Ayobami Laniyonu

I am an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Criminology and Sociolegal Studies at the University of Toronto. My current research focuses on the implementation of unarmed responders to 911. This work, funded by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s Thurgood Marshall Institute uses Monte Carlos simulation to estimate both the tangible, financial costs and intangible costs of police violence/misconduct and cost savings local governments can expect to enjoy through the implementation of unarmed responders to 911.

In other current work, funded by the SSHRC’s New Frontiers in Research Fund, I explore the proliferation, use, and consequences of doorbell cameras and other surveillance technologies across city neighborhoods (with Dr. Lisa Berglund). With Sam Donahue and Maria Abscal, I am currently exploring racial misclassification in administrative police data and how money may “whiten” motorists stopped by police.

In past research, I have explored the relationship between gentrification and discriminatory policing practices and the effect of policing on voter behavior. With Hannah Brais, I have also explored the policing of homeless persons in Montreal and am more generally interested in police treatment of mentally ill, homeless, and other vulnerable groups. 

Ongoing & Future Research

My research interests include criminal justice reform, urban politics, and statistical methodologies, with a particular emphasis on spatial statistics. I am currently working on a series of projects that explore police use of force against the homeless and individuals with serious mental illness, the effect gentrification on eviction rates in large urban areas, and the effect of police violence on political behavior.

Courses Taught

Undergraduate

• CRI 390 Topics: The Politics of the Criminal Justice System
• CRI 428 Neighbourhoods and Crime
• CRI 350 Statistical Methods

Graduate

• CRI 2010 Methodological Issues in Criminology & Sociolegal Studies

Publications

• Brais, Hannah and Ayobami Laniyonu. 2024. "Shelter in place: Neighborhood policing of homelessness in Montreal, Canada," Urban Geography Forthcoming.
• Laniyonu, Ayobami and Hannah Brais. 2023. "Policing of homelessness and opportunities for reform in Montreal," Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice. 65(2): 59-77
• O’Connell, Siobhan and Ayobami Laniyonu. 2023. "Race, Gender, and Risk Assessments in Canadian Federal Prison." Race and Justice. 
• Laniyonu, Ayobami and Sam Donahue. 2023. "The effect of racial misclassification in police data on estimates of racial disparities." Criminology. 61(2): 295-315
• Laniyonu, Ayobami. 2021. "Phantom Pains: Measuring the Effect of Police Violence in the US on Attitudes Towards the Police in the United Kingdom." British Journal of Political Science. 52(4):1651-1667.
• Laniyonu, Ayobami and Philip A. Goff. 2021. "Measuring disparities in police use of force and injury among persons with serious mental illness." BMC Psychiatry. 21(500)
• Laniyonu, Ayobami and Shakari Byerly. 2020. "More than Spare Change: A Case Study of Contact and Voter Support for the Homeless in Los Angeles County, California." Urban Affairs Review. 57(4): 1149-1177.
• Laniyonu, Ayobami. 2019. "Assessing the Impact of Gentrification on Eviction: A Spatial Modeling Approach." Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review. 54(2): 741-768.
• Laniyonu, Ayobami. 2019. “The Political Consequences of Policing: Evidence from New York City.” Political Behavior. 41(2): 527-558. DOI: 10.1007/s11109-018-9461-9.
• Laniyonu, Ayobami. 2018. “Police, Politics, and Demobilization: Exploring Policy Feedback Effects in the United Kingdom.” British Journal of Criminology. 58(5): 1232-1253. DOI: 10.1093/bjc/azy003. [Supplementary Appendix Materials]
• Laniyonu, Ayobami. 2018. “A Comparative Analysis of Black Racial Group Consciousness in the United States and Britain.” Journal of Racial and Ethnic Politics. 4(1): 117-147 DOI: 10.1017/rep.2018.28.
• Laniyonu, Ayobami. 2017. “Coffee Shops and Street Stops: Policing Practices in Gentrifying Neighborhoods.” Urban Affairs Review. 54(5): 898-930. DOI: 10.1177/1078087416689728. Winner of the Law and Society Association’s 2018 Best Graduate Student Paper Prize.

Selected working papers

• "Social Media Vigilantism in Canadian Gentrifying Neighbourhoods: New Risks for Societal Inclusion" (with Lisa Berglund)
• "An assessment of the indirect costs of policing in the US"
• "A cost-benefit analysis of unarmed alternative responder programs in the US"
• "Racial paternalism in Canada" (with Joana Jabson)
• "Racial Disparities in Police Use of Force in Toronto, Canada" (with Scot Wortley)