Members

St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo, Pinellas Park, Dunedin, Tarpon Springs, Seminole, and all of Pinellas County, as well as Hillsborough and Pasco counties in the greater Tampa Bay area.

Melinda Morris is the founding partner of the Morris Law Firm, P.A. in St. Petersburg, Florida, specializing in aggressive DUI defense and complex criminal litigation. As a former Assistant State Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit in Pinellas and Pasco Counties, Ms. Morris served as a Lead Trial Attorney and as a member of the specialized DUI Manslaughter and Vehicular Homicide Squad. Having evaluated thousands of criminal cases from initial arrest through jury trial, Ms. Morris brings invaluable insider knowledge of prosecutorial strategies to every defense. She leverages over two decades of dedicated legal experience to challenge police procedure, field sobriety tests, Intoxilyzer 8000 breath test accuracy, and unlawful traffic stops. Ms. Morris provides strategic defense for clients facing first-time DUI, repeat DUI, felony DUI, DUI with serious bodily injury, and DMV administrative driver's license suspension hearings throughout Pinellas County and the Tampa Bay area.

Juris Doctorate (J.D.) – Stetson University College of Law (Ranked #1 nationally for Trial Advocacy) Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) – Stetson University Bachelor of Science (B.S.) – Florida State University

- Veteran of over 50 jury trials, ranging from misdemeanor DUI to felony DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, and major felony charges. - Former Lead Trial Attorney and DUI Manslaughter Squad prosecutor for the 6th Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office. - Extensive experience litigating pre-trial Motions to Suppress evidence based on illegal traffic stops, lack of probable cause, and improper breath/blood testing procedures. - Proven track record handling DMV Administrative Review Hearings to challenge driver's license suspensions and protect client driving privileges.

- DUI Charge Reduced to Reckless Driving: Successfully challenged law enforcement's reasonable suspicion for a traffic stop and field sobriety testing procedures, leading the prosecution to drop DUI charges down to reckless driving. - DUI Refusal & Property Damage Defense: Secured favorable pre-trial resolutions by identifying gaps in officer body-cam footage and demonstrating a lack of evidence regarding actual physical control of the vehicle. - DMV License Suspension Overturned: Invalidated administrative driver's license suspensions at formal review hearings by proving non-compliance with Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) breath-testing regulations. - Felony DUI & DUI Manslaughter Defense: Litigated complex felony cases involving blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) testing protocols, hospital blood draws, and accident reconstruction analysis.

Trained junior prosecutors on courtroom advocacy, evidence admission standards, and trial preparation during her tenure with the State Attorney's Office.