Jos� Ashford teaches the human behavior course in the department of Social Work at Arizona State University and serves as a professor of social science and law in the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Justice Studies. He is currently the principle investigator for the Family Drug courts grant, funded by the governor's Division of Drug Policy. He is widely published in areas dealing with the assessment, classification, and treatment of special need offenders, juvenile aftercare, and forensic social work. Professor Ashford testifies across the country as an expert in the assessment of mitigating factors in capital murder cases.