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Background
The five
Regional Counsel
offices were
created by the
legislature
(Statute 27.511)
in 2007 to
provide legal
representation
to indigent
persons in
basically three
classes of
cases: 1)
criminal
conflict cases
that the court
grants the
Public
Defender's
motion to
withdraw and
appoints the
Office of
Criminal
Conflict and
Civil Regional
Counsel
[OCCCRC], 2)
dependency and
civil cases and
3) certain
statutorily
authorized civil
commitment
proceedings.
Over the last
few years, the
Regional Counsel
offices have
saved Florida
tax payers
millions of
dollars while
providing
quality
representation
to its clients.
Types of
Cases Handled by
the Agency (per
Statute 27.511)
Conflict Cases,
in which Public
Defender has
withdrawn:
- A felony
-
A misdemeanor
-
Criminal traffic
- Criminal contempt; or
- A violation of a special law or county or municipal ordinance ancillary
to a state charge, or if not ancillary to a state charge,
only if the
office
of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel contracts
with the court
or municipality to provide representation pursuant to ss 27.54
and 125.69.
- Alleged to be a delinquent child pursuant to a petition filed before a
a circuit court;
- Sought by petition filed in such court to be involuntarily placed as a
mentally ill person under Part
I
of Chapter 394,
involuntarily
committed as
a sexually violent predator under Part V of Chapter 394, or
involuntarily
admitted to residential services as a person with a
developmental
disabilities
under Chapter 393;
- Convicted and sentenced to death, for purposed of handling an appeal to
the Supreme Court; or
- Is appealing a matter in a case arising of the above
Primary
Representation:
- Guardianship
(s. 393.12,
Chapter 744)
- Dependency (Chapter 39)
- Parental Notification Act (Chapter 390)
- Tuberculosis Control (Chapter 392)
- Marchman Act (Chapter 397)
- Adult Protective Services (Chapter 415)
- Disability of Non-age Minors Removed (Chapter 743)
- Children and Families in Need of Services (Chapter 984)
Districts
The agency is
divided into
five main
regions, based
on the Florida
District Court
of Appeals.
District |
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Judicial
Circuits |
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Regional Counsel |
1st |
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1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 8th & 14th |
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Jeffrey Lewis |
2nd |
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6th, 10th, 12th, 13th & 20th |
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Ita M. Neymotin |
3rd |
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11th & 16th |
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Eugene Zenobi |
4th |
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15th, 17th & 19th |
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Antony Ryan |
5th |
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5th, 7th, 9th & 18th |
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Jeffrey Deen |
Legislative
Success Story
An important aspect and the intent of the legislation, F.S. 27.511, which found the Office of the Regional Counsel, is that adequate representation be achieved through a fiscally-sound and prudent manner. The chart below illustrates how efficacious the approach has been; saving the taxpayers millions in due process expenditures. |
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Fourth
District |
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15th Judicial Circuit
PALM BEACH COUNTY - MAIN OFFICE
15th Judicial Circuit
401 South Dixie Highway
2nd Floor
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Phone:(561) 837-5156
Fax: (561) 837-5423
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17th Judicial Circuit
BROWARD COUNTY
550 S. Andrews Avenue
2nd Floor
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: (954) 713-1220
Fax: (954) 713-1271
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19th Judicial Circuit
MARTIN COUNTY
301 SE Ocean Boulevard
Suite 201
Stuart, FL 34994
Phone: (772) 223-2610
Fax: (772) 223-2614
ST. LUCIE COUNTY
121 N. 2nd Street
Suite 300
Fort Pierce, FL 34950
Phone: (772) 429-2166
Fax: (772) 429-2170
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY
1705 19th Place
Suite D-2
Vero Beach, FL 32960
Phone: (772) 778-6330
Fax: (772) 778-6336
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OKEECHOBEE COUNTY
Main Courthouse
312 NW 3rd Street, Room 202
Okeechobee, FL 34972
Phone: (863) 763-4749
Fax: (863) 763-1252
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