Press Releases
Tallahassee, FL November 2, 2011
Public Defender, 2nd Judicial Circuit
I'm happy to announce that we raised $410 for United Way at yesterday's Silent Auction. THANK YOU to everyone who participated, and especially to Faye Dorn and Judy Ware for their outstanding efforts on the event. The winner of the "Guess how many pennies in the homeless collection jar" raffle was Virginia Christy; she guessed that the amount in the jar was $34.53 and the actual amount was $33.74 (a difference of 79 cents). That's impressive! (And thanks to those who helped count the change). We will send a check to The Shelter for that amount.
All in all, it was good fun, and I'm proud of the office's great response. Thanks very much.
Tallahassee, FL October 11, 2011
Public Defender, 2nd Judicial Circuit
The Public Defender, 2nd Judicial Circuit Leon County Baker Act Division, in conjunction with the Leon County Clerk of Court, State Attorney, Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare, and Apalachee Center, are going electronic. All of the parties have agreed to exchange their filings via the Clerk of Court's Judicial Website. In the past, when the Public Defender filed a Notice of Continuance, a paper document would be generated. The original was routed to the Clerk's Office, where clerk staff would docket the filing in their case management system, and would cancel and reschedule the hearing. The Public Defender's Office would fax a copy of the Notice to either TMH or Apalachee, and another copy would be routed to the State Attorney's Office. Now, PD staff "files" the Notice of Continuance from within the clerk's Judicial Web. By answering a few short questions, PD staff members give the clerk's case management system the information it needs to cancel and reschedule the hearing, and to produce a PDF version of the Notice of Continuance. Additionally, both the State Attorney and the facility (TMH or Apalachee) are automatically notified upon the filing of the Notice.
This new method of sharing the necessary data within a central case management system worked so well that both Baker Act facilities are now filing their Notices of Dismissal in the same fashion.
By "filing" the Notices electronically, all parties are saving time and providing nearly instantaneous case-related information to all parties on the case. This is one of many examples of PD2 staff working with other constituents in the judicial system to find ways to save money and work more efficiently.
Tallahassee, FL February 14, 2011
Public Defender, 2nd Judicial Circuit
It's been an amazing two weeks for the Public Defender's Office in Tallahassee. There have been excellent results in both the trial and appeals divisions. Even in the midst of dire media reports of personnel cuts and reduced paychecks through pension fund reform, staff continued to provide zealous and effective representation to our clients.
Leonard Holton, Leon Felony Division B Chief, scored his second "Stand Your Ground" win, with the circuit court ruling the client had immunity from prosecution since he was acting in self-defense.
Ed Harvey, a veteran trial attorney who came out of retirement to return to the Quincy office, recently poked so many holes in the State's evidence in a Sale of Cocaine case that the jury was out for less than 5 minutes before returning with a Not Guilty verdict.
In the Leon County County Court Division, another trial veteran had a string of wins. In one week, Don Freeman had 6 trials set. With the able assistance of two certified legal interns, Lauren Bobek and Joseph Woeklers, Mr. Freeman won 5 out of the 6 cases.
In Appeals, Richard Summa argued before the Florida Supreme Court, aggressively advocating for the proper instructions to be given to juries in manslaughter cases.
Carl McGinnes secured a reversal for his client in a burglary case. The Florida First District Court of Appeal (1st DCA) held that the trial court should have given a defense requested instruction to the jury. Juries must be properly instructed on the elements of the alleged crime or our society risks incarcerating the innocent.
Steve Seliger successfully fought to allow his client to withdraw his plea. The judge interjected in plea negotiations and hinted a 25 year sentence would be imposed, but later imposed life imprisonment. The 1st DCA ruled that the trial court's over-involvement in the plea bargaining required withdrawal of the plea upon request.
Victoria Wiggins won a new trial for her client, with the 1st DCA returning the case to the trial court because the prosecuting attorney went outside the permissible lines in attacking the credibility of the defendant. The Court held that it couldn't say to the exclusion of all reasonable doubt that the error didn't effect the jury's verdict.
Archie Gardner prevailed for his juvenile client by convincing the 1st DCA that his client was best served by a moderate-risk treatment program at the Department of Juvenile Justice. The trial court committed the juvenile to a higher risk program, but failed to clearly state in the written order the reasons for the departure from the Department's recommendation.
Tallahassee, FL January 25th, 2011
Public Defender, 2nd Judicial Circuit
Hugo Apellaniz, Assistant Public Defender, with assistance from Lauren Bobek, Certified Legal Intern, won a not guilty verdict for a client charged with driving under the influence. A Tallahassee jury only needed 30 minutes to return with an acquittal.
The client was pulled over for making a right hand turn on a red light, without stopping. The arresting officer testified the client had an alcoholic beverage in the car, had a red face, and his eyes were bloodshot. The client was required to perform field sobriety exercises, which he performed well. The officer arrested the client and had him provide a breath sample at the jail. While the client's sample tested at .126, Mr. Apellaniz uncovered that the machine was defective and had to be removed from use and recalibrated at FDLE approximately five months after the test.
The Public Defender legal team conducted a full investigation and zealously defended the client, who had never faced a criminal charge before. His record remains clean thanks to their hard work and dedication.