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Marine, Stetson Law student again brings Heroes Weekend to Gulfport in November to honor military, veterans

Marine and Stetson University College of Law LL.M. student Javier Centonzio, who graduated with his J.D. in May, is again coordinating a Heroes Weekend community event to honor active duty members of the military and veterans on Nov. 10-11 in Gulfport.

LL.M. Student Javier Centonzio addresses the crowd at the Stetson Veterans Law Institute opening May 31 in Guflport.
LL.M. Student Javier Centonzio addresses the crowd at the Stetson Veterans Law Institute opening May 31 in Gulfport.

This year’s public events include a parade along Beach Blvd. in Gulfport, an afternoon beach volleyball benefit with music, food and drink on Gulfport Beach, and an evening musical performance at the Gulfport Casino to benefit Stetson’s new Veterans Law Institute and Paws for Patriots. The Heroes Weekend includes:

  • Saturday, Nov. 10, 4 p.m.: The City of Gulfport is sponsoring a parade along Beach Blvd. led by Army Lt. Col. Kathy Champion, an Afghanistan and Iraq War veteran and Gulfport native who received a service dog from the Paws for Patriots program. The parade will head south on Beach Blvd. from the Gulfport Public Library, turn right at the Gulfport Casino onto Shore Blvd. and end at the Recreation Center. For information on participating in the parade, contact Justin Shea with the City of Gulfport at 727-893-1118 or [email protected]. The deadline to register is Nov. 8.
  • Sunday, Nov. 11, 1 p.m.: Community members are invited to a beach volleyball benefit with music, food and drink on Gulfport Beach. At 5:30 p.m., the Steel Horse Band will be performing a benefit concert at the Gulfport Casino at 5500 Shore Blvd. S. with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. and the show beginning at 6 p.m. Tickets for the concert are available at the door and all proceeds from the ticket sales will go to charity. To purchase tickets in advance for $10, visit the Gulfport Chamber of Commerce or American Legion Post 125.

For additional event information, contact Javier Centonzio at [email protected] or call 913-706-9340.

Donations to Heroes Weekend may be mailed or delivered in person to the American Legion Post 125, 6440 5th Ave. S., St. Petersburg, FL 33707.

Paws for Patriots is a program designed to pair guide dogs with veterans. Stetson’s Veterans Law Institute, dedicated in May, serves as a center for veteran and military scholarship, the site of Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic, and provides continuing legal education for attorneys representing veterans as well as a focal point for student veterans and their pro bono related activities.

Saving hundreds of acres in the Western Everglades was the topic of Oct. 30 biodiversity lecture

Conserving wetlands and endangered wood stork habitat in the Western Everglades was the topic of Stetson University College of Law’s Edward and Bonnie Foreman Biodiversity Lecture on Oct. 30. The lecture by Jan Goldman-Carter, National Wildlife Federation wetlands and water resources counsel, was the last in the series this semester at Stetson Law in Gulfport.

Jan Goldman-Carter discusses a conservation effort to save critical word stork habitat in the Western Everglades.
Jan Goldman-Carter discussed a conservation effort to save critical wood stork habitat in the Western Everglades.

Goldman-Carter outlined how she worked with conservation groups for nearly a decade to save hundreds of acres of wetlands and wood stork habitat in the Cocohatchee Slough, flowing from the Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in the Western Everglades. The Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in the Naples area is the largest wood stork rookery in the U.S.

“We’re losing these areas because of development,” said Goldman-Carter.

When developers wanted to build a golf course community that threatened 1100 acres of wetlands including critical endangered wood stork habitat, five conservation groups including the NWF worked successfully to save hundreds of acres.

Goldman-Carter said that the key ingredients of the successful conservation effort included solid science and public information, a strong legal framework, scientific expertise, and solid partnerships with local landowners, the news media, environmental watchdogs and grassroots advocates.

Stetson’s Edward and Bonnie Foreman Biodiversity Lecture Series brings leading experts to campus to speak on a range of environmental topics. The lecture series is co-sponsored by Stetson’s Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy and is free and open to the public.

Visit the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at Stetson to learn more.

Body of Evidence’s Dayle Hinman presented at Stetson Law in Gulfport on Oct. 31

Stetson University College of Law’s National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law presented criminal profiler, Body of Evidence host Dayle Hinman on Oct. 31. The event was co-sponsored by Zuckerman Spaeder LLP.

Dayle Hinman spoke at Stetson Law on Halloween.
Dayle Hinman spoke at Stetson Law on Halloween.

Her afternoon talk, “The Devil is in the Details: Criminal Profiling from an Investigator’s Perspective,” brought a crowd of more than 100 to Stetson Law’s Gulfport campus.

Hinman, who served in law enforcement in Florida for close to 30 years, is  the subject of the TruTV documentary, Body of Evidence. She discussed her investigative work on a number of high-profile crimes and the impact of the media and television on public perceptions of criminal profiling work.

“The purpose of television crime drama is to entertain, not to inform,” Hinman said. She explained that investigating a real crime scene is a painstakingly slow process, contrary to the quick crime-solving that happens on television.

“As profilers, we analyze the crime scene,” said Hinman. “We look at all of the available data to propose a theory or narrative. Let the crime scene tell the story.”

One of few women in the field of criminal homicide investigation, Hinman has successfully worked on cases including Ted Bundy, Danny Rolling and Aileen Wuornos. A court-certified expert in crime scene assessment, Hinman lectures across the country and around the world on topics ranging from criminal profiling and crime scene analysis to catching serial killers.

The National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law, directed by Stetson Law Professor Carol Henderson, provides a database of forensic science, technology and evidence to scientists, legal professionals, law enforcement, academics and the public.

Alumnus discusses finding his niche in the law

On Oct. 16, alumnus and adjunct professor Josh Magidson ’80 talked with students about finding his niche in the law. Magidson, a Marine who once entertained dreams of playing professional baseball and worked as a rehabilitation counselor, became a student at Stetson Law in 1978.

Josh Magidson talked with students on Oct. 16.
Josh Magidson ’80 talked with students on Oct. 16.

“Everybody has their own way of finding themselves in what they do,” Magidson told the students who gathered at a luncheon program in Stetson’s Florin Roebig Courtroom in Gulfport to hear him speak.

He explained how his legal career evolved from clerking while he was in law school to working in business litigation and becoming an attorney with the Tampa Bay area law firm of Macfarlane Ferguson & McMullen P.A.

Magidson stressed the importance of good communication skills with clients, among colleagues and presenting before judges. Make your arguments in the courtroom as concise and succinct as your elevator pitch, Magidson said.

He shared an important lesson from his career as a litigator.

“If you have a really good point, get to it quickly,” said Magidson.

Magidson told the students, “One of your jobs as a lawyer is to get your clients from where they are to where they want to be.”

Stetson Law’s Career Development office and LexisNexis co-sponsored the presentation. Workshops for students on building communication and social media skills and developing a career network are planned on campus in the coming weeks.

Alumnus speaks with Stetson Law students about finding their focus as advocates

Alumnus Chris Sprowls ’09 spoke with Stetson Law students on Oct. 10  about finding their focus as advocates as part of Stetson’s Student Leadership Development Luncheon series.

Chris Sprowls spoke with students in the Great Hall at the Student Leadership Luncheon on Oct. 10.
Alumnus Chris Sprowls ’09 spoke with students in the Great Hall during the Student Leadership Development Luncheon on Oct. 10.

Sprowls is an assistant state attorney in the 6th Judicial Circuit serving Pasco and Pinellas counties.

While still students at Stetson Law, Sprowls and Vilma Martinez  ’09 worked with the American Bar Association to create a national veterans’ service initiative called Duty Bound. The goal of Duty Bound was to create a network of attorneys and law students to provide pro bono legal services to veterans in need through law school clinics.

As a Stetson student, Sprowls received the Edward D. Foreman Most Distinguished Student Award, was a member of both the Moot Court Board and Trial Team, was elected national chairman of the Law Student Division of the American Bar Association, and served with the House of Delegates of the American Bar Association. Martinez was the ABA Law Student Division liaison to the Legal Assistance for Military Personnel committee.

Stetson Law launched its Veterans Law Institute in May 2012, home to the Veterans Advocacy Clinic. Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic provides representation to veterans seeking government benefits as well as those appealing decisions denying benefits. To learn more, visit http://www.law.stetson.edu/veterans/

Veterans Law CLE at Stetson’s Tampa Law Center on Oct. 27

Stetson University College of Law and the Florida Bar will host a Veterans Law Accreditation Training program at the Tampa Law Center, 1700 N. Tampa St., on Oct. 27. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.

The program provides legal practitioners with an overview of veterans law, a field that responds to the unique legal challenges faced by military veterans.

Judge Robert N. Davis of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in Washington, D.C., will present the keynote address, “Fighting Wars Abroad and at Home.”

Session topics include claims procedures processing and investigations; appeals of Veterans Administration decisions; dependency and indemnity compensation; and military sexual assaults, responses and disabilities.

Kathryn Yates, the chair of the Florida Bar Military Affairs Committee, will present the 2012 Clayton Burton Award during the program, which honors those who demonstrate character and leadership in promoting the quality of legal services furnished to military personnel serving in Florida.

Stetson recently opened its Veterans Law Institute as a center for veteran and military scholarship and the site of Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic. The institute also provides continuing legal education for attorneys representing veterans and serves as a focal point for student veterans and related pro bono service.

Stetson University was named among the 2013 list of Military Friendly Schools and participates in the Yellow Ribbon Program to make college affordable to veterans.

Visit the seminar website to view the agenda or to register for this CLE.

St. Petersburg Bar and Stetson Law presented ethics and professionalism seminar

Stetson University College of Law hosted a continuing legal education program on Oct. 9 on “Ethics and Professionalism: Practicing Within the Letter and the Spirit of the Law.”  The St. Petersburg Bar Association co-presented the program with Stetson.

(L-R): Visiting Professor Rachel VanLandingham, Professor Charles Rose and Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz at the St. Petersburg Bar seminar on ethics.
(L-R): Visiting Professor Rachel VanLandingham, Professor Charles Rose and Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz at the St. Petersburg Bar seminar on ethics and professionalism.

Stetson Law Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz and St. Petersburg Bar Association president Timothy Miller introduced the program for practicing attorneys, which included discussions by attorney and alumnus James Thaler ’00, Stetson Law Professor Charles H. Rose III and Visiting Professor Rachel VanLandingham.

Stetson Law students also had an opportunity to attend the program to learn more about building professional goals.

Edward and Bonnie Foreman Biodiversity Lecture Series presented “Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition” on Oct. 9

On Oct. 9 at 12 p.m., Stetson Law’s Edward and Bonnie Foreman Biodiversity Lecture Series presented a discussion with Carlton Ward Jr. about the discovery and implications of the Florida Wildlife Corridor. Ward Jr. is a conservation photographer and founder of the Legacy Institute for Nature and Culture.

Carlton Ward Jr. & Joe Guthrie, Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition. Photo courtesy Carlton Ward Jr., CarltonWard.com
Carlton Ward Jr. & Joe Guthrie, Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition. Photo courtesy Carlton Ward Jr., CarltonWard.com

Ward Jr. discussed his experiences with the “Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition,” a 100-day, 1,000-mile trek from the Everglades National Park in Florida to the Okefenoke National Wildlife Refuge in Southern Georgia.

The expedition via kayak, mountain bike and horseback led to the discovery of a viable natural corridor for wildlife through the Florida peninsula.

“There is still a ribbon of green land that you can connect through the state,” said Ward Jr.

The Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy and Environmental Law Society at Stetson co-sponsored the event in the Great Hall, at Stetson Law in Gulfport, 1401 61st St. S.

The next biodiversity lecture is scheduled for Oct. 30.

Conviction Integrity Unit founder talked at Stetson Law on Oct. 10 about ethical prosecutions

Dallas District Attorney Craig Watkins, founder of the Conviction Integrity Unit, talked with Stetson University College of Law students on Oct. 10 about the importance of just prosecution. Approximately 200 law students gathered to hear Watkins’ talk in the Great Hall on the Gulfport campus.

Dallas D.A. Craig Watkins spoke at Stetson Law on Oct. 10.
Dallas D.A. Craig Watkins spoke to Stetson Law students on Oct. 10.

“You in this room have a responsibility to look at your justice system,” Watkins told the law students. “Think about how you can improve the system and make it work better.”

Watkins’ Conviction Integrity Unit works to exonerate innocent people from prison and to identify previously unknown criminals using DNA and other evidence. Watkins set an example for integrity and professionalism as a prosecutor when he publicly apologized for a wrongful conviction in his own district.

“My job is not to convict, my job is to seek justice,” said Watkins.

He reminded the law students in the audience to make a difference when they enter the legal profession.

“Those innocent people who find themselves on the wrong side of the law who did not commit a crime–your jobs as lawyers are to right those wrongs,” said Watkins.

Watkins’ talk, “The Dallas Conviction Integrity Unit: Prosecutorial Accountability in Action,” was co-sponsored by the Innocence Initiative at Stetson, the American Civil Liberties Union, and supported by the Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Fund.

Students participating in the Innocence Initiative at Stetson work with faculty and pro bono attorneys investigating cases of individuals claiming to be innocent, conduct research on issues related to wrongful convictions, and raise awareness about reforms needed in the criminal legal system.

Special Moment: 1955 Graduate Discovers a Familiar Photo

While visiting campus on Sept. 20, 2012, Lewis Haines II ’55 examined a framed poster outside the Dean’s Office of the formal dedication of Stetson Law’s Gulfport campus on Sept. 19, 1954. “That’s me,” he said, recognizing the photo of the courtyard procession taken by the St. Petersburg Times. Since that historic day 58 years ago, Haines (pictured below with his fiancée Christine Benbow) has retired from a legal career that included service as a city judge and attorney for Oakland Park, Fla., and as a sole practitioner. Prior to his recent visit, Haines said that he had not been back to campus since before President Kennedy was elected.

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Stetson Graduates Will Comprise 20% of Elected Public Defenders in Florida

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On Jan. 7, 2013, two Stetson Law graduates will retire from long-held positions as elected public defenders in Florida. On the same day, three Stetson graduates will be sworn in as newly elected public defenders, increasing the percentage of elected public defenders who graduated from Stetson to 20 percent in Florida.

The list of Stetson-educated current and incoming elected public defenders in Florida includes (pictured left-right in the above photo taken at a recent gathering):

  • Blair Payne ‘81 (incoming, 3rd Circuit)
  • Blaise Trettis ’87 (incoming, 18th Circuit)
  • Bob Dillinger ’76 (current and not retiring, 6th Circuit)
  • Marion Moorman ’71 (current and retiring, 10th Circuit)
  • Howard “Skip” Babb ’73 (current and retiring, 5th Circuit)
  • Mike Graves ’82 (incoming, 5th Circuit)

Babb and Moorman began their elected public defender positions in the early 1980s and, upon retirement, will leave behind a distinguished legacy of thousands of cases. Both men were recipients of the Florida Public Defender Association’s 2012 L. Clayton Nance Award.

Students from Baylor School of Law won the National Pretrial Competition at Stetson Law on Oct. 14

A team of students from Baylor School of Law won the fifth National Pretrial Competition at Stetson Law on Oct. 14.

The Baylor School of Law team of coach James Willis, Morgan Harkins, Kyle Voss, Taylor Romero and Kyle Farrar won the National Pretrial Competition at Stetson Law.
The Baylor School of Law team of coach James Willis, Morgan Harkins, Kyle Voss, Taylor Romero and Kyle Farrar won the National Pretrial Competition at Stetson Law.

Morgan Harkins of Baylor School of Law was named Best Advocate in the final round of competition.

The Best Plaintiff’s Memorandum of Law Award was presented to Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School and the Best Defendant’s Memorandum of Law Award was presented to South Texas College of Law.

Twenty teams from around the country traveled to Stetson Law for the annual competition.

Stetson Law has ranked as the top school in the nation for advocacy 14 times since 1995 and has consistently ranked among the top programs for legal writing by the U.S. News & World Report.

Visit the Center for Excellence in Advocacy at Stetson to learn more.

View more photos here on Flickr>>