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Barry Cohen (attorney)
Encyclopedia
Barry Cohen is a criminal and personal injury attorney in Florida
's Tampa Bay Area
. He has been characterized as a fighter for his aggressive legal tactics.
savvy, especially useful when his clients have a high public profile and are uncomfortable with the extra publicity drawn to their case. While many attorneys ignore the media's coverage
, Cohen typically goes on a sophisticated "media offensive
". Cohen has been quoted as saying that "defenders have to try to balance an inherent media advantage enjoyed by prosecutors."
His history of winning cases and the large legal fees
he is now able to command have put Cohen in the position of being able to choose the cases he wants to handle, including accepting clients that cannot afford his fees such as school teacher, Jennifer Porter. Besides criminal matters, Cohen handles personal injury cases. "The same investigative, negotiating and trial skills that made him an outstanding defense lawyer also made him an excellent personal injury lawyer."
, chiropractor
at the wheel of his 35-foot (11 m) cigarette boat
on Memorial Day weekend in 1989, collided with a 17-foot (5 m) boat full of teenagers. Four teenagers were killed and several more injured. LaTorre was charged with four counts of vessel homicide. Cohen painted a picture in the media as an unavoidable tragic event for everyone concerned. He portrayed LaTorre's arrest as politically motivated, and managed press conferences with LaTorre's tearful wife. LaTorre was eventually acquitted of all four deaths.
In 1992, former Chief Judge Dennis Alverez of Hillsborough County
hired Cohen to represent him in an FBI
inquiry into his handling of a legal dispute over the disposition of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers
owner Hugh Culverhouse
's multi-million dollar estate.
In 1994, Cohen represented Sheriff Everett Rice and the Pinellas County
Sheriff's Office when it was threatened with a lawsuit by former U.S. Attorney
Robert Merkle for damages stemming from a false arrest
charge after Merkle was acquitted
of battery
in a traffic confrontation. The Pinellas County Commission voted to hire Cohen as a special counsel at Rice’s request.
In 2005, Barry Cohen represented Pinellas County Judge George Greer
when Greer was threatened with impeachment
for his decisions in the Terri Schiavo case
.
Jennifer Porter hired Cohen before she announced she was the driver of the Toyota Echo
involved in a hit and run accident that killed two children and put two in the hospital in March 2004. When she drove away after the collision with the four siblings, she retained retained Cohen before she stepped forward in a press conference
along with press release
s. She was charged with leaving the scene of an accident. She eventually pleaded guilty to a felony
, but did not receive a prison sentence. Her sentence was reduced to two years house arrest
through a judge's ruling engineered by Cohen. After she had completed all but six months of her sentence, Porter requested that her teaching certificate be restored. Cohen said her excellent character references plus the expert testimony
provided through Cohen's efforts, explaining how she suffered psychological trauma
, testimony that convinced the judge to give her house arrest, should also persuade the state panel to let Porter maintain her teaching certification.
In September 2007, Cohen was hired to represent Nick Bollea, son of professional wrestler
Hulk Hogan
. Bollea, age 17, was driving a yellow Toyota Supra
at high speed when he lost control, according to police. His passenger was severely injured. "A lawyer can drop a client, just as a client can drop an attorney", Cohen is reported to have said, making a general statement when announcing his withdrawal from the case.
Cohen, as the Aisenberg's attorney, appeared with the Aisenbergs as a guest on Larry King Live
in 2001 along with several other guests to discuss the still unsolved case. The Aisenberg case has continued to receive national attention in 2007, ten years after the child has been missing.
Cohen said the police have a right to investigate the parents of a missing child, but it was law enforcement's continued and relentless focus solely on the parents to the exclusion of other possibilities and leads that was problematic and abusive in this case. For example, prosecution investigators received an illegally-obtained warrant to record over 255 private conversations in the Aisenberg home. The tapes were inaudible for the most part and none provided any evidence to prosecute the Aisenbergs. The tapes were transcribed into transcripts for the judge and for presentation to a grand jury.
on behalf of the Aisenbergs for reimbursement of legal fees
under the Hyde Amendment
, a federal statute enacted in 1997 to pay the legal fees of defendants who were victims of prosecutorial abuse. On February 1, 2003, the Aisenberg's were awarded $2.9 million to pay the legal fees for the then five-year-old case, the largest award in the ten years since the Hyde Amendment was enacted. In fact, very rarely is suing for reimbursement of legal fees under the Hyde Amendment successful. As of 2007, the award remains the largest to date. Although Cohen did not receive the $7 million requested in the suit, the amount awarded was far more than the $250,000 the prosecution was originally willing to pay.
Judge Merryday of the Middle District of Florida reviewed the case and explained why he ordered the federal government to pay the $2.9 million in legal fees and expenses under the Hyde Amendment. The judge called the prosecution's case “vexatious, frivolous, or in bad faith.” The judge's decision is highly critical of the prosecutor's tactics. The judge also ordered the government to release to the public the grand jury transcripts as “the public is entitled to know” about the “misdirected and overzealous prosecutorial exertions” in this case.
The controversy surrounding the Aisenberg case has been covered on numerous media outlets, including the CBS
program 48 Hours
as well as the Oprah Winfrey Show, Dateline NBC
, Good Morning America
, and the Today Show.
-directed film The Great Debaters
in 2008 that he launched an initiative in Tampa Bay to bring Hillsborough County
its first-ever Urban Debate League
for at-risk schoolchildren. On May 15, 2008 Cohen underwrote a special screening of The Great Debaters
for 250 underprivileged Tampa
children, along with special guests Doug Williams (the first African-American quarterback
to win the Super Bowl
) and actress Jurnee Smollett
, who won the 2008 NAACP Image Award for her performance as the female lead in the film.
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
's Tampa Bay Area
Tampa Bay Area
The Tampa Bay Area is the region of west central Florida adjacent to Tampa Bay. Definitions of the region vary. It is often considered equivalent to the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area defined by the United States Census Bureau. The Census Bureau currently...
. He has been characterized as a fighter for his aggressive legal tactics.
Legal methods
Cohen is mediaMass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
savvy, especially useful when his clients have a high public profile and are uncomfortable with the extra publicity drawn to their case. While many attorneys ignore the media's coverage
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
, Cohen typically goes on a sophisticated "media offensive
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
". Cohen has been quoted as saying that "defenders have to try to balance an inherent media advantage enjoyed by prosecutors."
His history of winning cases and the large legal fees
Attorney's fee
Attorney's fee is a chiefly United States term for compensation for legal services performed by an attorney for a client, in or out of court. It may be an hourly, flat-rate or contingent fee. Attorney fees are separate from fines, compensatory and punitive damages, and from court costs in a...
he is now able to command have put Cohen in the position of being able to choose the cases he wants to handle, including accepting clients that cannot afford his fees such as school teacher, Jennifer Porter. Besides criminal matters, Cohen handles personal injury cases. "The same investigative, negotiating and trial skills that made him an outstanding defense lawyer also made him an excellent personal injury lawyer."
Sample cases
William A. LaTorre, a Clearwater, FloridaClearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of...
, chiropractor
Chiropractic
Chiropractic is a health care profession concerned with the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disorders of the neuromusculoskeletal system and the effects of these disorders on general health. It is generally categorized as complementary and alternative medicine...
at the wheel of his 35-foot (11 m) cigarette boat
Go-fast boat
A go-fast boat, or cigarette boat, is a small, fast boat designed with a long narrow platform and a planing hull to enable it to reach high speeds....
on Memorial Day weekend in 1989, collided with a 17-foot (5 m) boat full of teenagers. Four teenagers were killed and several more injured. LaTorre was charged with four counts of vessel homicide. Cohen painted a picture in the media as an unavoidable tragic event for everyone concerned. He portrayed LaTorre's arrest as politically motivated, and managed press conferences with LaTorre's tearful wife. LaTorre was eventually acquitted of all four deaths.
In 1992, former Chief Judge Dennis Alverez of Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County, Florida
As of the census of 2000, there were 998,948 people, 391,357 households, and 255,164 families residing in the county. The population density was 951 people per square mile . There were 425,962 housing units at an average density of 405 per square mile...
hired Cohen to represent him in an FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
inquiry into his handling of a legal dispute over the disposition of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
owner Hugh Culverhouse
Hugh Culverhouse
Hugh Franklin Culverhouse, Sr. was the longtime owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League . He was a successful tax lawyer, and his real estate investments made him one of the nation's wealthiest men...
's multi-million dollar estate.
In 1994, Cohen represented Sheriff Everett Rice and the Pinellas County
Pinellas County, Florida
Pinellas County is a county located in the state of Florida. Its county seat is Clearwater, Florida, and its largest city is St. Petersburg. This county is contained entirely within the telephone area code 727, except for some sections of Oldsmar, which have the area code 813...
Sheriff's Office when it was threatened with a lawsuit by former U.S. Attorney
United States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
Robert Merkle for damages stemming from a false arrest
False arrest
False arrest is a common law tort, where a plaintiff alleges they were held in custody without probable cause, or without an order issued by a court of competent jurisdiction...
charge after Merkle was acquitted
Acquittal
In the common law tradition, an acquittal formally certifies the accused is free from the charge of an offense, as far as the criminal law is concerned. This is so even where the prosecution is abandoned nolle prosequi...
of battery
Battery (crime)
Battery is a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the fear of such contact.In the United States, criminal battery, or simply battery, is the use of force against another, resulting in harmful or offensive contact...
in a traffic confrontation. The Pinellas County Commission voted to hire Cohen as a special counsel at Rice’s request.
In 2005, Barry Cohen represented Pinellas County Judge George Greer
George Greer
George W. Greer was an American judge serving in the Pinellas-Pasco County Circuit Court, family law division, in Clearwater, Florida, who received national attention when he presided over the Terri Schiavo case....
when Greer was threatened with impeachment
Impeachment
Impeachment is a formal process in which an official is accused of unlawful activity, the outcome of which, depending on the country, may include the removal of that official from office as well as other punishment....
for his decisions in the Terri Schiavo case
Terri Schiavo case
The Terri Schiavo case was a legal battle in the United States between the legal guardians and the parents of Teresa Marie "Terri" Schiavo that lasted from 1998 to 2005...
.
Jennifer Porter hired Cohen before she announced she was the driver of the Toyota Echo
Toyota Platz
The Toyota Platz is a subcompact automobile that was manufactured in Japan by Toyota from 1999 through to 2005, when replaced by the Toyota Belta. Designated by Toyota as the XP10 series, the Platz was sold in export markets as either the Toyota Echo or Toyota Yaris...
involved in a hit and run accident that killed two children and put two in the hospital in March 2004. When she drove away after the collision with the four siblings, she retained retained Cohen before she stepped forward in a press conference
News conference
A news conference or press conference is a media event in which newsmakers invite journalists to hear them speak and, most often, ask questions. A joint press conference instead is held between two or more talking sides.-Practice:...
along with press release
News release
A press release, news release, media release, press statement or video release is a written or recorded communication directed at members of the news media for the purpose of announcing something ostensibly newsworthy...
s. She was charged with leaving the scene of an accident. She eventually pleaded guilty to a felony
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
, but did not receive a prison sentence. Her sentence was reduced to two years house arrest
House arrest
In justice and law, house arrest is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to his or her residence. Travel is usually restricted, if allowed at all...
through a judge's ruling engineered by Cohen. After she had completed all but six months of her sentence, Porter requested that her teaching certificate be restored. Cohen said her excellent character references plus the expert testimony
Expert witness
An expert witness, professional witness or judicial expert is a witness, who by virtue of education, training, skill, or experience, is believed to have expertise and specialised knowledge in a particular subject beyond that of the average person, sufficient that others may officially and legally...
provided through Cohen's efforts, explaining how she suffered psychological trauma
Psychological trauma
Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event...
, testimony that convinced the judge to give her house arrest, should also persuade the state panel to let Porter maintain her teaching certification.
In September 2007, Cohen was hired to represent Nick Bollea, son of professional wrestler
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
. Bollea, age 17, was driving a yellow Toyota Supra
Toyota Supra
The Toyota Supra is a sports car/grand tourer that was produced by Toyota Motor Company from 1979 to 2002. The styling of the Toyota Supra was derived from the Toyota Celica, but it was both longer and wider. Starting in mid-1986, the Supra became its own model and was no longer based on the Celica...
at high speed when he lost control, according to police. His passenger was severely injured. "A lawyer can drop a client, just as a client can drop an attorney", Cohen is reported to have said, making a general statement when announcing his withdrawal from the case.
Aisenberg case
In 1997 Steven and Marlene Aisenberg hired Cohen after their five-month-old baby, Sabrina Aisenberg, disappeared from her crib in the Aisenberg home. Baby Sabrina was never found and the reason for her disappearance remains a mystery. From the beginning the parents were the only suspects the prosecution investigators pursued.Cohen, as the Aisenberg's attorney, appeared with the Aisenbergs as a guest on Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
in 2001 along with several other guests to discuss the still unsolved case. The Aisenberg case has continued to receive national attention in 2007, ten years after the child has been missing.
Cohen said the police have a right to investigate the parents of a missing child, but it was law enforcement's continued and relentless focus solely on the parents to the exclusion of other possibilities and leads that was problematic and abusive in this case. For example, prosecution investigators received an illegally-obtained warrant to record over 255 private conversations in the Aisenberg home. The tapes were inaudible for the most part and none provided any evidence to prosecute the Aisenbergs. The tapes were transcribed into transcripts for the judge and for presentation to a grand jury.
Hyde Amendment fees
Eventually in 2007, the charges against the Aisenbergs were dropped for lack of evidence. In U.S. v. Aisenberg, Cohen sued the federal government for malicious prosecutionMalicious prosecution
Malicious prosecution is a common law intentional tort, while like the tort of abuse of process, its elements include intentionally instituting and pursuing a legal action that is brought without probable cause and dismissed in favor of the victim of the malicious prosecution...
on behalf of the Aisenbergs for reimbursement of legal fees
Attorney's fee
Attorney's fee is a chiefly United States term for compensation for legal services performed by an attorney for a client, in or out of court. It may be an hourly, flat-rate or contingent fee. Attorney fees are separate from fines, compensatory and punitive damages, and from court costs in a...
under the Hyde Amendment
Hyde Amendment (1997)
The Hyde Amendment is a federal statute introduced by Representative Henry Hyde as a rider to an appropriation bill and worked into the final 1997 Department of Justice bill by the United States Congress. The Justice Department was intensely opposed to the statute...
, a federal statute enacted in 1997 to pay the legal fees of defendants who were victims of prosecutorial abuse. On February 1, 2003, the Aisenberg's were awarded $2.9 million to pay the legal fees for the then five-year-old case, the largest award in the ten years since the Hyde Amendment was enacted. In fact, very rarely is suing for reimbursement of legal fees under the Hyde Amendment successful. As of 2007, the award remains the largest to date. Although Cohen did not receive the $7 million requested in the suit, the amount awarded was far more than the $250,000 the prosecution was originally willing to pay.
Judge Merryday of the Middle District of Florida reviewed the case and explained why he ordered the federal government to pay the $2.9 million in legal fees and expenses under the Hyde Amendment. The judge called the prosecution's case “vexatious, frivolous, or in bad faith.” The judge's decision is highly critical of the prosecutor's tactics. The judge also ordered the government to release to the public the grand jury transcripts as “the public is entitled to know” about the “misdirected and overzealous prosecutorial exertions” in this case.
The controversy surrounding the Aisenberg case has been covered on numerous media outlets, including the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
program 48 Hours
48 Hours (TV series)
48 Hours is a documentary and news program broadcast on the CBS television network since January 19, 1988. The program originally presented documentaries of various events related to a particular subject occurring within a 48-hour period, and is credited as one of the first to air a "reality show"...
as well as the Oprah Winfrey Show, Dateline NBC
Dateline NBC
Dateline NBC, or Dateline, is a U.S. weekly television newsmagazine broadcast by NBC. It previously was NBC's flagship news magazine, but now focuses on true crime stories. It airs Friday at 9 p.m. EST and after football season on Sunday at 7 p.m. EST.-History:Dateline is historically notable for...
, Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, and the Today Show.
Community activism
Cohen was moved by the Denzel WashingtonDenzel Washington
Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...
-directed film The Great Debaters
The Great Debaters
The Great Debaters is a 2007 American biopic period drama film directed by and starring two-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington and produced by Oprah Winfrey and her production company, Harpo Productions...
in 2008 that he launched an initiative in Tampa Bay to bring Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County, Florida
As of the census of 2000, there were 998,948 people, 391,357 households, and 255,164 families residing in the county. The population density was 951 people per square mile . There were 425,962 housing units at an average density of 405 per square mile...
its first-ever Urban Debate League
Urban debate league
An urban debate league is a group of high school policy debate teams from urban high schools in the United States. Usually, UDL's are located in large cities throughout the US, and work with predominantly minority students-Early years:...
for at-risk schoolchildren. On May 15, 2008 Cohen underwrote a special screening of The Great Debaters
The Great Debaters
The Great Debaters is a 2007 American biopic period drama film directed by and starring two-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington and produced by Oprah Winfrey and her production company, Harpo Productions...
for 250 underprivileged Tampa
Tâmpa
Tâmpa may refer to several villages in Romania:* Tâmpa, a village in Băcia Commune, Hunedoara County* Tâmpa, a village in Miercurea Nirajului, Mureş County* Tâmpa, a mountain in Braşov city...
children, along with special guests Doug Williams (the first African-American quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
to win the Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
) and actress Jurnee Smollett
Jurnee Smollett
Jurnee Diana Smollett-Bell is an American actress. She is best known for the role of Jess Merriweather on the critically acclaimed television series Friday Night Lights...
, who won the 2008 NAACP Image Award for her performance as the female lead in the film.
External links
- "The Great Debaters"; 250 Children Attend Barry Cohen's Free Movie Screening
- Tampa lawyer argues for launching urban debate league
- Hit and Run—links to Jennifer Porter articles
- Merkle for the Defense
- The Law Firm of Cohen, Jayson & Foster, P.A.