James (Jim) Markey

A 30-year police veteran with vast experience, Jim is an acknowledged expert in the field of investigating sexual assaults.  Jim retired from the Phoenix Police Department as a detective sergeant overseeing the adult sex crime unit which investigated more than 7,000 sexual assault investigations and included over 100 serial rape suspects.  During this tenure, he successfully directed several high-profile serial rape taskforces which required the management of multiple resources from various agency units over an extended time frame.  In 2001, Jim developed the Phoenix Police Department Sexual Assault Cold Case Team reviewing over 4,000 old rape cases.   

Jim is currently employed as a Senior Law Enforcement Specialist for The Research Triangle Institute in Raleigh North Carolina where he provides technical assistance for the United States Department of Justice Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, a nationwide effort to address untested rape kits.  His role includes providing law enforcement technical assistance and training to 54 sites across the nation.  As a part of this project, he was instrumental in creating the Sexual Assault Unit Assessment Program designed to comprehensively assess a police agency’s response to sexual assault.  In 2017 he was appointed by the United States Secretary of Defense to the 5-year Department of Defense Advisory Committee on the Investigation, Prosecution and Defense of Sexual Assault in the Military (DACIPAD).  Jim is a member of both the National Institute of Justice SAFER Act and Cold Case Working Groups, and the Arizona Supreme Court Committee on Victims in the Courts.   He has a Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice from Arizona State University and a Master of Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University.  Jim calls Fountain Hills Arizona his home.