Jonathan D. Rosen is Assistant Professor in the Professional Security Studies Department at New Jersey City University. Dr. Rosen earned his Master's in political science from Columbia University and received his Ph.D. in international studies from the University of Miami in 2012. Dr. Rosen's research focuses on drug trafficking, organized crime, and security. He has published more than 20 books with Routledge, Lexington Books, Palgrave Macmillan, the University of Florida, and the State University Press of New York. He has published journal articles in Trends in Organized Crime, the Journal of Criminal Justice, Deviant Behavior, International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, and Contexto Internacional, among other journals. He has participated in grant-funded research studies in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Colombia, and Mexico. In 2017, for example, Jonathan and his colleagues at Florida International University interviewed and surveyed nearly 1,200 active and former gang members in El Salvador.

Sebastián A. Cutrona is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Liverpool Hope University. He earned his Ph.D. in International Studies from the University of Miami. His work has been published in Trends in Organized Crime, the International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice, and Crime, Law and Social Change, among others. His most recent book is Mano Dura Policies in Latin America, which was published by Routledge in 2023. Dr. Cutrona has taught drug trafficking, organized crime, and Latin American politics at the University of Miami (United States), Universidad de San Andrés (Argentina), and Universidad Nacional de La Rioja (Argentina). His research interests mainly focus on organized crime, policing, drug policy, and Latin American politics.