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Stetson’s National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law to inform the National Association of Police Organizations about forensic evidence

Contact Diane Gustafson
National Clearinghouse Coordinator
727-562-7316

Tampa Bay, Fla. – The National Clearinghouse for Science Technology and the Law at Stetson University College of Law will make a presentation about forensic evidence resources and opportunities for law enforcement at the National Association of Police Organizations, 27th annual convention, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New Orleans on Sunday, July 24 at 10:45 am.

Clearinghouse Deputy Director Gregory Hill will present the program. Hill is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, International Homicide Investigators Association and a former Tampa police officer, private attorney and assistant public defender. He is working with the National Forensic Science and Technology Center on developing a DNA Mock Trial for President George W. Bush’s DNA Initiative.

The Clearinghouse encourages scientific, technological and legal communities to share resources in the interest of justice.

“We look forward to providing even more services to the legal, scientific and law enforcement communities,” said Carol Henderson, Clearinghouse director.

Under Henderson’s direction, Stetson’s National Clearinghouse, a program of the National Institute of Justice, was formed in 2003 to advance the use of science and technology in the law.

The Clearinghouse provides a comprehensive online database of legal and scientific research and educates lawyers, judges and law enforcement personnel about new developments in forensic technology and forensic evidence handling in the courts.

For more information on additional National Clearinghouse programs, please call

(727) 562-7316 or visit them on the Web at http://www.ncstl.org.

Director of National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law at Stetson Law will be part of a national panel about forensic evidence

Contact Frank Klim
Executive Director of Communications
727-562-7889

Gulfport, Fla. – Carol Henderson, director of the National Clearinghouse for Science,Technology and the Law at Stetson University College of Law, will be part of a nationwide panel about forensic evidence in an American Bar Association teleconference July 20 at 1 p.m.

Professor Henderson, who has spoken at numerous worldwide venues to the forensic science, legal and law enforcement communities, will participate in the three-person panel along with Cynthia Cwik, partner in Latham and Watkins in San Diego, and James Starrs, George Washington University law professor. Henderson was recently quoted about the “CSI Effect” in the July ABA Journal article, “The Uncertain Science of Evidence,” which is also the topic of the teleconference.

“We are delighted to have Professor Henderson on the panel. She has been instrumental in helping put this teleconference together,” said Gary Courington, with the ABA Center for Continuing Legal Education.

Henderson has presented hundreds of lectures and workshops to forensic scientists and attorneys worldwide. She is the author of three books, including “Scientific Evidence in Civil and Criminal Cases,” and more than 45 articles and chapters on scientific evidence, law and ethics. “The Encyclopedia of Forensic and Legal Medicine,” which Henderson co-edited, was published this summer in the United Kingdom.

Stetson’s National Clearinghouse, a program of the National Institute of Justice, was formed in 2003 to advance the use of science and technology in the law.

To register, call the ABA at 800-285-2221 from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. weekdays, or register online at https://www.abanet.org/cle/connection.html#schedule.

For more information about the Clearinghouse, please call (727) 562-7316 or visit them on the Web at http://www.ncstl.org.

Stetson Law presents information sessions for its part-time program

Contact Frank Klim
Executive Director of Communications
727-562-7889

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law will present information sessions for prospective part-time evening law students on Aug. 9 at the Tampa Law Center and on Aug. 30 at the Gulfport campus. Registration starts at 6 p.m., and each session will begin at 6:30 p.m. Both sessions will present the same information.

The sessions will provide information about the law school admission process, financial aid, part-time law curriculum, legal careers and part-time student perspectives on law school. The part-time law program at Stetson allows non-traditional students to attend evening classes in the fall, spring and summer semesters to complete a law degree in four years.

“Law school had long been an interest of mine, but with a family and a job, it seemed like that opportunity had passed me by,” said Patricia Calhoun, a Stetson part-time law student. “The professors have been willing to work with our part-time class, and they are truly motivated to help us be successful.”

Part-time students take classes at the Gulfport campus and the Tampa Law Center. The Gulfport campus is located at 1401 61st St. S., Gulfport, and the Tampa Law Center is located at 1700 N. Tampa St., Tampa.

The application deadline for the fall 2006 part-time class is March 1, 2006.

To R.S.V.P. for one of the sessions or for more information, contact the Office of Admissions on the Web at http://www.law.stetson.edu/parttime/informationsessions.asp.

Stetson Law programs alert elderly Florida consumers to the dangers of fraud

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law’s Elder Consumer Protection Program presents a series of consumer fraud seminars for the elderly this month throughout Florida at the following events:

  • “Identity Theft,” July 6, 10:30 a.m., LaBelle Senior Center Connections Center, LaBelle
  • “Loan Fraud,” July 12, 1 p.m., Sunshine Senior Center, St. Petersburg
  • “Loan Fraud,” July 12, 11:30 a.m., Log Cabin Senior Activity Center, Langford
  • “Home Repair Fraud,” July 13, 11 a.m., Liberty Senior Citizens Center, Bristol CANCELLED
  • “Mail Fraud,” July 14, 10:30 a.m., Taylor County Senior Center, Perry
  • “Income Opportunity Fraud,” July 14, 10:45 a.m., Gulf County Senior Citizens Center, Port St. Joe
  • “Telemarketing Fraud,” July 15, 10:30 a.m., Madison Senior Center, Madison
  • “Loan Fraud,” July 15, 10 a.m., Casselberry Multipurpose Senior Center, Casselberry
  • “Identity Theft,” July 19, 1 p.m., Lake Mary Senior Center, Lake Mary
  • “Identity Theft,” July 20, 12 p.m., Beardall Senior Center, Orlando
  • “Loan Fraud,” July 27, 1 p.m., Gulfport Senior Center, Gulfport
  • “Home Solicitation Fraud,” July 27, 10 a.m., USF, Northwest Education Complex, Tampa
  • “Loan Fraud,” July 28, 1:30 p.m., College of Law, Gulfport

“Elder consumers need to learn more about various scams and how to protect themselves from being victims of a scam,” said Rebecca Morgan, head of the program. “Good advice to always remember is ‘if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.'”

Funding for the program was provided in part by the U.S. Administration on Aging, and the presentations are part of Stetson’s work under a federal grant to educate the elderly on consumer fraud prevention. Stetson, a national leader in the field of elder law, has partnered with the Florida Attorney General’s Office, AARP and the legal community to increase public awareness of consumer fraud against senior citizens.

For more information, call Stetson’s Consumer Protection Program at 727-562-7800 ext. 7235.

The Florida Bar honors Stetson Law with two professionalism awards

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – The Florida Bar honored Stetson University College of Law with two professionalism awards at its annual meeting June 23 in Orlando.

“The Bar’s professionalism awards honor a higher level of conduct that the college is proud to represent,” said Dean Darby Dickerson. The Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism and the Florida Bar’s Standing Committee on Professionalism selected the award recipients.

Stetson Law’s Centers for Excellence in Advocacy and Elder Law received the 2005 Professionalism Award for their Elder Law Ethics Video Project. Professor Roberta Flowers, director of the advocacy center, received this year’s Faculty Award for Professionalism.

“Stetson prides itself on training ethical and professional attorneys, and I feel very lucky to be part of a faculty committed to training students to become both effective lawyers and professional advocates,” Flowers said.

Flowers was recently named Stetson’s first William Reece Smith Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law, a position designed to foster professionalism among students. Under Flowers’ direction, Stetson’s advocacy program tied for first in the nation in the 2006 graduate school rankings from U.S. News & World Report.

The series of 15 educational videos produced by the advocacy and elder law centers encourage professionalism by illustrating how elder law students, attorneys and judges can deal successfully with ethical issues in the real world.

“We are honored to receive this award,” said Professor Rebecca Morgan, who directs the elder law center. “Real-world vignettes and an audience response system engage the audience in a discussion of ethical and professional behavior while illustrating the most professional approach to day-to-day ethical problems faced by elder law attorneys.”

Morgan also received the Faculty Award for Professionalism in 2003.

Stetson Law presents awards to alumni and friends

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law recently honored the commitment and dedication of several alumni and friends at its annual Stetson Lawyers Association Alumni Reception.

Dannel G. DeBerg ’82 received the Ben C. Willard Award for her distinguished humanitarian achievements that have benefited Florida citizens and people throughout the world. DeBerg works as a part of New Frontiers Health Force, a non-denominational missionary group that travels and provides aid to areas hit by natural disasters. She practices in the areas of medical malpractice and personal injury law.

Alexander M. Clem ’90 and Judge James D. Whittemore ’77 received Distinguished Alumnus Awards. Clem practices in the areas of nursing home negligence, personal injury and wrongful death, and he has been involved with legislative and tort reform issues. He is also the immediate past president of the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers. Judge Whittemore, a member of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida since 2000, has presided over several important cases, including portions of the Terri Schiavo case.

John W. Staunton ’97 received the Paul M. May Meritorious Service Award for his continued support of the College of Law. Staunton is an active member of the state and national associations of elder law attorneys, and he has worked to support Stetson’s Center for Excellence in Elder Law.

Robert Biasotti ’96 and Robert “Robin” Doyle ’75 each received Outstanding Alumni Representative Awards. Biasotti is a shareholder in the St. Petersburg office of Carlton Fields P.A., and he recently worked with the firm to create a Diversity Fellowship Program for Stetson students. Doyle is a partner with the law firm of Quarles and Brady LLP. He recently completed a two-year term on the Stetson Lawyers Advisory Council and in the fall will join the College’s Board of Overseers.

Paul A. Turk Jr. ’79 was recognized with the President’s Award for his year-long service as president of the Stetson Lawyers Association. Turk was elected to the College of Law’s Board of Overseers.

John Dubrule, Judge Alexander L. Paskay and Professor Michael I. Swygert received Distinguished Service Awards for significant, meritorious and continuing contributions that have benefited Stetson Law. Dubrule is director of litigation at Gulfcoast Legal Services. Judge Paskay, chief bankruptcy judge emeritus for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court Middle District of Florida, has worked with Stetson students and served as chair of many Stetson seminars and symposia since 1974. Professor Swygert retired from Stetson in May after 25 years of service and is writing the official history of the College of Law.

The awards were presented June 23 at the 2005 annual meeting of The Florida Bar.

Stetson Law moot court team wins top brief award at Florida Bar competition

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – A Stetson University College of Law moot court team won the Best Brief Award, the top award for a written submission, at the Florida Bar’s Robert Orseck Moot Court Competition last week in Orlando at the Bar’s annual conference.

Also, for five consecutive years, a Stetson team has advanced to the finals in the competition. Students Royce Bluitt and Reneka Redmond argued before Florida Supreme Court justices and district court judges in the finals. For the third straight year, Stetson’s team placed second. Team member Alyson George wrote the award-winning brief.

“I am very proud that we won the Best Brief award, one of the top three awards in any competition,” said Stetson Law Professor Stephanie Vaughan, who advises the moot court board. “The competition was very exciting, and we had a great group of people, including Dean Darby Dickerson, cheering us in the finals.”

Eighteen teams from nine Florida law schools competed in the tournament. A team from Florida Coastal School of Law defeated the Stetson team in the finals.

Stetson Law honors work of professors and administrators

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law recently honored the contributions of administrators and professors.

Professor Dorothea Beane received the 2005 Excellence in Teaching Award. The university-level Excellence in Teaching Award is the highest teaching honor awarded to Stetson faculty. Beane, Stetson’s first black full professor, teaches civil procedure, federal pretrial practice and international human rights at Stetson. She also will serve as director of Stetson Law’s Summer Abroad Program at The Hague, Netherlands, beginning next month.

Professors Michael Allen and James Fox received 2005 Homer and Dolly Hand Awards. The university-level Homer and Dolly Hand Awards recognize excellence in faculty scholarship. Allen teaches constitutional law, civil procedure and federal courts. He is active in a variety of research areas, including federal versus state government authority, the right to die and personal jurisdiction. With Stetson Professor Michael Finch, Allen is co-author of An Illustrated Guide to Civil Procedure, to be published next year.

Fox teaches contracts, poverty and public benefits law, and American legal history. He has done extensive research on the 14th Amendment, currently focusing on the experience of Jim Crow by southern blacks and whites. He also has written about democratic citizenship, poverty and contract theory.

Vice Dean and Professor Royal C. Gardner and Associate Vice President of College Relations Dotti Bressi received Dean’s Awards. Bressi spearheaded the Cornerstone Campaign, a fundraising effort that generated more than $12 million in donations to the College over the last few years. The money has been used for campus improvements, faculty and staff development, and student scholarships.

Gardner was honored for his administrative contributions to Stetson as director of graduate and international programs, co-director of Stetson’s International Environmental Moot Court Competition, associate dean, and vice dean. Gardner is stepping down as vice dean to return to teaching and serve as director of Stetson’s new Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy.

Stetson Law bestows highest teaching honor on Dorothea Beane

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law Professor Dorothea Beane has received the 2005 Excellence in Teaching Award, the highest teaching honor the University bestows on faculty.

Beane, Stetson’s first black full professor, teaches civil procedure, federal pretrial practice and international human rights at Stetson. She also will serve as director of Stetson Law’s Summer Abroad Program at The Hague, Netherlands, beginning next month.

“Professor Beane is an extraordinary teacher, and she gives much of her time outside of the classroom mentoring and counseling our students,” said Stetson Law Dean Darby Dickerson. “For 15 years, Professor Beane has demonstrated her teaching excellence inside and outside the classroom.”

Before joining Stetson, Professor Beane served as an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice and an Assistant U.S. Attorney, including five years as the Senior Civil Litigating Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, Jacksonville and Ocala Divisions. She received the U.S. Attorney General’s Special Achievement Award for Sustained Superior Performance of Duty in 1986.

Professor Beane is an active member of the legal and Tampa Bay communities. She is a member of many organizations, including the executive committee of the International Human Rights Law Section of the Association of American Law Schools. Additionally, she has served as a non-governmental observer for the National Bar Association’s establishment of the international criminal court since 1998.

Beane is a graduate of Westfield Senior High School in Westfield, N.J. She earned a bachelor’s in history from Drew University in Madison, N.J., and her law degree from Rutgers School of Law-Newark.

Free Stetson Law program to help people understand end-of-life decisions

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law will present a free workshop on living wills and other advance directives Wednesday, June 8, from 12-3 p.m. in the Great Hall of its Gulfport campus, 1401 61st St. S.

The program will show what steps are available to ensure a person’s wishes are followed, such as living wills and other advance directives. Several area elder law attorneys will address four topics: the different types of advance directives, the different ways to make an advance directive, how to talk to family members about wishes, and how to honor a directive.

“This workshop will help people understand the issues surrounding decision-making at the end of life,” said Professor Rebecca Morgan, director of Stetson’s Center for Excellence in Elder Law. “It’s very important for everyone to think about their wishes regarding end of life care, and we hope to guide people on what they need to consider.”

For more information, contact Darlene Krizen in the Center for Excellence in Elder Law at (727) 562-7393.

Stetson Law Vice Dean selected to head two biodiversity groups Stetson announces creation of Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law Vice Dean Royal C. Gardner will lead two environmental organizations as chair of the U.S. National Ramsar Committee and director of Stetson’s new Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy.

“I am excited about the creation of the Stetson University Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy, which will serve as an interdisciplinary focal point for education, research and service activities related to global, regional and local biodiversity issues,” said Gardner, who also received the Dean’s Award at Stetson Law’s recent Honors and Awards Ceremony.

Gardner was elected chair of the U.S. National Ramsar Committee during the organization’s annual meeting last month in Charlotte, N.C. The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

Gardner is stepping down as vice dean to return to teaching and to increase Stetson’s work in environmental law through the new Institute, which just launched a new Web site at www.law.stetson.edu/international/biodiversity.

Before coming to Stetson, Gardner served in the Army General Counsel’s office as the Army’s principal wetland attorney. He also worked for the U.S. Department of Defense, working on international agreements with Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus to facilitate the dismantlement of the former Soviet Union’s nuclear weapons.

Gardner is an active scholar in the areas of environmental and international law. He has served in a number of organizations, including as Vice Chair of the American Bar Association’s Committee on Water Quality and Wetlands and as a member of the National Research Council’s Committee on Mitigating Wetland Losses. Gardner created the International Environmental Moot Court competition with Dean Darby Dickerson, now in its 10th year.

Stetson Law presents two Tampa attorneys with 2005 Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Public Service Award

Contact Frank Klim
Executive Director of Communications
727-562-7889

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law announces the winners of the 2005 William Reece Smith Jr. Public Service Award: Tampa criminal defense attorney Rochelle Reback and Carlton Fields attorney Sylvia Walbolt. The awards were presented at the law school’s spring graduation Honors and Awards ceremony May 13.

Reback leads the law firm of Rochelle A. Reback Attorney and Associates at Law in Tampa, which specializes in criminal law; she is a founding member of Tampa Safe and Free, an organization devoted to educating the community about the USA Patriot Act and its impact on civil liberties. In 2004, Reback received a Human Rights Award from the Tampa-Hillsborough County Human Rights Council. She is an active member of many organizations such as the Practitioner’s Advisory Committee to the U.S. Sentencing Commission.

Sylvia Walbolt is a shareholder in the Tampa office of Carlton Fields and serves as chair of the firm’s Board of Directors and its Appellate Practice Group. Walbolt is board certified in appellate law, and she has significant experience with state and federal appeals of torts, employment discrimination and product liability cases among other areas of the law.

Walbolt has a distinguished record of professional activity, including serving as past president of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, former chair of the Florida Bar Antitrust Committee, former vice chair of the Antitrust Section of the American Bar Association, and former chair of the Florida Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Civil Cases. She also directed the firm’s significant pro bono program for many years.

Stetson established the William Reece Smith Jr. Award in 1990 to recognize and honor individuals who have demonstrated exemplary achievements in public service. William Reece Smith Jr., the award’s namesake and its first recipient, is the past president of the American, International and Florida bar associations.