Professor Susan McMahon joined the ASU faculty in 2021 after teaching at the Georgetown University Law Center for ten years. Her scholarly work aims to unearth and critique law's biases, with a particular focus on individuals with mental health conditions in the criminal justice system. Her articles have appeared in journals such as the Georgetown Law Journal, the American Criminal Law Review, and the Arizona State Law Journal Online.
Professor McMahon earned her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center magna cum laude. She then joined Debevoise & Plimpton, where she represented clients in securities litigation, intellectual property disputes, and federal criminal cases. She also represented, pro bono, several Guantanamo Bay detainees in their habeas corpus petitions before federal courts. From 2008 to 2009, she clerked for the Honorable Richard J. Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Before attending law school, Professor McMahon was an award-winning reporter for The Sun in Lowell, Mass.