David Hindman
Nashville,TN
Summary
Passionate, client-centered attorney with more than fourteen years of experience as an Assistant Public Defender. Has zealously and effectively represented thousands of clients through every stage of the criminal court process from the moment of arrest through jury trial and after. Lead Counsel on dozens of serious felony trials, including clients charged with everything from theft to drugs to multiple homicides.
Overview
14
14
years of professional experience
Work History
Trial Court Division Team Leader
Nashville Public Defender’s Office
11.2021 - Current
- Responsible for leading a team of four attorneys, as well as associated support staff, assigned to one of the six trial divisions in the Nashville - Davidson County Criminal Court.
- Monitored case loads and allocated case assignments to ensure competent and zealous representation for each of our clients.
- Mentored junior attorneys, fostering professional growth and increasing their effectiveness in the courtroom.
- Encouraged and mentored growth in legal knowledge, attention to detail, and creative motions practice with every attorney I supervised.
- Also responsible for my own case load as noted in the Assistant Public Defender section.
Serious Felonies Trial Team
Nashville Public Defenders
09.2018 - 11.2021
- Part of a special unit assigned to represent clients facing high-level felony charges.
- Maintained a caseload consisting of multiple homicides, aggravated sexual assault charges, as well as other serious violent charges.
- As part of this unit, an attorney would not be assigned to a particular court, rather they would work cases as assigned, necessitating a working understanding of up to six different trial courts, judges, and prosecutor teams on any given day.
- Expected to provide vertical representation, meaning assignment to a case from the day of arrest through jury trial if necessary.
- Timely, empathetic, and patient communication with clients and family members is critical to building the trust needed to guide a client through such a frightening and difficult process, regardless of the outcome.
Assistant Public Defender
Nashville Public Defender’s Office
11.2009 - 09.2018
- Supported and represented indigent clients out-of-court, in-court and post-trial.
- Handled a variety of criminal charges from the preliminary hearing stage, up through and including jury trials.
- Have been the lead attorney in dozens of felony and misdemeanor jury trials, as well as many bench trials, many of which were tried successfully to a complete exoneration or a significant reduction in the charges.
- Responsible for hundreds of dockets over the years during which I represented multiple clients facing felony and misdemeanor charges.
- Have participated in and fostered a growth in our office's culture towards a model that embraces client-centered holistic representation, with a concomitant emphasis on workload controls that are critical to zealous and ethical representation.
- Maintained an unwavering commitment to the office's core value of client-centered representation, striving to keep client's stated goals and needs as the guideposts for all decisions.
- Collaborated with fellow public defenders to share knowledge and resources, enhancing overall trial team performance.
- Collaborated with support staff such as social workers, investigators, and legal assistants to ensure both the social and legal needs of the client are being met in a holistic manner.
- Worked to promote the dignity and agency of my clients, to display empathy, and honor commitments to them and their family during difficult or emotional situations.
Education
J.D. -
Nashville School of Law
Nashville, TN05.2008
Bachelor of Arts - English Literature
Middle Tennessee State University
Murfreesboro, TN12.2003
Skills
- Sustained, patient, and empathetic client communication is at the heart of my practice Many skills are needed as an effective advocate, but especially as a public defender, communication is critical to building real trust with my clients Unless I'm in court or talking to another client, I will stop what I'm doing and answer a client's call or make a needed jail visit I train attorneys I supervise to do the same
- Courtroom advocacy, and especially trial advocacy, is an area I have worked my entire career to improve and excel in
- Effective storytelling is an emphasis in my personal training and practice Telling my client's story in a way that resonates with a judge, prosecutor, or jury has been a tool I have worked my entire career to hone
- Creative and robust motions practice that not only help craft a successful trial strategy, but gain the trust or my clients and the respect of prosecutors and judges that I encounter in the courtroom
Additional Information
- Graduate of the Southern Public Defender's Training Center, now known as Gideon's Promise, an educational organization dedicated to fostering new public defenders as client-centered advocates through a three year training program.
- Has had several short stories published in both online and print journals, such as The Carolina Quarterly, Eclectica Magazine, and Coffin Bell Journal. Views the craft of legal storytelling as complementary and mutually instructive to the craft of creative writing.
Timeline
Trial Court Division Team Leader
Nashville Public Defender’s Office
11.2021 - Current
Serious Felonies Trial Team
Nashville Public Defenders
09.2018 - 11.2021
Assistant Public Defender
Nashville Public Defender’s Office
11.2009 - 09.2018
J.D. -
Nashville School of Law
Bachelor of Arts - English Literature
Middle Tennessee State University