My research focuses on two primary areas: mass communication and the production of culture, particularly as they relate to criminal and deviant identities and mechanisms of social control; and the study of capital punishment in the United States. I am interested in understanding how institutions, media, and social processes shape public perceptions of crime, punishment, and justice.

I earned my Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Delaware and have published numerous books and peer-reviewed articles in journals such as Social Problems, Symbolic Interaction, and Journal of Contemporary Ethnography. My most recent book, Killing with Prejudice: Institutionalized Racism in American Capital Punishment (NYU Press, 2019), examines the Supreme Court’s decision in McCleskey v. Kemp (1987). The book traces the history of racialized punishment in the United States and explores the litigation process that culminated in a ruling often described as “the Dred Scott decision of our time.” Through my research and writing, I seek to contribute to broader conversations about inequality, justice, and the social consequences of legal and cultural institutions.

See RJ Maratea. List of Publications