James Quinn Wilson (1931-2012) was an influential American political scientist, criminologist, and public policy scholar whose work profoundly influenced fields such as criminal justice, bureaucracy, and governance. Born in Denver, Colorado, he earned his BA (1952) and PhD (1959) in political science from the University of Chicago. He taught at UCLA from 1961 onward and later served as the Collins Professor of Management and Public Policy at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government from 1982 until retirement. Wilson authored numerous influential books including 'American Government,' 'Bureaucracy,' and 'Thinking About Crime.' He is best known for co-originating the 'broken windows' theory of policing with George L. Kelling in a 1982 Atlantic Monthly article, which posited that visible signs of disorder and minor crimes lead to more serious crime and shaped modern policing strategies. Wilson also held advisory roles in government, serving on President Ronald Reagan's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (1985-1990) and President George W. Bush's Council on Bioethics, and chaired the Council of Academic Advisors at the American Enterprise Institute. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2003 and was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Wilson passed away on March 2, 2012, in Bethesda, Maryland, after battling chronic lymphocytic leukemia.