Jeanine L. Cohen

JEANINE  graduated from the University of South Florida with a B.A. from the College of Arts and Sciences. She graduated with honors in her major, anthropology, and her minor, political science.      Jeanine graduated from Stetson University College of Law with honors in 1997. Due to her dedication to the Stetson Community and the community as a whole, upon graduation, she received many awards including: the Dean’s Award; the Ralph Steinhardt Award; the William F. Blews Pro Bono Award; and was selected for Who’s Who among Students in American Colleges and Universities, 1997.       Jeanine joined the Office of the Public Defender for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, Tampa in 1998. She has represented clients in thousands of criminal cases, ranging from misdemeanors such as Domestic Violence Battery, Violation of Domestic Violence Injunction, and DUI’s to felonies including Murder, DUI Manslaughter, Capital Sexual Battery, Kidnapping, as well as all types of theft and drug charges.     Jeanine has served as the supervisor for the Office of the Public Defender for all the Drug Divisions in Hillsborough County, including the Drug Pre-Trial Intervention Program, she has served as the Division Chief of the Sex Offender Division, and she has served as a member of the Homicide Division.     In addition, from February 2000 until August 2004, she was responsible for all the Involuntary Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predator cases. She was the first attorney to argue an Involuntary Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predator issue to the Florida Supreme Court, and she won.      In additional to her extensive trial background, Jeanine is responsible for two Florida Supreme Court opinions and several DCA opinions, because she believes in fighting meritorious issues all the way to the top.     Jeanine is a member in good standing of the Florida Bar, the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Hillsborough County Bar Association, and the Hillsborough Association for Women Lawyers and the Sex Offender Commitment Defense Association.     Jeanine has been a guest speaker for the Florida Public Defender Association, at the Building a Better Defense IX, Sex Crimes, Lies and Videotape Conference in 2002, and the Involuntary Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators Conference in 2003 and 2004. Jeanine has also been a guest speaker for the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, in 2002 and 2003 and for the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors, 2002 Annual Meeting. Jeanine has also bben a guest speaker for the Florida Bar in the fall of 2004, and the nations Socda concference in 2007 and 2008.