William Mallory Kent

Bar / Professional Activity

• Florida Bar Appellate Rules Committee, 2004

Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)

• Holcombe v. State, 553 So. 2d 1337 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989)
• Castro v. State, 794 So. 2d 680 (Fla. 2nd DCA 2001)
• United States v. Grimes, 911 F. Supp 1485 (M.D.Fl. 1995)
• United States v. McCorkle, 78 F. Supp. 2d 1311 (M.D. Fl. 1999)
• United States v. McCorkle, 143 F. Supp. 2d 1311 (M.D.Fl. 2000)
• United States v. McCorkle, 143 F. Supp. 2d 1311 (M.D.Fl. 2001)
• United States v. Lazarchik, 924 F.2d 211 (11th Cir. 1991)
• United States v. Gilbert, 942 F.2d 1537 (11th Cir. 1991)
• United States v. Stinson, 943 F.2d 1268 (11th Cir. 1992)
• United States v. Young, 953 F.2d 1288 (11th Cir. 1992)
• United States v. Stinson, 957 F.2d 813 (11th Cir. 1992)
• United States v. Williams 958 F.2d 337 (11th Cir. 1992)
• Stinson v. United States, 508 U.S. 36 (United States Supreme Court, 1993)
• United States v. Be.., 22 F.3d 274 (11th Cir. 1994)
• United States v. Stinson, 30 F.3d 121 (11thCir. 1994)
• United States v. Brown, 71, F.3d 845 (11th Cir. 1996)
• United States v. Hofierka, 83 F.3d 357 (as amended and as modified on denial of rehearing)(11th Cir. 1996)
• United States v. Wescott, 83 F.3d 1354 (11th Cir. 1996)
• United States v. Hofierka, 92 F.3d 108 (11th Cir. 1996)
• United States v. Stinson, 97 F.3d 466 (11th Cir. 1996)
• Anderson v. Singletary, 111 F.3d 801 (11th Cir. 1997)
• United States v. Lopez-Iraeta, 136 F.3d 143 (11th Cir. 1997)
• United States v. Grimes, 142 F.3d 1342 (11th Cir. 1998)
• United States v. Washington, 151 F.3d 1354 (11th Cir. 1998)
• United States v. MacAllister, 160 F.3d 1304 (11th Cir. 1998)
• United States v. Bull, 214 F.3d 1275 (11th Cir. 2000)
• United States v. Herman Venske, William McCorkle, et al. 15 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. C 765, 2002 WL 1491640 (11th Cir. July 12, 2002)
• United States v. Thigpen, 4 F.3d 1573 (11th Cir. en banc 1994)

Videos

• Mr. Kent is type rated in the Honda Jet which he flies part time as a corporate pilot., Landing Honda Jet, 2025

Representative Clients

• Successfully represented Congresswoman Corrine Brown in the appeal of her multi-count federal trial conviction, joined by the First Liberty Institute en banc, in a 7-4 decision reversing and remanding the case.  On remand assisted in the negotiation of a favorable disposition.  To the best of my knowledge this is rare reversal on appeal after trial of the conviction of a Congressperson.
• Represented attorney Michael O'Steen as co-counsel at his federal trial to preserve the record for appeal.  Attorney O'Steen was charged with extortion and failure to timely file a currency transaction report in connection with an alleged scheme involving the elected State Attorney who testified as a government witness at trial.  My arguments in support of a judgment of acquittal at the close of evidence were denied by the trial judge (one, a novel challenge to currency transaction reporting requirements, the other supported in part by one appellate decision from a sister circuit) were found by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals to require acquittal on both counts, and remand with instructions that retrial was prohibited based on Double Jeopardy.  On remand my motion for return of the fine and forfeiture was granted and the FBI sting money was then returned to attorney O'Stein.  

Special Licenses / Certifications

• FAA Commercial Multiengine Instrument Rated and Typed Jet Pilot and FAA private pilot in Helicopters.

Pro bono / Community Service

• I devote substantial time to pro bono criminal appellate and post-conviction cases.  Recent successful pro bono cases have included Cross v. State, 2009 WL 1940708 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009) (summary denial of 3.850 motion challenging sentencing of youthful offender defendant who pled guilty to three armed robberies reversed and remanded), Hunter v. United States, 129 S.Ct. 594 (2008) (Supreme Court remanded denial of certificate of appealability in federal habeas challenging armed career criminal sentence), Arreguin-Aguilar v. United States, 128 S.Ct. 2502 (2008) (Supreme Court vacated Eleventh Circuit decision denying relief on sentencing error issue and on remand Eleventh Circuit expedite decision and remanded for resentencing, and on resentencing government stipulated to error and time served sentence), Miranda v. State, 984 So.2d 677 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008) (summary denial of pro bono 3.850 challenging trial conviction and sentence for arson reversed and remanded for evidentiary hearing and on remand circuit court granted relief and vacated conviction and sentence); Roberto Campuzano v. State of Florida (unpublished circuit court order, Putnam County, Florida 2008) (circuit court granted pro bono 3.850 motion after evidentiary hearing vacating felony conviction that had caused Mexican American father of several US citizen children to be ordered deported - after circuit court set aside felony conviction, co-counsel David Vedder, a board certified immigration attorney, succeeded in setting aside deportation order). 

Honors

• Graduated cum laude from Harvard (1975, class of 1974), and with honors from the University of Florida Levin College of Law (1978)
• Martindale-Hubbell AV Rating
• Graduated first in class at the Bolles School (1970)
• American Jurisprudence Book Awards in Constitutional Law, Estates and Trusts and Agency
• Fellow of the Robert Bosch Foundation, Germany, 1987-1988
• Repeatedly honored as Outstanding Assistant Federal Public Defender for the Middle District of Florida during ten years with the Federal Public Defender, 1989-1999
• One of five finalists submitted to United States District Court for appointment as United States Magistrate Judge by district judicial qualification committee, United States District Court, Middle District of Florida 1996
• Argued en banc at the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, United States v. Thigpen, 4 F.3d 1573 (1993)
• Briefed, argued and won Terry Lynn Stinson v. United States, 508 U.S. 36, 113 S.Ct. 36 (1993) (which has over 6,000 Westlaw citing references and is one of the most cited cases in federal sentencing law)

Educational Background

• Harvard College, Class of 1974, A.B. cum laude Junior Year Abroad, 1973-1974, Ludwig-Maximillians Universitaet, Munich, Germany Studied at Adam Mickiewicz Universitaet, Poznan, Poland, 1976 The Bolles School, Jacksonville, Florida 1970, graduated first in class, National Merit Scholar Finalist

• 2004-2008
• Florida Bar Appellate Rules Committee