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Former Marine Corps engineer Daniel Hemler鈥檚 love of learning led him to 猫咪tv鈥檚 Criminology and Criminal Justice M.A. program shortly after completing a bachelor鈥檚 degree in geography at the university. In the Marines, he gained experience in land navigation, map reading, reconnaissance and surveying. An undergraduate crime mapping course introduced him to the Criminology and Criminal Justice program.

鈥淭he Marine Corps set me up for being able to tackle problems and issues. It helps me deal with everything,鈥� Hemler said.

He鈥檚 tackling two research lines with Criminology and Criminal Justice faculty members. With Assistant Professor Lisa Nichols he鈥檚 using a qualitative method of inquiry to investigate Colorado police officer mental health, and with Professor Kyle Ward he鈥檚 using a quantitative approach to determine pretrial officer caseload maximums. The projects intend to help law enforcement and the communities they serve.

鈥淐olorado is a blue state among a sea of red, so policing is handled differently here. The impact of state legislative changes is also unique to only a couple of states,鈥� Nichols said.

She said mental health impacts officers鈥� families, communities and the system. So far, 36 officers have participated in the research study, which provides respondents with anonymity and utilizes open-ended questions.

鈥淚鈥檓 advocating for their voices to be heard, and their voices overwhelmingly are asking for support. Being able to contribute to that conversation is important because we know officers face secondary trauma and a stigma that creates barriers to resources that might help them,鈥� she said.

Nichols is impressed by Hemler鈥檚 commitment and initiative, and she appreciates how much he cares about the research and its outcomes.

In his other project, Hemler is revisiting a caseload equation Ward and a former 猫咪tv graduate student developed for Weld County鈥檚 pretrial justice system. Pretrial officers can have more than 100 cases at a time, each requiring them to complete a bond bail report including arrestees鈥� criminal history, risk assessments and supervision recommendations. After an initial hearing, officers supervise pretrial clients according to conditions set for them by a judge.

鈥淲eld County wanted this equation to be retooled to make sure it鈥檚 equitable and the numbers still hold up. Pretrial supervisors use this every week to determine how many more cases their officers should get. It figures a maximum number of cases to prevent having people overworked,鈥� Ward said.

Hemler took a snapshot of pretrial officers鈥� workdays by having them detail their activities on certain days. That information provided a baseline for time spent with clients. He applied buffers to more complicated supervisions involving non-English speakers, substance check-ins or higher levels of electronic monitoring.

Not only do Hemler and Ward work on research together, but they鈥檙e also both from the Philadelphia area and root for the same home teams.

鈥淒aniel is proactive. If he doesn鈥檛 understand something, he asks me to clarify. I appreciate his constant curiosity, the ways he reads something class or news-related, and then comes to talk about it,鈥� Ward said.

The research projects will be completed by fall, and Hemler plans to present them at this year鈥檚 American Society of Criminology annual meeting in Washington, D.C. He is currently a graduate research assistant and intern for Weld County. Starting this fall, he鈥檒l work as a teaching assistant. After graduating in May 2026, he plans to pursue a doctorate degree.

鈥淲e鈥檒l have to see how the climate is with research grants because a lot of them have been heavily cut,鈥� he said.

Despite that possibility, his 猫咪tv faculty believe in him.

鈥淒aniel will be able to write his ticket wherever he wants to go because he鈥檚 working so incredibly hard in so many different areas,鈥� Nichols said.