Laurie Christensen

Biography:

Laurie Christensen is the Fire Marshal of Harris County, Texas, the third-most populous county in the United States with 4.7 million residents, 2.1 million of whom reside in the unincorporated county. Fire Marshal Christensen is a graduate of the University of Houston Downtown with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and a Master of Science in Criminal Justice Leadership and Management from Sam Houston State University. She is an accredited Fire Marshal, a Certified Fire Protection Specialist, a Master Peace Officer, a Master Firefighter and Certified Texas Emergency Manager. The Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office is an independent law enforcement agency, which operates under Texas Local Government Code 352.011. The duties encompass Head of Department for the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) and Head of Department for Texas Fire Commission (TCFP) administrator for the department and county government. "Our mission is to safeguard the lives and property of residents in the unincorporated areas of Harris County through effective fire prevention, fire investigation, education, and emergency response." She is a Professor at Sam Houston State University in the Criminal Justice College teaching various criminal justice and homeland security courses. Currently, she serves on the board of the International Fire Marshal’s Association, International Chiefs of Police Homeland Security Committee, Texas Fire Marshal’s Legislative Committee, County Fire Marshal Committee, Lone Star College Law Enforcement Academy Committee, and National Fire Protection Assc. (NFPA) 3000 and 1037. She is one of the authors of NFPA 3000 the first national standard written for Active Shooter Hostile Event Response (ASHER). Fire Marshal Christensen is a published author, guest editor and guest speaker throughout the state and country. Christensen also serves on numerous committees for law enforcement and fire services. She also provides frequent expert testimony to the Texas legislature.