This blog was originally published on May 19, 2015.
As much as every news affiliate is looking for a story, reporters and news sources are always in need of someone who can take personal opinion out of a story and replace it with a professional and objective account of a story – no matter how controversial. Many also can argue that literally every story has the potential to have a legal viewpoint.
Enter Cooley Law School Professor Jeffrey Swartz — Tampa, Florida’s ABC Action News legal authority and go-to source on any of the many timely and important topics of the day. Outside of teaching Cooley law students about criminal law and criminal procedure, Professor Swartz also spends time instructing and working with reporters from ABC Action News as their dedicated legal expert. He is charged with taking even the most emotional and controversial topic or story and explaining to viewers what is going on or what is going to happen in an objective, professional and legal manner.
“It is important to me that the public understands the importance of each and every case upon which I render an opinion,” stated Swartz. “That is why I spend time with each reporter with whom I work to provide insight making their report, to assure that the viewers get accurate information on trials and other issues from the broadcast media. It is always about getting it right. Just as attorneys are held to a code of professional responsibility, so are journalists. It’s important to me when working with the media to set high professional and ethical standards in my role as professor, attorney and former judge. Everyone has an opinion, but the story must be guided by the truth and the law.”
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Cooley Law School Professor Jeffrey Swartz served as a county court judge for Miami-Dade County, Florida, where he presided over criminal and civil cases, and as senior trial counsel in commercial litigation and criminal defense for Rosenthal, Rosenthal Rasco Kaplan, LLC; and Miller, Kagan, Rodriguez and Silver, before joining the Cooley faculty. He also served as a member of the faculty of the Conference of County Court Judges, as well as for the faculty of the College of Advanced Judicial Studies. He served three terms as a member and chair of the Florida Supreme Court Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee and is serving a four year term on the Florida Bar Standing Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure. At Cooley, Professor Swartz teaches Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, along with being the legal expert for ABC Action News.