Associate Professor
Claire Ferguson
Faculty of Creative Industries, Education & Social Justice,
School of Justice
Biography
Dr. Claire Ferguson is a Senior Lecturer, researcher and consultant in forensic criminology in the School of Justice, Faculty of Law in Brisbane, Australia. She is an adjunct lecturer in the School of Behavioural Cognitive and Social Sciences at the University of New England, Australia. Claire's work brings together research and forensic case work in complex death investigations. While her research is published in many traditional academic journals, she also uses this expertise to assist police and attorneys by writing expert forensic reports and delivering expert testimony. Claire has been awarded several consultancies with police agencies around Australia, and has given expert testimony on equivocal deaths to the State Coroner of New South Wales. This testimony surrounded her research on detection avoidance strategies employed by homicide offenders. Claire's doctorate (2011) research was an analysis of staged crime scenes in homicide cases internationally. This project was the only systematic review of these types of cases at that time and the findings have been cited and published widely. Dr. Ferguson is the author of more than 40 scholarly publications, including the book Forensic Criminology, which was the first of its kind and became a best selling textbook internationally. In coming years, Claire plans to release her first sole authored monograph. Claire is a distinguished speaker, and has been invited to deliver seminars and training for many industry organisations, including police agencies and criminal justice stakeholders in Australia. In 2018, she delivered a keynote presentation at the ANZ Forensic Science Society International Symposium on countermeasures used by offenders in homicide cases. Claire has been nominated for the many teaching awards by her students, including the 'UniJobs Lecturer of the Year' award on two occasions, and the 'Best Presentation' Award at the ANZ Forensic Science Society International Symposium in 2014. Along with teaching, she has also participated in several large scale research projects involving teams of researchers, complex methodologies and competitive national grants. Two have led to significant policy implications in Queensland. Claire has also worked as a researcher and Project Manager for the Australian Centre for Arson Research and Treatment (ACART), studying the use of arson in homicide cases. In the next few years, Claire plans to continue her research on evidence manipulation in homicide cases and other forms of violent crime. She is studying detection avoidance strategies used by offenders during the perpetration of intimate partner homicide, as well as countermeasures used by serial sex offenders and those involved in organised crime. Claire is also working on an international project surrounding training for police recruits on death investigation, and how they may recognise countermeasures perpetrated by offenders. Previous Appointments 2013-2015 University of New England, School of Behavioural, Cognitive and Social Sciences, Lecturer 2012-2013 Australian Centre for Arson Research and Treatment, Project Manager and Senior Research Assistant 2007-2013 Bond University, Faculty of Society and Design, Adjunct Assistant ProfessorPersonal details
Positions
- Associate Professor
Faculty of Creative Industries, Education & Social Justice,
School of Justice
Keywords
homicide, forensic criminology, QUT Centre for Justice, detection avoidance, evidence manipulation, equivocal death, death investigation, manner of death determination, offender decision making
Research field
Criminology, Law
Field of Research code, Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC), 2008
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy (Bond University)
- Master of Criminology (Bond University)
Professional memberships and associations
Qualifications
Bachelor of Arts with Honours (Psychology), University of Western Ontario; Masters Degree (Criminology), Bond University; Philosophical Doctorate (Criminology), Bond University
Professional Memberships and Associations
- International Homicide Investigators Association, Member, 2017 to present
- Homicide Research Working Group, 2014 to present
- Asian Criminological Society, Member, 2017 to present
- American Investigative Society of Cold Cases, Consulting Committee Member, 2015 to present
- Forensic Social Sciences Association, Board Member, 2015 to present
Teaching
Claire is a Fellow with the Higher Education Academy in the UK. Claire teaches units like: JSB386 Death Investigation
Experience
INVITED SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
- QPS Prosecutors Officer in Charge conference, Lethal Risk and Domestic Violence, May 2018
- Australian Institute of Professional Intelligence Officers, Critical thinking and evidence manipulation by offenders, March 2018
- QPS Townsville CIB conference, Evidence manipulation at violent crime scenes, 2017
- QPS Cairns CIB conference, Evidence manipulation at violent crime scenes, 2017
- QPS Homicide and Serious Crime Investigation Course, Detection avoidance and crime scene staging, 2017
- Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, Critical thinking and crime scene staging, August 2016
- QPS Homicide and Serious Crime Investigation Course, Detection avoidance and crime scene staging, June 2016
- Australian Crime Commission, Critical Skills for Critical Minds: Recognising crime scene staging in violent crime, April 2016,
- Australian Institute of Professional Intelligence Officers, Critical Skills for Critical Minds: Recognising crime scene staging in violent crime, February 2016
- ANZ Forensic Science Society SA Branch Seminar, Offender evidence manipulation: Thinking critically about violent crime scenes, October 2015
- Australian Institute of Professional Intelligence Officers, Critical Skills for Critical Minds: Recognising crime scene staging in violent crime, August 2015
- QPS Homicide and Serious Crime Investigation Course, Evidence Manipulation in Violent Crime, June 2015
- American Investigative Society of Cold Cases Speaker, Misclassification of complex homicides in Australia, July 2015, St Louis, USA
- South Australian Police CIB Seminar, Offender evidence manipulation: Thinking critically about violent crime scenes, October 2015, Adelaide SA
- New South Wales Police Force Professional Development Day, The Defects of the Situation: Crime Scene Staging in Homicide, June 2014
- Queensland DoCS Probation and Parole/Youth Justice, Treatment for Firesetters in Australia, 2012
CONFERENCE PAPERS
- ‘Delito, Derecho y Justicia Penal en el sur global, Workshop Internacional’, Intersection of forensic awareness and the Australian landscape: lessons learned on no-body homicide investigations, November 2018, Santa Fe, Argentina
- American Society of Criminology, Forensic awareness in perpetrators of intimate partner homicide, November 2018, Atlanta, USA
- ANZ Forensic Science Society, Murder by pushing: An exploratory analysis of homicidal falls from a height, September 2018, Perth WA
- ANZ Forensic Science Society, KEYNOTE: Forensically aware offenders and homicide investigations: Challenges, opportunities and impacts, September 2018, Perth WA
- International Association of Forensic Science, Murder by pushing: An exploratory analysis of homicidal falls from a height August 2017, Toronto Canada
- International Crime Justice and Social Democracy Conference, False allegations of child sex abuse in Australian family court cases, July 2017, Cairns QLD
- American Society of Criminology Conference, Perceived probability of being suspected and detection avoidance strategies by forensically aware murderers, November 2016, New Orleans USA
- British Society of Criminology Conference, False allegations of child sex abuse in Australian family court cases, July 2016, Nottingham UK
- ANZ Society of Criminology Conference, Collision or collusion? Homicides staged as car accidents, November 2015, Adelaide SA
- International Crime Justice and Social Democracy Conference, A meta-analysis of false reports of sexual assault made to police July 2015, Brisbane QLD
- Homicide Research Working Group, Getting away with murder: An examination of detected homicides staged as suicides, June 2015 Clearwater FL, USA
- ANZ Forensic Science Society, Staged homicides: An examination of common features of faked burglaries, suicides, accidents and car accidents, September 2014, Adelaide SA
- Homicide Research Working Group, Staged homicides: An examination of common features of faked burglaries, suicides, accidents and car accidents, June 2014 San Antonio, USA
JOURNAL REVIEWS
- Violence Against Women: An International Journal
- Homicide Studies
- Archives of Sexual Behavior
- Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy
- International Journal of Criminal Justice and Social Democracy
- Justice Quarterly
- Journal of Forensic Psychology
- UNSW Law Review
Publications
- Ferguson, C. & Pooley, K. (2019). Comparing solved and unsolved no-body homicides in Australia: An exploratory analysis. Homicide Studies, 23(4), 381–403. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/129806
- Ferguson, C., (2019). Forensically aware offenders and homicide investigations: challenges, opportunities and impacts. Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences, 51. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/127034
- Ferguson, C. & Sutherland, T. (2018). Murder by pushing: An exploratory analysis of homicidal falls from a height. American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, 39(3), 192–200. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/223398
- Ferguson, C., (2015). Staged homicides: An examination of common features of faked burglaries, suicides, accidents and car accidents. Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, 30(3), 139–157. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/82077
- Ferguson, C. & Petherick, W. (2016). Getting away with murder: an examination of detected homicides staged as suicides. Homicide Studies, 20(1), 3–24. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/82035
- Ferguson, C., (2016). Collision or collusion? Homicides staged as car accidents. Journal of Law and Medicine, 24(2), 493–503. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/100070
- Ferguson, C., Wright, S., Death, J., Burgess, K. & Malouff, J. (2018). Allegations of child sexual abuse in parenting disputes: An examination of judicial determinations in the Family Court of Australia. Journal of Child Custody, 15(2), 95–115. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/223375
- Ferguson, C., Doley, R., Watt, B., Lyneham, M. & Payne, J. (2015). Arson-associated homicide in Australia: A five year follow-up. Trends and Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice, 484, 1–11. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/87856
- Ferguson, C. & Malouff, J. (2016). Assessing police classifications of sexual assault reports: A meta-analysis of false reporting rates. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 45(5), 1185–1193. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/91459
- Petherick, W., Turvey, B. & Ferguson, C. (2010). Forensic criminology. Academic Press. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/82162
QUT ePrints
For more publications by Claire, explore their research in QUT ePrints (our digital repository).
Awards
- Type
- Advisor/Consultant for Industry
- Reference year
- 2018
- Details
- Invited to consult with police and deliver expert testimony to the State Coroner's Office (NSW) regarding equivocal death analysis and crime scene staging. The testimony assisted the Coroner to make a manner of death determination in a suspicious death.