Sean Buckley
Meet Attorney Sean Buckley
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Criminal defense attorney Sean Buckley aggressively defends clients on the Mississippi Coast and throughout the region against serious and complex criminal allegations. Mr. Buckley has actively practiced as a criminal defense trial lawyer in Federal and State courts for over 25 years.
Mr. Buckley graduated from The University of Texas School of Law in 1999 and began his criminal defense career the following year apprenticing under a group of prominent criminal defense trial lawyers. Mr. Buckley first gained prominence as a criminal defense attorney in 2004 with the exoneration of John Harvey, a man serving a 40-year prison sentence for a crime he did not commit. After the Harvey case, nationally famed criminal defense trial lawyer Dick DeGuerin recruited Mr. Buckley to practice in his firm’s Houston office. Through the years that followed, Mr. Buckley served as co-counsel to Mr. DeGuerin in a variety of high-stakes and high-profile criminal cases until leaving the DeGuerin firm in 2013 to open this firm. During Mr. Buckley’s years of apprenticeship and work at the DeGuerin firm, he gained a philosophy for winning and an effective skillset for aggressively and creatively defending clients against serious criminal accusations.
Mr. Buckley is rated AV-Preeminent by Martindale Hubbell, the most widely respected attorney rating system in the United States since 1887. An AV-rating signifies that an attorney has reached the highest level of professional excellence, skill, and integrity. Mr. Buckley is also recognized by The Best Lawyers in America and Mid-South Super Lawyers. He is a Life Member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) and a member of the Federal Bar Association, the Bar Association of the Federal Fifth Circuit, the American Bar Association, the Criminal Defense Section of the Mississippi Bar, and the Jackson County Bar Association.
Mr. Buckley is admitted to the State and Federal bars of Mississippi and Texas. Over the last 25 years, Mr. Buckley has successfully practiced in State and Federal courts across the United States including in Mississippi, Texas, Florida, New York, California, and Utah, as well as the Federal Court of the Dominican Republic. He is honored to serve annually as Lead Attorney Editor of O’Connor’s Federal Criminal Rules & Codes (Thomson Reuters, 2010-24), a federal criminal law book trusted by federal criminal lawyers across the United States.​
Mr. Buckley has successfully handled numerous high-stakes and high-profile cases. His reputation for zealous advocacy has earned him a distinguished list of past clients including a former U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman, former U.S. District Judge Samuel B. Kent, the CEO of a billion-dollar worldwide financial services company, a decorated NASA astronaut, national recording artists, doctors, lawyers, teachers, military service members, and many other good people from all walks of life.
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Mr. Buckley has been quoted on issues of criminal law by national media outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, NBC, CBS, FOX, The Houston Chronicle, The Dallas Morning News, and The Associated Press. For the last two years, this firm has been voted Best of Coastal Mississippi (First Place, Defense Law).
Mr. Buckley is a graduate of Auburn University (BA, magna cum laude, Phi Kappa Phi, 1996) and The University of Texas School of Law (1999) (American Journal of Criminal Law). Mr. Buckley and his wife Marisol live in Jackson County, Mississippi. Mr. Buckley represents clients in Federal and State courts throughout Coastal Mississippi and accepts cases beyond the Coast on a case-by-case basis.
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​If you’ve been charged with a crime, or believe you may be under investigation, don't wait to seek legal counsel.
Contact the Law Offices of Sean Buckley today to schedule your free consultation. We’re dedicated to protecting your legal rights and providing the strong defense you deserve.
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Una Nota Personal de Sean:
"A lo largo de mi carrera, que abarca más de dos décadas, he trabajado incansablemente en practicar y dominar el arte de la defensa criminal. Nunca he trabajado como fiscal, ni nunca he querido hacerlo. Por elección propia, mis clientes siempre han sido acusados criminales, sospechosos y objetivos.
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Creo que mis resultados en los casos y mi reputación se han logrado gracias a mi identidad intransigente como defensor de los acusados. Espero con interés hablar sobre su caso, conocerle y discutir la oportunidad de servirle como su abogado de defensa criminal."
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— Sean Buckley
NOTABLE CASES
Every case is different, and past results do not predict future outcomes in other cases.
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In 2021, Mr. Buckley secured the dismissal of all criminal charges against his client, [Name Expunged], an attorney accused of attempting to strangle his child’s mother (who was a judge). By the time of trial, the alleged victim refused to testify in court and Mr. Buckley successfully suppressed her prior recorded statement to police – leaving prosecutors with no evidence.
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In 2019, following a 75-day federal jury trial, Mr. Buckley and co-counsel Jim Lavine won a stunning “Not Guilty” jury verdict for their client, Jeffry Cockerell, who was indicted for allegedly participating in a $120 million federal healthcare fraud conspiracy. Following the “Not Guilty” verdict, Mr. Buckley secured an order forcing the federal government to return $3 million they seized from Mr. Cockerell at the time of his arrest.
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In 2018, Mr. Buckley secured the dismissal of all federal charges against his client, Dr. Ed Jacinthe, a physician charged with Healthcare Fraud and Conspiracy. Mr. Buckley successfully demonstrated to prosecutors before trial that Dr. Jacinthe did not commit fraud when he signed orders for services reimbursed by Medicaid, even though the services were later found to be medically unnecessary.
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In 2016, Mr. Buckley served as co-counsel and diplomatic liaison for his client, Larry Davis, a U.S. citizen charged with drug trafficking in the Dominican Republic after U.S. DEA agents and Dominican officials boarded Davis’s boat and found 980 kilos of cocaine stashed inside. After a lengthy trial in the capitol city of Santo Domingo, a panel of Dominican federal judges found Mr. Davis “Not Guilty” and ordered his release.
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In 2015, Mr. Buckley won the pretrial dismissal of federal tax evasion charges for his client, Richard Armaugh. A federal district judge agreed with Mr. Buckley’s argument that Mr. Armaugh’s speedy trial rights were violated when federal agents took 9 years to find him in Ecuador, extradite him to the U.S., and bring him to court to stand trial.
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In 2014, Mr. Buckley won a “Not Guilty” jury verdict for his client, [Name Expunged], who was charged with drug possession after police found baggies of cocaine in her pockets. In a “Hail Mary” pass with no other options, Mr. Buckley successfully pulled off the mythical “borrowed pants defense” by arguing that his client borrowed her shorts from another woman and then wore them without checking the pockets. The jury acquitted based on reasonable doubt.
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In 2011, Mr. Buckley won a “Not Guilty” jury verdict for his client, Jason Palmer, a law enforcement officer charged with Murder in the shooting of a known gang member. While prosecutors alleged that Mr. Palmer killed the alleged victim “execution style” in retaliation for past threats, Mr. Buckley successfully convinced the jury that Mr. Palmer acted in self-defense.
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In 2004, Mr. Buckley successfully exonerated his client, John Michael Harvey, who was serving a 40-year prison sentence for a child sex crime he didn’t commit. Mr. Buckley used the alleged victim’s recantation to prove Mr. Harvey’s innocence, overturn his conviction, and win his release. ​