I grew up in Maine. My family’s from Maine. Everyone I know is in Maine. For college, I lived at home while attending the University of Southern Maine.

But by the time I wanted to go to law school, I knew I needed to challenge myself.

I knew I had to move out on my own, so I chose Barry University School of Law here in Florida. I packed up everything I owned into my little Nissan Sentra. I made the two-day drive down by myself and moved into my apartment. Once I got my boxes in and sat in my living room of my new apartment, the realization hit me – and it hit hard.

I was here, alone, for at least 3 years to finish law school. I cried, and cried some more.

But I didn’t back down.

In fact, I dove headfirst into one of my biggest challenges yet: Trial Team. I wanted to get a sense of how a real trial worked. It was intense, but preparing for and arguing a case was intriguing.

Early on, we had to choose a side while practicing a mock dog-fighting case. Most people chose the side of the prosecution.

But once again, I wanted a challenge. I felt compelled to choose the side defending the accused.

Standing in front of those judges and making my case was exhilarating, but it also felt important.

Everyone deserves to have their side of the story told.

It didn’t take me long to figure out that I wanted a career in the courtroom, defending the defenseless.

So after law school, I applied to the Brevard County Public Defender’s Office. Soon after, I transferred to the Pinellas County Public Defender’s Office.

When you work for any Public Defender’s Office, the rate at which you have to learn is incredible. I cannot describe how blessed I am to have tried the cases I’ve tried alongside brilliant and dedicated trial attorneys, providing a beacon of hope for our clients.