daniel POLLITT

Since joining 2nd-Chair in 2022, Daniel has focused primarily on habitual and proportionality litigation and pretrial motions practice.

Daniel specializes in crafting creative, data-driven sentencing arguments to show how every client’s situation and background is unique and undeserving of a lengthy prison sentence. His work regularly leads to improved offers from the prosecution and has resulted in rulings that a client’s mandatory prison sentence is unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment.

Further, Daniel’s motions practice has led to case dismissals, suppression hearing victories, and favorable 404(b) rulings.

As a member of 2nd-Chair, Daniel also has experience with criminal appeals, CAR 21 petitions, legislative history analyses, federal motions practice and sentencing analyses, and school expulsion matters.

Daniel is a thorough and creative legal researcher and writer and is available to help on complex research projects and motions.

Before joining 2nd-Chair, Daniel spent three years as a law clerk for the 20th Judicial District in Boulder, Colorado. Daniel worked directly with 15 district court judges in a variety of practice areas, including pre-trial and post-conviction criminal matters, juvenile delinquency, civil, domestic relations, dependency and neglect, and magistrate appeals. In this role, Daniel developed an understanding of the judicial decision-making process that he carries with him into each criminal case he supports through 2nd-Chair.

As a law student, Daniel was a Public Interest Scholar at the University of Miami and worked on issues related to housing rights, environmental justice, juvenile justice, and civil rights. Before attending law school, he taught middle school math and coached basketball at Quitman County Middle School in the Mississippi Delta as a member of the Mississippi Teacher Corps. A native of Chapel Hill, North Carolina and UNC graduate, Daniel is massive Tar Heel sports fan.

Education

University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, B.A. in American Studies (2013)

  • Graduated with distinction

  • University of Mississippi School of Education, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction (2015)

    • Mississippi Teacher Corps Member

University of Miami School of Law, J.D. (2019)

  • Graduated Cum Laude

  • Public Interest Scholar (full tuition)

  • Steven C. Marks Scholarship Recipient

  • HOPE 2018 Fellowship

  • Dean’s List Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019

  • Dean’s Certificate of Achievement Trusts & Estates