and Gender Characteristics Moderate the Effect of Legitimizing Rhetoric on SCOTUS Legitimacy. Law & Social Inquiry, 1-25.
Unah, I., Williams, R, & Zaino, S.S. (2023). Echoes of the Feminine Mystique: Female Judges and Intergenerational Change in the United States Courts of Appeals. JL & Pol., 38, 43.
Williams, R.J. (2023). Police Interrogations and the Miranda Warnings. In The U.S. Constitution in 5 Minutes. David Klein and Joseph Smith, Eds. Equinox Publishing.
Dichio, M., Strother, L., & Williams, R. J. (2022). 鈥楾o Render Prompt Justice鈥: The Origins and Construction of the US Court of Claims. Studies in American Political Development, 36(2), 120-137.
Britt, L., & Williams, R. J. (2022). Institutions and Arguments: Simulating the US Policy-Making Process. PS: Political Science & Politics, 55(1), 176-181.
Williams, R. J. (2022). Pick a justice: Simulating judicial selection on the US Supreme Court. In Simulations in the political science classroom (pp. 166-184). Routledge.
Williams, R. J., & Chergosky, A. J. (2019). Teaching judicial politics through a supreme court simulation. Journal of Political Science Education, 15(1), 17-36.
Unah, I., & Williams, R. (2019). The Legacy of President Barack Obama in the US Supreme Court. Looking Back on President Barack Obama's Legacy, Palgrave Macmillan Press.
Williams, R. J., & Smith, J. F. (2018). Keeping up appearances: Non-policy court responses to public opinion. Justice System Journal, 39(1), 54-74.
Unah, I., & Williams, R. (2017). What Is So Special about Specialized Courts in the United States? In Routledge Handbook of Judicial Behavior (pp. 280-300). Routledge
Credentials
Education
Expertise
- Active learning
- American politics
- Constitutional law
- Criminal justice
- Law
- Quantitative research
- Supreme Court
- United States politics
Research
Selected publications
Williams, R. J. (2026). Simulating opinion assignment in the U.S. Supreme Court.鈥 In Short Games and Active Learning in the Political Science Classroom: Beating the Clock. Routledge.
Williams, R. J. (2025). Order in the court: Teaching US criminal trials and procedure through a mock trial. Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 1-23.
Koon-Magnin, S., & Williams, R.J. (2024). The U.S. Criminal Justice System: A Reference Handbook. Bloomsbury.
Williams, R. J., & Christiani, L. (2023). Are You Talking to Me? How Ideological and Gender Characteristics Moderate the Effect of Legitimizing Rhetoric on SCOTUS Legitimacy. Law & Social Inquiry, 1-25.
Unah, I., Williams, R, & Zaino, S.S. (2023). Echoes of the Feminine Mystique: Female Judges and Intergenerational Change in the United States Courts of Appeals. JL & Pol., 38, 43.
Williams, R.J. (2023). Police Interrogations and the Miranda Warnings. In The U.S. Constitution in 5 Minutes. David Klein and Joseph Smith, Eds. Equinox Publishing.
Dichio, M., Strother, L., & Williams, R. J. (2022). 鈥楾o Render Prompt Justice鈥: The Origins and Construction of the US Court of Claims. Studies in American Political Development, 36(2), 120-137.
Britt, L., & Williams, R. J. (2022). Institutions and Arguments: Simulating the US Policy-Making Process. PS: Political Science & Politics, 55(1), 176-181.
Williams, R. J. (2022). Pick a justice: Simulating judicial selection on the US Supreme Court. In Simulations in the political science classroom (pp. 166-184). Routledge.
Williams, R. J., & Chergosky, A. J. (2019). Teaching judicial politics through a supreme court simulation. Journal of Political Science Education, 15(1), 17-36.
Unah, I., & Williams, R. (2019). The Legacy of President Barack Obama in the US Supreme Court. Looking Back on President Barack Obama's Legacy, Palgrave Macmillan Press.
Williams, R. J., & Smith, J. F. (2018). Keeping up appearances: Non-policy court responses to public opinion. Justice System Journal, 39(1), 54-74.
Unah, I., & Williams, R. (2017). What Is So Special about Specialized Courts in the United States? In Routledge Handbook of Judicial Behavior (pp. 280-300). Routledge.