About State Attorney

Bernie McCabe

State Attorney
Pinellas and Pasco Counties
Sixth Judicial Circuit of Florida

Education

Bachelor of Arts, 1969, Stetson University
Juris Doctor, cum laude, 1972, Stetson University College of Law

Employment

Elected State Attorney November 1992
Re-elected State Attorney 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008
Assistant State Attorney 1972-1992
Previous positions: Chief Assistant State Attorney, Executive Assistant State Attorney, and Division Director in St. Petersburg and in Pasco County.

Memberships

Member of state, local and national Bar Associations
Past President of the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association
Member of the National District Attorneys Association
Pinellas County Juvenile Welfare Board
Chairman, Pinellas County Substance Abuse Advisory Board
Adjunct Professor, Stetson College of Law
Board of Overseers, Stetson College of Law
Stetson Law Hall of Fame – 2009
Board of Directors, Suncoast Family YMCA
Florida Judicial Management Council
Pasco Multi-Agency Coordinating Council
Pasco and Pinellas Public Safety Coordinating Councils
State Criminal Court Steering Committee
Chairman, Florida Violent Crime and Drug Control Council
Pinellas County Health and Human Services Coordinating Council

Achievements

In 1999, directed the creation of the State Attorney Safe Schools Program (SASS) which was an innovative program to place prosecutors in middle schools to coordinate and divert youth from the justice system, which contributed to a significant drop in the number of offenses on campuses and thus, referrals for criminal prosecution. In 2008, referrals were reduced to the point that the program was discontinued.
In 2000, the child welfare delivery system in Florida underwent radical shifts toward privatization of case management and legal services. Mr. McCabe made the decision to take on the responsibility for legal services related to the handling of these cases and incorporated the Child Welfare Legal Services Division into the Office the State Attorney. This unprecedented step to take these responsibilities has proved to be one of the most successful models throughout the State.
In 2001, under Mr. McCabe’s leadership the concept of involving the community in the justice process was extended through the Community Prosecuting Attorney Service System (COMPASS) which sought to reduce the number of youth being referred for criminal prosecution from high-risk cooperating communities. In 2003, the program was extended to encompass eight communities. The current version of this diversion program has been extended to reduce the incidence of retail theft through an expanded prosecutorial diversion program.
Mr. McCabe’s Bad Check Diversion Program is constantly being fine tuned in order to further assist citizens of Pinellas and Pasco Counties in the collection of monies owed to them as a result of their receiving a worthless check; enabling the citizens to receive restitution for their checks without having to pay a collection fee and allowing those who have written a bad check in error to make good on it without having a criminal record. Through our Bad Check Diversion Program, we collected and distributed over a million dollars of restitution to victims of worthless checks last fiscal year.

Agency Awards

Eugene Berry Prosecutor of the Year Award recipient – this prestigious award presented by the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association in honor of Assistant State Attorney Eugene Berry, who was fatally shot in 1982 by the wife of a man he prosecuted. During his tenure in southwest Florida, Mr. Berry prosecuted many drug cases in Charlotte County, including 30 major felony trials in the year before his death.
2005 - James A. Hellickson, Division Director - Special Prosecution
Florida Retail Federation Assistant State Attorney of the Year recipients –
2006 - Pat Siracusa, Assistant State Attorney, currently a Circuit Judge
2009 - Dawn Henrichon, Assistant State Attorney