Coercive Control Expert Witnesses

Los Angeles, California

Behavioral and Social Sciences, Psychology - coercive control, human trafficking, domestic violence, abuse dynamics, psychological coercion, undue influence, grooming, witness credibility, victim behavior, inconsistent statements, return to abuser, compliance under threat, exploitation, false confession, pressured statements, intimidation, fear-based compliance, manipulation

Dr. Felicia Rosario provides behavioral analysis in trafficking and abuse cases involving coercive control, psychological pressure, fear, dependency, and power imbalance. Attorneys retain her to explain how these dynamics shape disclosure, decision-making, communication, and testimony in legal settings. Her work clarifies behavior that courts and juries often misread—such as inconsistent statements, return to abusers, compliance under threat, and apparent passivity or emotional flatness—by situating it within coercive environments rather than individual pathology. Dr. Rosario holds an MD from Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons and completed a medical internship in psychiatry at LAC+USC Medical Center, one of the nation’s busiest public psychiatric emergency systems. Her clinical work included psychiatric evaluations, crisis assessments, risk determinations, and trauma-related assessments in high-acuity settings. She is a member of Harvard Medical School’s Program...

Manhattan Beach, California

Psychology, Psychology - coercive control, undue influence, sexual abuse, sexual consent, family abuse, psychological manipulation, grooming, sexual violence, battered women syndrome, financial abuse, coercion, intimate partner violence, parental alienation, stalking, troubled teen industry, false / coerced confession, cult, victim behavior, RICO

Jennifer works on cases of coercive control and identifies patterns of behavior designed to exploit, control, create dependency and dominate another person. This process may initially include tactics of psychological manipulation such as gaslighting and love bombing which are part of a grooming process. These patterns may include coercive control as it relates to child custody, undue influence, sexual abuse, child abuse, domestic abuse, domestic violence, financial abuse, physical abuse, human trafficking, the troubled teen industry, and deprivation of liberties. She is an expert in cults, cultic abuse, and religious and spiritual abuse from the perspective of identifying behavioral patterns and not as a means to diagnose individuals psychologically. Please note: she is not a psychotherapist. She also specializes in sexual consent, date rape, stalking, strangulation, grooming, molestation, reproductive coercion, and the capacity to consent as they relate to tactics and patterns of ...

Vernon, Connecticut

Psychology, Behavioral and Social Sciences - coercive control, domestic violence, child abuse, workplace bullying, batterers, battered women syndrome, grooming, coercion, psychological manipulation, psychological maltreatment, abuse, alienation, undue influence, consent, cults, workplace violence, hostile workplace, workplace harassment, fraud

Kate Amber MSc is a researcher, speaker, trainer, consultant and turnaround expert in coercive control and domestic abuse/violence in the contexts of family abuse, human trafficking, gangs, extremist groups, religions, workplace abuse, and psychological maltreatment. She holds post graduate certifications in violence and abuse prevention executive leadership, and coercive control, and professional certifications in human rights, ADA advocacy, the Homicide Timeline, and the Danger Assessment. Ms. Amber is trained on the Safe & Together CORE Model at the intersection of domestic violence and child abuse, and assesses cases for different types of abuse and the short and longterm risks involved for adults and children traumatized by it. Ms. Amber's Quicksand Model® of Coercive Control (QSM®) is a synthesis of 70 years of research and theory on coercive and controlling abuse of power and the trauma it causes. Ms. Amber speaks, conducts research, and trains mental health, law enforcement...

BENTON, Kentucky

Psychology, Mental Health - PTSD, Trauma, Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Clergy Abuse, Coercive Control

Dr. Foley is a licensed psychologist with 20 years of experience in treating victims of interpersonal violence. Dr. Foley has extensive experience in understanding the nuance of working with victims of interpersonal trauma, and in educating systems and communities on these and related issues. Dr. Foley has served on the Board of Directors of three (3) KY state coalition boards and has been active in shaping legislative policy and training advocates state-wide in the field of domestic violence. Currently, Dr. Foley is the Executive Director of a regional domestic violence program in far western KY and serves on the Board of Directors of ZeroV- Kentucky's domestic violence coalition. Dr. Foley worked as a forensic interviewer assisting law enforcement in child sexual abuse cases for several years (2008-2011), and in 2011 she traveled the country as a national trainer on bystander intervention through a company known as Green Dot, etcetera. Dr. Foley's clinical and advocacy experience,...

Baltimore, Maryland

Behavioral and Social Sciences, Social Work - Intimate Partner Violence, Criminalized Survivors of Violence, Women’s Pathways to Prison, Gender-Based Violence, Intimate Partner Homicide Risk, Traumatic Brain Injury from IPV, Coercive Control, Violence Risk Assessment, Prostitution/Sex Work, Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking, Childhood Maltreatment, LGBTQIA+ Populations

I am a nationally recognized social scientist and licensed master social worker (LMSW) with over 15 years of experience conducting interdisciplinary research on intimate partner violence, gender-based violence, sex trafficking, trauma, and the criminalization of survivors, including work with LGBTQIA+ populations. My work emphasizes trauma-informed, social and behavioral responses to explain survivor behavior, risk trajectories, and decision-making in high-stakes contexts. I have authored more than 60 peer-reviewed publications and served as Principal Investigator or Co-Investigator on over $9 million in funded research. As a social worker by training with advanced interdisciplinary violence research training at Johns Hopkins University, I bring expertise grounded in both empirical research and practice-informed understanding of violence, trauma, and systems response. My approach integrates social science, public health, and trauma-informed frameworks to examine the health, mental...