Thomas J. Martinelli, J.D., M.S., has been a practicing attorney for 30 years and a police trainer for over 20 years. He was an adjunct professor in the Criminal Justice Department at Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, where he taught criminal justice courses at the undergraduate level. Most recently he was the constitutional law lecturer on a training team funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, within the Department of Justice, addressing the legal and ethical nuances of Intelligence Led Policing. Additionally he studies and writes about the fields of police ethics, liability issues, reducing police misconduct and constitutional policing trends. His training focuses mainly on risk management issues and lawsuit avoidance measures in policing using the best practices and lessons learned approach.

During his career, Mr. Martinelli has been a patrol officer, union steward, public information liaison, department prosecutor, trainer and consultant.

He has testified as an expert witness in federal civil rights cases, regarding use of force, privacy rights violations, inadequate training curriculums and policy non-compliance liability. He has authored and co-authored a number of articles and research presentations, most of which are related to police ethics and liability training, privacy rights and civil liberties, and managing risk in the public sector. For years he was a committee member on the Police Image and Ethics Committee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police as well as an annual presenter at numerous criminal justice association conferences around the country. He has participated as a subject matter expert on updating constitutional policing procedures and best practices related to policing privacy at national and regional criminal justice training seminars.

Mr. Martinelli holds a juris doctorate, a master’s degree in criminal justice and a Bachelor of Arts degree, all from Michigan State University.