aDaYintheLifeofthecooatthePuBLicDefenDer ’ Soffice
Government lawyers Section
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other duties . The not so good days happen when I have plans to get a lot done but then get rapidly diverted away . What is to most people just another tragic news story , to me is our next high-profile case and a client with emergent needs . My duties even include traveling back and forth , to and from Tallahassee for the upcoming legislative session .
Our office is always changing , whether it be to better meet the needs of our community or to adapt to changes in the law . We are currently working on ways to mitigate the juvenile gun crisis affecting our community . Science tells us that kids can be rehabilitated , even after committing a serious crime . Using evidence-based approaches and wrapping these juveniles in mentorship while their cases are pending is just one way we are striving to meet their needs . We are also preparing for a new law , as of January 1 , 2024 , that will see our office go from having roughly five pretrial detention hearings per month to nearly one hundred . How will we effectively handle the greatly increased number of hearings that will decide if a fellow citizen is held in jail during the pendency of their case ? That is my job to help figure out . One thing is certain — we will have to be efficient , as we did not get any extra staffing positions to correspond to the increased workload .
Collaboration is key at my level . I also sit on our Problem-Solving Courts Oversight Committee , where we have launched new treatment courts such as our Juvenile Mental Health Court . I chair our Circuit 13 Juvenile Justice Advisory Board , made up of stakeholders from the court system , law enforcement , juvenile justice , and treatment providers . I also serve as an alternative representative on Hillsborough County ’ s Commission on Human Trafficking .
Our attorneys and staff breathe life into our Constitution every day . It is my privilege to work with them and to serve our community . n
Author : Rocky Brancato – Officeof the PublicDefender , 13thJudicial Circuit
Coffee and a CLE thegovernmentLawyersSectionhostedajointcoffeeandacLewiththe hawLgovernmentattorneyscommitteeonnovember3onthetopicof “ Becoming aJudge .” abigthankyoutothecLespeakers : JudgeMelissaBlack , administrative LawJudgeMaryLicreasy , JudgeLoganMurphy , andJudgecynthiaoster !
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