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Panel at Stetson Law in Gulfport explores breaking the school-to-prison pipeline

Story by Valeria Obi

Judge Patrice Moore spoke on a panel Feb. 2 at Stetson Law about finding justice for juveniles.
Judge Patrice Moore spoke on a panel Feb. 2 at Stetson Law about finding justice for juveniles.

“A lot of juvenile decisions often end up with adult consequences,” Judge Patrice Moore told an audience of students, faculty and community members gathered in the Great Hall at Stetson Law last Thursday evening.

Judge Moore, of the 6th Judicial Circuit, joined a panel of experts on the Gulfport campus on Feb. 2 to discuss the impact of zero-tolerance law on juveniles. The panel included Lily McCarty of the Public Defender’s Office of the 13th Judicial Circuit; Stetson adjunct professor Judge Irene Sullivan; Trenia Cox of the Juvenile Welfare Board; Judge Moore of the 6th Judicial Circuit; Tim Niermann of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice; and Dr. Valerie Brimm, Director of the Office of Strategic Partnerships in St. Petersburg.

The experts discussed the school-to-prison pipeline and shared statistics that showed that Hillsborough County leads the state with the amount of children in the adult court system. They proposed some solutions and stressed the importance of getting parents involved.

“The problem seen most often is fathers who have criminal records and are parents to these children,” said Cox. “An effort should be made to educate the parents along with the children.”

“One of the most important things that needs to be done is to encourage children to dare to be different, dare to dream and dare to break this cycle,” Judge Moore said.

L-R: Panelists Dr. Valerie Brimm, Tim Niermann, Judge Patrice Moore, Trenia Cox, retired Judge and Adjunct Professor Irene Sullivan, and Lily McCarty.
L-R: Panelists Dr. Valerie Brimm, Tim Niermann, Judge Patrice Moore, Trenia Cox, retired Judge and Adjunct Professor Irene Sullivan, and Lily McCarty.

French exchange student Jenna Coudin said that the presentation opened her eyes to the juvenile justice system in the U.S.

“The juvenile system here in the U.S. is structured very differently than in France,” Coudin said. “In France, juveniles less than 13 years of age cannot be held responsible for their actions and cannot go to jail. Children 13 to 16 years of age are put under judicial control in very limited circumstances. Since 2007, however, juveniles that are older than 16 are treated as adults. In general, juveniles are protected just as much as those who are disabled.”

First-year law student Tiara Greene said, “What was most surprising to me was the average age of juveniles currently in the system. Hopefully, some of the solutions suggested will assist with this problem.”

The Juvenile Justice Initiative and Black Law Students Association at Stetson University College of Law and the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida co-sponsored the panel discussion.

The Juvenile Justice Initiative at Stetson is a new group launched last semester with goals to improve legal representation for children through education, legislative reform, and courtroom advocacy. Stetson students and Professor Judith Scully are developing a Street Law pilot educational program for middle school students in the Pinellas County region.

Professor Judith Scully introduces the panel on Feb. 2 at Stetson Law in Gulfport.
Professor Judith Scully introduces the panel on Feb. 2 at Stetson Law in Gulfport.

For more information on delinquency in schools visit the 2010-2011 analysis by the Florida Dept. of Juvenile Justice .

For more information about the impact of zero-tolerance, visit the ACLU School-to-Prison Pipeline Initiative.

Link to radio news report about this program at WMNF News.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stetson team wins Florida Bar Chester Bedell Mock Trial Competition on Jan. 26

Students from Stetson University College of Law won the Florida Bar Chester Bedell Mock Trial Competition on Jan. 26 at the Florida Bar meeting in Orlando, Fla.

(L-R): Coach and Professor Lee Coppock, students Morgan Anderson, Julian Catala, Kristin Johnson, Jared Williams and Coach Matthew Easterwood.
(L-R): Coach and Professor Lee Coppock, students Morgan Anderson, Julian Catala, Kristin Johnson, Jared Williams and Coach Matthew Easterwood.

Stetson has won the competition 19 out of 29 times, and is consistently ranked as a top law school for trial advocacy by the U.S. News & World Report.

The student team of Morgan Anderson, Julian Catala, Kristin Johnson and Jared Williams beat a team from Florida State University in the final round to win the competition. Julian Catala won the Best Advocate Award.

“While every time we go out and compete the outcome is important, there is something truly satisfying about doing well at Florida’s premier mock trial event,” said Stetson Law Professor and team coach Lee Coppock.

Alumnus Matthew Easterwood, whose team won the competition in 2007 while he was still a student, also coached the winning Stetson team.

Twenty-two teams from 11 Florida law schools competed.

Exonerated man, John Thompson, talks with Stetson Law students about responsibility and accountability in the legal profession

Story by Valeria Obi and Brandi Palmer

John Thompson spent 18 years in prison and 14 years on death row before being exonerated of a crime he did not commit. On Jan. 26, Thompson shared his experiences with Stetson University College of Law students and spoke about the importance of responsibility and accountability.

John Thompson spoke with Stetson Law students on Jan. 26 in the Great Hall.
John Thompson spoke with Stetson Law students on Jan. 26 in the Great Hall.

“Now is the time for you to decide what you will stand for,” Thompson told the students. Thompson explained how he was accused and convicted of murder and the subsequent years he spent fighting the conviction and death sentence.

“His story tells us about what can go wrong with lawyering, from prosecution to defense,” Professor Judith Scully explained. Scully, the Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law, directs the Innocence Initiative at Stetson, which assigns students to research potential cases for the Innocence Project of Florida and to work on legislative reform and educational outreach.“John’s story illustrates the importance of confronting injustices and having courage as attorneys.”

After Thompson was exonerated of his crimes, a lower court ruled in a civil case that prosecutorial evidence occurred in his case and awarded him millions of dollars. However, the Supreme Court reversed that decision, explaining that it saw no pattern of prosecutorial misconduct, and the $14 million jury verdict was reversed.

Thompson  said the attorney in his civil case  risked his own finances and ambitions to follow his conscience to do what was right. He told the students that lawyers have a responsibility to ask questions, to address issues, to listen to their clients and to do the best that they can do at the end of the day.

“When you hear the word ‘exoneree,’ you should hear the word ‘victim.’ Are we ready to stand up and represent victims?” Thompson asked.

Howard Williams, a third-year law student, said that he was inspired by Mr. Thompson’s  story.

“I would like to go into criminal law upon graduation, and Mr. Thompson’s words resonated very strongly with me because he may be the type of client that I have one day as an attorney,” Williams said. “To think that he almost died because of dishonest and ineffective lawyering reminds me of the power that attorneys possess and that is something that I will not take lightly. Mr. Thompson’s message reaffirmed the whole reason that I came to law school, which was to try and be a voice for those who need the most.”

Student Gabe Neibergall, who works with the Innocence Initiative at Stetson, said, “In my opinion, Mr. Thompson’s most powerful point was that we all choose to become lawyers, and by making that choice, we are now obligated to stand up for what is right- no matter the personal and professional costs. This seemed to be Mr. Thompson’s idea of true ‘honor,’ and it is something we should all strive to embody.”

After leaving prison, Thompson said that he had an unusually smooth transition. He said he worked with lawyers at the Death Penalty Resource Center to help people on death row. Habitat for Humanity built him a house and a writer worked with him on a book about his experiences. The story of Thompson’s wrongful conviction is told in the book, Killing Time: An 18-Year Odyssey from Death Row to Freedom.

Today, Thompson is the founder and director of Resurrection After Exoneration, a supportive residential program that provides exonerees and long-term prisoners reentering society a transitional home and work environment.

Thompson presented this year’s Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Distinguished Lecture at Stetson Law’s annual Inns of Court, an adopted tradition that brings together prominent lawyers, experienced teachers and law students to exchange ideas.

Attorney John P. Cunningham received Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Public Service Award on Jan. 26

John P. Cunningham, who has worked with Gulfcoast Legal Services for more than 30 years and served as its executive director since January 1984, was presented with this year’s Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Public Service Award from Stetson University College of Law.

Interim Dean Royal Gardner, John P. Cunningham and William Reece Smith Jr. at the Inns of Court.
Interim Dean Royal Gardner, John P. Cunningham and William Reece Smith Jr. at the Inns of Court.

The award was presented on Thursday evening, Jan. 26, at the annual Inns of Court Banquet at the Mirror Lake Lyceum, 737 Third Ave. N., St. Petersburg.

Cunningham’s legal career includes serving the Tampa Bay community through numerous organizations including the Community Law Program in St. Petersburg where he was a 13-year board member, the Sarasota Human Services Center, Pinellas Homeless Coalition, Domestic Violence Task Force, Pinellas Refugee Coalition, and Advisory Council to the Advocacy Center for Persons with Disabilities. Cunningham has volunteered as a lecturer at law school clinics and the People’s Law School. He also served in the Legal Aid Society in the Civil Division in New York for eight years.

Stetson established the prestigious public service award more than two decades ago for Wm. Reece Smith Jr., past president of the International, American and Florida Bar Associations and a distinguished professorial lecturer and member of the Stetson University College of Law Hall of Fame.

John Thompson, a man who spent 18 years in prison before being exonerated of a crime he did not commit, presented this year’s Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Distinguished Lecture.

Thompson is the founder and director of Resurrection After Exoneration, a supportive residential program that provides exonerees and long-term prisoners reentering society a transitional home and work environment. Convicted in 1985 in New Orleans and exonerated 18 years later after spending 14 years on Angola’s death row, the story of  Thompson’s wrongful conviction is told in the book, Killing Time: An 18-Year Odyssey from Death Row to Freedom.
The Annual Inns of Court brings together prominent lawyers, experienced teachers and law students to exchange ideas, experiences and education. The adopted Stetson Inns of Court tradition has its roots in England.

Information sessions for part-time law program set for March

Stetson University College of Law is offering two information sessions in March for prospective students interested in earning their law degrees part-time. Students taking the LSAT as late as June are eligible for admission in the fall.

The sessions, both offered in the Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Courtroom at the Tampa Law Center, 1700 N. Tampa St., provide an overview of the process of applying to law school. Stetson Law enrolls new part-time students in the fall of every year.

Those interested in attending should RSVP for one of the sessions on either Monday, March 5, or Tuesday, March 20.

Both programs will start at 6 p.m. Registration begins at 5:30 p.m.

To RSVP and for more information and directions to Stetson’s Tampa Law Center campus, visit http://www.law.stetson.edu/parttime or e-mail [email protected].

Stetson Law students participate in MLK Parade

Stetson Law students participate in the 2012 MLK Jr. parade in St. Petersburg.
Stetson Law students participate in the 2012 MLK Jr. parade in downtown St. Petersburg.

Story by Valeria Obi, 2L Stetson Law student

Stetson University College of Law students and faculty honored the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by marching in the 27th annual parade in St. Petersburg on Monday, Jan. 16. The event drew thousands of spectators to view marching bands, floats and groups of people participating in the parade. They were there to celebrate and honor the life achievements of Dr. King.

“Walking in the parade is an honor,” said Stetson’s Black Law Students Association president, Howard Williams. “It is important for us to continue the legacy that Dr. King created. Walking in the parade is an opportunity for me to do my part to ensure that his legacy is remembered and celebrated. It is because of Dr. King’s efforts that I am able to achieve my dream of being a lawyer.”

Stetson’s participation was coordinated by BLSA and by the Office of Student Life. Approximately 30 students and faculty members walked in the event, which lasted an hour and a half, in downtown St. Petersburg.

Second-year law student and BLSA member La’Keisha Simms said that she felt a lot of community support for Stetson’s participation in the parade.

Williams added, “I walk so that younger generations can see the importance of supporting and continuing the fight for the injustices that plague our society.”

» View more pictures on Flickr

ACLU of Florida and Stetson Law examine solutions to school-to-prison pipeline on Feb. 2 at Stetson Law

The Juvenile Justice Initiative and Black Law Students Association at Stetson University College of Law and the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida are co-sponsoring a panel discussion on Feb. 2 at Stetson Law in Gulfport to address effectively shutting down the school-to-prison pipeline.

WHAT: A panel of experts will discuss strategies for reducing Florida’s dropout rate and the number of young people in the juvenile and criminal justice system, making schools safer and better, and more efficiently using law enforcement. The educational forum is designed to inspire students to become engaged in making a difference in the field of juvenile criminal law.

WHO: Experts include: Judge Patrice Moore; Tim Niermann, lead probation officer in the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice; Dr. Valerie Brimm of the Office of Strategic Partnership, St. Petersburg; Lily McCarty of the Law Office of Julianne M. Holt, Public Defender’s Office, 13th Judicial Circuit; and Trenia Cox, planning manager for the Juvenile Welfare Board Children’s Services Council of Pinellas County.

WHEN: Feb. 2, 6-8 p.m.

WHERE: Great Hall, Stetson University College of Law, 1401 61st St. S., Gulfport.

For more information, or to RSVP, contact Joyce Hamilton Henry, Ph.D., at the ACLU of Florida at 813-288-8505 or [email protected], or Stetson Law student Mary Day at [email protected].

Editor’s Note:

The ACLU of Florida, Advancement Project, and Florida State Conference of the NAACP issued the report, “Still Haven’t Shut Off the School-to-Prison Pipeline: Evaluating the Impact of Florida’s New Zero-Tolerance Law,” in March of 2011. The “school-to-prison-pipeline” refers to the policies and practices that over-criminalize student behavior, funneling young people out of classrooms and into the criminal justice system.

The Juvenile Justice Initiative at Stetson was proposed in the fall of 2011 by students and Judith Scully, the Wm. Reece Smith Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law at Stetson, to create solutions to juveniles in the criminal justice system.

Media Contact:

Brandi Palmer

Communications Office

Stetson University College of Law

727-562-7381 w

727-430-1580 c

[email protected]

Stetson professors serve on panels, committees for the Association of American Law Schools

Stetson University College of Law professors participated in several topical panels and committees at the annual Association of American Law Schools meeting Jan. 4-8 in Washington, D.C.

The following professors served on panels at the meeting:

  • Associate Dean John Cooper moderated a panel on “The Globalization of the Legal Practice for the Section on International Legal Exchange;”
  • Professor Kirsten Davis presented “Feedback Mechanisms” at the AALS Day-Long Workshop on Academic Support; and
  • Professor Louis Virelli organized, moderated and spoke on the panel entitled “Hot Topic Program: Politics, Ethics, and the Supreme Court: The Present and Future of Supreme Court Recusal.”

Several Stetson Law faculty members are serving with diverse committees and special sections of the AALS:

  • Professor Michael Allen completed his service on the Executive Committee for the Section on Remedies;
  • Professor Linda Anderson has begun serving as chair of the Section on Part-time Division Programs;
  • Professor Cynthia Batt co-chairs the Membership, Outreach, and Training Committee and is a member of the Externship Committee for the Section on Clinical Education;
  • Professor Mark Bauer was elected treasurer of the Section on Aging and Law;
  • Associate Dean John Cooper completed his service as chair of the Section on International Legal Exchange and will serve on the Executive Committee for the upcoming year;
  • Professor Kirsten Davis was elected secretary of the Section on Women in Legal Education;
  • Professor Peter Fitzgerald was elected to the Executive Committee of the Section on Animal Law;
  • Associate Dean James Fox was elected to the Executive Committee of the Section on Legal History;
  • Professor Luz Nagle serves on the Committee on the Recruitment and Retention of Minority Law Teachers;
  • Professor Jason Palmer was elected to the Executive Committee and Professor Ellen Podgor was elected Secretary for the Section on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Issues;
  • Professor Susan Rozelle completed her service on the Executive Committee of the Section on Criminal Justice, continues to serve on the Work-Life Balance Committee of the Section on Women in Legal Education, and remains chair of the Teaching Materials Network for the AALS New Law Professors Section; and
  • Professor Louis Virelli was elected to the Executive Committee of the Section on Constitutional Law.

Stetson University selects Christopher Pietruszkiewicz as College of Law dean

Christopher Pietruszkiewicz has been named the new dean of Stetson University College of Law in Tampa Bay, Fla. Pietruszkiewicz joins Stetson from the LSU Law Center at Louisiana State University, where he serves as vice chancellor for business and financial affairs and as the J.Y. Sanders Professor of Law. Pietruszkiewicz will start at Stetson this summer.

Christopher Pietruszkiewicz has been named dean of Stetson University College of Law.
Christopher Pietruszkiewicz has been named dean of Stetson University College of Law.

“I am delighted to join the College of Law with a fantastic faculty that is committed to creating an educational environment where students learn both inside and outside of the classroom,” said Pietruszkiewicz. “I look forward to working with a dedicated staff to advance Stetson’s educational mission and with a student body that will become lawyers and leaders, benefiting the profession and society. I am enthusiastic to work with President Wendy Libby, Provost Beth Paul, and Stetson’s vibrant alumni community to advance the College of Law’s national prominence in legal education.”

Pietruszkiewicz was selected following a national search led by a committee of faculty, administrators, students, alumni, overseers and trustees, chaired by Stetson Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Elizabeth “Beth” Paul and Professor of Law Michael Allen.

“Chris Pietruszkiewicz is recognized and respected nationally as a leader in legal education. I am confident that with his dynamic leadership, the Stetson University College of Law will continue to flourish as an excellent law school and earn distinction as an exemplar of 21st century legal education,” said Provost Paul.

Pietruszkiewicz has served in many national leadership positions in legal education. He has held several roles for the American Bar Association’s Section of Taxation, and he currently serves on the board of trustees for the Law School Admission Council and the Southeastern Association of Law Schools, where he served as president from 2005 to 2006.

“We are excited to have Chris join our faculty as dean, and we are confident that he is the right person to lead Stetson University College of Law during this changing time in legal education,” said Professor Allen.

Stetson President Libby added, “We owe special thanks to the search committee and the members of the College of Law community for their roles in identifying and attracting a new dean of Chris’s caliber to Stetson.”

Pietruszkiewicz co-authored the book Corporate Reorganizations and is currently working on another book on tax issues. He has published numerous law review articles, and frequently presents on tax law and legal education issues.

At Louisiana State University, Pietruszkiewicz was responsible for strategic planning, budgeting, financial planning and personnel matters, in addition to serving on a variety of committees. Earlier in his career, he worked as a trial attorney in the Tax Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and as an attorney/adviser in the U.S. Department of Education. 

He earned a Master of Laws in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center, a law degree from the Loyola University New Orleans College of Law and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Media Contact:

Frank Klim

Executive Director of Communications

Stetson University College of Law

727-562-7889

[email protected]

 

The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine reports that Stetson Law is again among the top 25 law schools for Hispanics

The Dec. 19 issue of The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine  listed Stetson University College of Law among the top 25 law schools for Hispanics in the nation for the third year in a row. Stetson Law ranks 14th among the 25 law schools across the country conferring the most degrees on Hispanics. Data for this report was compiled by the National Center for Education Statistics for 2010 graduates.

Student members of Stetson's Hispanic Bar Association meet with faculty adviser Professor Luz Nagle in 2010.
Student members of Stetson's Hispanic Bar Association meet with faculty adviser Professor Luz Nagle in 2010.

Stetson Law’s Hispanic students have established a strong tradition of community and public service. Second-year Stetson Law student Stephanie Favilli helped non-English speakers understand their legal rights by translating legal information into Spanish for pro se litigants in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida. Favilli served as a Spanish language translator for the Bay Area Volunteer Lawyers Program in the fall of 2010 through the student Hispanic Bar Association at Stetson.

Stetson Law alumnus David Fernandez, a past president of Stetson’s Hispanic Bar Association and Law and Order, became the first law student to receive the Clearwater Bar Foundation Excellence in Pro Bono Award in February 2010. Fernandez received the award for his work to provide Spanish speakers with access to legal documents through a translation project he started under the guidance of Stetson Law Professor Luz E. Nagle.

In 2008, Professor Nagle was named the first full professor of Hispanic descent at Stetson Law. Nagle’s distinguished legal career includes battling drug lords while serving as a district court judge in her native Colombia. Her commitment to improving conditions in Colombia and throughout the world continues through her research and work as a lecturer and expert in the areas of human rights violations and drug war-related foreign policy. Nagle was elected to the International Bar Association Legal Practice Division Council for a four-year term that started in January 2011.

Stetson Law recognized 59 students at fall graduate celebration

On Dec. 16, Stetson University College of Law recognized 59 students at a fall graduate celebration on the Gulfport, Fla., campus. Stetson Law honored 43 J.D. students in the full-time class and eight J.D. students in the part-time class. Four students were recognized with an LL.M. in elder law and four with an LL.M. in international law.

Campus predators and social media examined at Stetson University law and higher education conference

The fallout of the Penn State scandal, new disability law updates, and the impact of social media predators on college campuses are among the topics of Stetson University College of Law’s 33rd National Conference on Law and Higher Education. The conference in Orlando, Feb. 17-21, invites attendees to recommend reforms in higher education.

“The Penn State scandal reminds higher education officials not to be bystanders to danger. The law can make colleges and universities safer and more responsible,” said Stetson Law professor Peter Lake, conference chair and director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law & Policy.

This year’s conference opens with its first “Boot Camp” on the fundamentals of higher education law and policy. The next day’s pre-conference workshop on Title IX features a keynote address by Russlyn Ali, author of the famous April 4, 2011, “Dear Colleague” letter. The main conference keynoter is professor Fred Bonner of Texas A&M University. Dr. Bonner will speak on his highly anticipated book, Diverse Millennial Students in College, and how faculty and student affairs professionals can communicate more effectively with millennial students. The conference wraps up with a workshop on Campus Care and Threat Assessment Teams, led by Virginia Tech’s Gene Deisinger.

This year’s honorary co-chair, Miriam McKendall, is a member of the International Advisory Board for the Center and a partner at the law firm of Holland & Knight in the firm’s education law, labor and employment law, and litigation groups.

Professor Lake will explain how higher education law can make colleges safer, as articulated in his newest book, Foundations of Higher Education Law & Policy: Basic Legal Rules, Concepts, and Principles for Student Affairs. “We should not be focused on deflecting responsibility and merely beating cases in court,” Lake said. “We should be focused on making college campuses safer and better learning environments.”

To learn more about this year’s conference, and to register, click here.

Media Contact: Education journalists will have the opportunity to interview leading experts on issues impacting higher education. Please contact Brandi Palmer in Stetson Law’s Communications Office to schedule an interview or for additional details: 727-562-7381 or [email protected].