Sean Buckley
Meet Attorney Sean Buckley
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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, 2010-2025), a federal criminal law book trusted by federal criminal lawyers across the United States.​
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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 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 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). ​He 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 sensational Harvey exoneration brought him worldwide recognition, nationally famed criminal defense trial lawyer Dick DeGuerin recruited Mr. Buckley to practice in his firm, DeGuerin & Dickson. 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 DeGuerin & Dickson 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 the most serious and complex criminal accusations.​
​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: Best Defense Law/ Best Trial Law/ Best Law Firm).
Mr. Buckley aggressively defends clients facing Federal and State criminal charges throughout South Mississippi and accepts complex Federal cases across the United States 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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NOTABLE CASES
Every case is different, and past results do not predict future outcomes in other cases.
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In 2024, Mr. Buckley won the dismissal of Domestic Violence charges against his client, a U.S. Coast Guard officer falsely accused of domestic violence by his vindictive ex-girlfriend. Following the dismissal of charges, the alleged victim then attempted to get a protective order against Mr. Buckley’s client. Mr. Buckley cross-examined the alleged victim at the protective order hearing and successfully demonstrated that she was the stalker (and not the client). The Court denied the protective order.
In 2023 - 2024, Mr. Buckley served as lead counsel representing a target of the federal drug conspiracy investigation in the Southern District of Mississippi that later resulted in the prosecution and conviction of former Biloxi City Council Member Robert Deming III. At the conclusion of the investigation, federal prosecutors declined to file any charges against Mr. Buckley’s client, who was an alleged supplier.
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In 2023, Mr. Buckley won a “Not Guilty” trial verdict for a U.S. Air Force officer falsely accused of Domestic Violence. Mr. Buckley successfully demonstrated at trial that the alleged victim orchestrated false allegations of abuse to gain leverage in a pending divorce case and to publicly humiliate Mr. Buckley’s client.
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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. ​