HCBA Lawyer Magazine No. 34, Issue 5 | Page 28

AdAyintheLifeofApoLiceLegALAdviSor
Government lawyers Section Chairs : ­Alexa­Cline­ — ­Office­of­the­State­Attorney­ & ­Christian­Katchuk­ — ­13th­Judicial­Circuit­Court

The DIL or Daily Incident Log — that is how my workday starts seven days a week . Opening my inbox and reading the Daily Incident Log . What is a DIL ? It is a 24-hour chronicle of the activities of the Tampa Police Department and its officers , ranging from the heroic to the mundane . An example from a recent DIL — an armed man was threatening to shoot himself and the responding officers , but officers were able to take him into custody and disarm him before he hurt himself or anyone else using de-escalation techniques and other tactics . Meanwhile across town , an officer ’ s patrol car was sideswiped

by a motorist changing lanes , causing minor property damage to both vehicles . Later in the morning , a person going into work discovered a dead woman outside of a church and called 911 , prompting a homicide investigation .
This Daily Incident Log exemplifies the varied situations that call for legal advice and counsel . Like a general counsel for a business , my role
iamgratefulto continuemycareerin publicserviceasan AssistantcityAttorney advisingthetampa policedepartment .
most critical issues we have in Tampa — how do we keep our community safe and support our officers in doing their jobs ? I assist in that endeavor , while also working to limit the city ’ s liability .
As illustrated above , my daily legal consultations involve a multitude of subjects and practice areas : criminal law and procedure ,
as legal advisor to the Tampa Police Department requires me to provide real-time legal advice and counsel to the Command Staff of the Tampa Police Department .
constitutional law , employment law , torts , and public records . Not to mention community events , outreach , and supporting our city council , city attorney , and mayor
These dedicated men and women
are challenged with solving the
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