Sarasota litigation attorney appointed to County Court position in 12th Judicial Circuit

The 12th Judicial Circuit will see a new face on the bench following the appointment of a local litigation attorney to the Sarasota County Court, the third appointment made by Gov. Ron DeSantis within a year to the circuit.

The 12th Judicial Circuit, which encompasses Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties, has seen a shuffling of new faces as DeSantis has made appointments to fill open positions created by the retirement and resignation of several judges. The newest appointment is that of Shannon Hankin, a former assistant public defender and assistant state attorney and current attorney at the Hankin and Hankin Law Firm.

Following the resignation of Judge Debra Riva in 2022, retirement of Judge Phyllis Galen in 2023 and the retirement of former Chief Judge Charles Roberts in the summer of 2023, the court in Sarasota County was left with several positions to be filled.

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Most recently, Sarasota Judge D. Ryan Felix, a recent former assistant state attorney who was appointed to Sarasota County Court in May to fill the elevation of Judge Dana Moss to fill Riva's opening, was elevated in October to the Circuit Court following Roberts' retirement. Judge Kennedy Legler, also a recent former assistant state attorney, was appointed by DeSantis in October to fill Galen's spot on the bench.

Felix's elevation to the Circuit Court left his spot in the Sarasota County Court wide open, and Friday evening it was announced that Hankin was selected to fill the position.

Hankin, a Sarasota native, is a local attorney practicing in litigation and real estate law at Hankin and Hankin Law Firm since 2014, according to her bio on the law firm's website.

Hankin graduated from Emory University and the University of Georgia School of Law before returning back to Sarasota where she worked an assistant public defender and then as an assistant state attorney for nine years before going into private practice. While at the State Attorney's Office, Hankin prosecuted violent and career criminals, according to her bio.

Hankin is a member of The Florida Bar, Judge John M. Scheb American Inn of Court and the Junior Leage of Sarasota.

While 2024 is an election year with nine other judges currently up for re-election, and running unopposed as of March 8, the public did not have the chance to vote on who they'd want to fill Felix's open position due to Felix resigning and being elevated into the Circuit Court in Sarasota County before he finished his term.

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According to Florida law, when a judge retires, resigns or dies before their six-year term is completed, the Judicial Nominating Commission convenes to begin the process of finding a replacement judge who will be appointed by the governor to complete the former judge's term. The JNC opens applications for nominations of any individual who meets the requirements set forth in Florida's constitution.

According to a Florida Bar news release sent out following Riva's resignation, those filling out applications must be able to fulfill Constitutional qualifications, must be in good standing with The Florida Bar for the past five years, be a resident of the circuit they are attempting to be nominated for and be a registered voter in Florida.

During the process to fill the open position left after elevating of Felix, the JNC interviewed 10 nominees on Jan. 12, whittling the list down to five which were sent to Tallahassee for a second round of interviews and to be interviewed by DeSantis. The other four potential candidates whose names were sent to Tallahassee included Kaylin Humerickhouse, a local defense attorney at the Bentley Goodrich Kison Law; Brooke A. Kernan, who works in the Sarasota Clerk of Court and Comptroller's Office as the director of courts; Megan Leaf, a current assistant state attorney within the Twelfth Judicial Circuit; and Joseph Polzak, who has been with the City of Sarasota's Attorney's Office since 2014.

Gabriela Szymanowska covers the legal system for the Herald-Tribune in partnership with Report for America. You can support her work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America. Contact Gabriela Szymanowska at gszymanowska@gannett.com, or on X: @GabrielaSzyman3.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Florida governor appoints Sarasota attorney to County Court position