Trisha grew up on the island of Oah'u, Hawaii.  She began her career in policing as one of the first female police officers hired by the Honolulu Police Department.  She earned her BA in Criminology from the University of Hawai'i - Manoa.  She moved to the Pacific Northwest and completed 25 years of policing with the Kent (WA) Police Department. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Organizational Ethics from Pacific Lutheran University.  Her Master Thesis: Ethic Standards and the Police: Do Standards Influence Decision-Making of Line Patrol Officers? examined what influences the decisions of police patrol officers. After retiring, Trisha earned an EdD. in Educational Leadership from Seattle University. Her dissertation (The Perceived Value of Problem-Based Learning at a Police Training Academy) examined teaching methodology used at the Kentucky Police Academy.  Trisha brings to the classroom her policing experience to help her students in the application of abstract criminal justice theories and concepts.  Trisha has served both as an adjunct and contract lecturer with the Department of Criminal Justice since 2003. 

Trisha's research focus is in the use of force by police officers during citizen contacts, with an emphasis on the affects of hypervigilance, stress and other psychological factors related to job responsibilities and subculture membership.  Public safety training, needs assessment, program evaluation, group facilitation and processes, and the use of Instructional Design methods to ensure developed curriculum withstands judicial scrutiny.