Florida Bar clears Mark O’Mara of suborning Shellie Zimmerman perjury

Florida Bar clears Mark O’Mara of suborning Shellie Zimmerman perjury

In the aftermath of Shellie Zimmerman’s perjury charges, the Florida Bar opened an investigation into whether George Zimmerman’s lawyer Mark O’Mara may have solicited her false testimony.

Shellie Zimmerman ultimately accepted a plea offer on the charges, receiving one year probation and no jail time, as reported here at Legal Insurrection: Shellie Zimmerman Plea Deal

Shellie Zimmerman, with her then-husband George Zimmerman

Today, the Florida Bar concluded that there was no credible evidence that O’Mara engaged in any such misconduct.

The closing of this investigation follows closely on the heels of O’Mara being named the National Trial Lawyer’s Criminal Trial Lawyer of 2013, as previously reported here at Legal Insurrection: Zimmerman Attorney Mark O’Mara Named “National Criminal Trial Lawyer of 2013″

In the interview below, conducted a few days ago, O’Mara talked about how the case has affected his practice, and life:

….The Orlando attorney says he has no regrets about representing Zimmerman, who was acquitted in July in a trial that drew worldwide attention. O’Mara, 57, says that the case that consumed most of his time also opened doors for him.

He jumped from doing local TV analysis on Casey Anthony to providing legal analysis for CNN, giving speeches and consulting. He has moved on to other cases and other issues, notably a justice-outreach program he started to help youngsters avoid crime. He talked recently at his office.

Question: What has CNN done for your practice?

Answer: The Zimmerman case and the aftermath, I hate to say it like that, have helped my practice without question. I can’t deny that. The idea of having a high-profile case helps because people know you. That notoriety or publicity is both a blessing and a curse, obviously.

Q: Is the curse that some people think you’re a miracle worker?

A: Yes, people have heightened expectations. I’m not a miracle worker. I didn’t turn into a miracle worker because I won a criminal case that, quite honestly, the facts show that I should have won. The fact of the case, I don’t think it ever should have gone to trial. So the idea of winning it isn’t such a miracle.

* * *

Q: What about the Florida Bar ethics inquiry related to how you handled the Zimmerman case?

A: It’s being dismissed, and it’s my understanding that’s in the works. I’m not worried about it because I sort of asked them to figure out what’s going on.

–Andrew, @LawSelfDefense

Andrew F. Branca is an MA lawyer and the author of the seminal book “The Law of Self Defense, 2nd Edition,” available at the Law of Self Defense blog, Amazon.com (paperback and Kindle), Barnes & Noble (paperback and Nook), and elsewhere.

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