This month, attorney Bill Sheppard and Bryan DeMaggio succeeded in winning the State v. Ratledge case, where they defended Florida man Randal Ratledge. Ratledge faced 120 years in prison after firing two gun shots into the air, harming no one. In the decision of this case, the Florida Supreme court ruled that judges have the authority to sentence criminal defendants in these types of cases to no more than 20 years in prison.
The jurors in this case declined to convict Ratledge and instead acquitted him of two charges and dropped the other four charges to misdemeanor counts. He now faces no more than one year in jail when he is sentenced this month.
Read more about this case in an article written by the Florida Times Union here.