As an assistant public defender, I am appointed to cases where people cannot afford to retain a private attorney to represent them in criminal court. Everyone has access to a lawyer in the criminal court system, and I have not seen any issues with the courts refusing to appoint a public defender to an individual charged with a crime and potentially facing jail or prison. With regards to other aspects of the law, the clerk of court does a fantastic job providing required forms and guides online to help those that can't afford an attorney.

I have tried many cases in front of a judge and jury. I have tried 48 cases, and this number is likely higher (I didn't start keeping track of my trials until well into my career), and of those cases, I have 32 jury trials and 16 bench trials. I have tried many complex cases. I have tried multiple Capital Sexual Battery cases, L & L Molestation, Attempted Murder, Aggravated Assault, Trafficking in Drugs, Possession of various drugs, Dui's, Improper Exhibition of a Firearm, Trespass and more

Not that I can think of. I firmly believe in the Constitution, and I am proud to take a stand daily to protect our Constitution and individual rights.

Considering the fact that I am a public defender with a high caseload, I know that it is VERY important to be organized and efficient with my time each day. It is important for judges to understand the difficulty each public defender faces daily, and by listening to the public defender's request in court and working with them with scheduling hearings, motions and trials, this assists to ensure adequate representation.

I think that it is important to take the time with each juvenile offender when they first come into the juvenile court system and take a hard look at what lead them to the point where they are. Stopping juvenile offenders when they first enter into the court system should be the main goal. Once juveniles are repeat offenders in the juvenile court system, they are much more likely to become criminals in the adult system.

As an assistant public defender, I don't get to pick my cases. I look at each case objectively, and I never allow for my personal feelings or beliefs to interfere with the legal advice that I provide to my clients. There isn't any type of case that I would have a conflict with, however, if a conflict arose, I would immediately recuse myself.

I believe that the biggest hurdle to adequate legal access is the available financial resources of a party. All parts of the process cost money whether it is to hire an attorney, to request records, or to hire experts. We have wonderful legal aid organizations in our circuit to assist with this, however, they are limited in what they can provide. To provide better access, we need more attorneys to give of their time to do pro bono work. I have done this throughout my career and believe if more attorneys are willing to provide pro bono services more citizens would have access.

Yes, I have tried approximately 35 cases where I have been the lead attorney. I have tried family, civil, administrative and domestic violence injunctions cases. Because the majority of my practice has been in family law, we many times need to be involved in temporary relief hearings, these are mini trials but do not count in a trial count. However, they are just as important as trials as you are calling witnesses, presenting evidence and asking the court to make a decision.

Yes, as an attorney you need to present your client's case which may not always be in line with what you believe, however, if the law is on their side, you have an obligation. As with being a judge, you will need to apply laws that you may not agree with, however, to do the job properly you must apply the law fairly and consistently with how it is written. I have had cases especially in family law where I did not agree with how a client wanted to proceed as it was not in the best interests of the child and after counseling my client they did not agree, I have withdrawn from the matter.

We have some very good public defenders and I think it is very important for judges assigned to the criminal bench to not only run their calendars, but be mindful of the attorneys appearing before them on both the Public Defender and the State Attorney side. Usually these are newer attorneys and they may need guidance and mentoring from the court and other more experienced attorneys. I think it is important for the Judge to be a monitor to make sure everyone is being adequately represented.

When I was chair of the Marital and Family Law Section of the St. Petersburg Bar Association, we held a conference on Adverse Childhood Experiences. This conference focused on the effects of childhood trauma and how it effects children throughout their life. I believe there needs to be more focus on prevention and treatment of childhood trauma to help prevent children from becoming offenders. As the system focuses more on childhood trauma, I am hopeful that we will have less juvenile offenders.

I do not believe I have any current conflicts of interest, however, if any become apparent to me or are ever raised, I would recuse myself from those matters pursuant to the Rules of Judicial Administration and the Judicial Canons. It is imperative that everyone is treated respectfully, fairly, and impartially when they appear in court.