Edwin Grimsley

Edwin Grimsley serves as Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Affairs at the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, City University of New York (CUNY), where his research examines immigration enforcement, criminal justice disparities, and deportation processes through quantitative methodologies. His work critically analyzes systemic racism in legal and immigration systems with direct policy implications.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Sociology, The Graduate Center, CUNY
• M.Phil., The Graduate Center, CUNY
• B.A. in Biology, Wesleyan University

Dr. Grimsley's research centers on racial and ethnic disparities in immigration enforcement, particularly how criminal history influences deportation outcomes for Black immigrants. His investigations extend to structural racism in the opioid epidemic and the criminalization-to-deportation pipeline, utilizing advanced statistical analysis of large-scale datasets. Prior to academia, he contributed to seven wrongful conviction exonerations at the Innocence Project and investigated post-9/11 immigration detentions for the ACLU.

Analysis of his 2022-2024 publications reveals concentrated focus on spatial analysis of deportation patterns, racialized policing in misdemeanor courts, and the intersection of drug policy with immigration enforcement. His work consistently employs mixed-method approaches to challenge dominant migration narratives and document institutional racism across criminal justice and immigration systems, primarily published in criminology and sociology journals.

Scientific Awards:

• American Sociological Association Minority Fellowship (2022)
• John Mohr Dissertation Improvement Grant (2022)
• Jackie McLean Fellowship (2021)
• NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (2019)
• Provost’s Pre-Dissertation Summer Fellowship (2019)
• Provost’s Pre-Dissertation Summer Fellowship (2018)

Dr. Grimsley has secured significant research funding including the NIH NRSA grant for opioid epidemic studies and ASA Minority Fellowship for deportation pipeline research. His practical experience bridges academic scholarship with frontline advocacy, having developed case analysis protocols at the Innocence Project that directly impacted criminal justice reform. He currently teaches core courses including Introduction to Public Affairs and Governing New York City while leading a mixed-method study on NYC's migrant crisis.