Richard Ruhl (Rick) grew up in Charlotte County and was admitted to practice in Florida in 2002, and has been in private practice in southwest Florida since 2003. He attended elementary, junior high, and high school in Englewood and college in Fort Myers, graduating from International College, with a Bachelor's degree, summa cum laude. After this, he finished his Juris Doctorate at St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami in 2001. After admission to the bar, Rick accepted a job with the Public Defender's Office, and from there, accepted a job offer from the Law Office of Robert Distefano in Fort Lauderdale. After spending a year with Robert Distefano, he moved back to Charlotte County to open his own practice. In 2011, Rick joined the firm of Ruhl Law. Contact Rick at Rick@ruhllaw.com or by phone at (855) RUHL-LAW.

I am a veteran of the United States Air Force and served as an Assistant State Attorney for over three years in both Lee and Charlotte County. During these years, I handled thousands of criminal cases ranging from DUIs and other misdemeanors to complex felony economic crimes and sex crimes. This afforded me invaluable trial experience as well as allowing me the ability to learn the inner workings of the Judicial System. I have since decided to refocus my efforts on serving the community by protecting the rights of those accused of criminal offenses. I hold a Bachelor of Science in Computer Systems from City University of Seattle and an M.B.A. from the University of Colorado. After years of work as a software engineer, I chose to pursue a degree in law and graduated with Honors from Ave Maria School of Law in 2017. While in law school, I gained experience in Criminal Law through an internship with the US Attorney’s Office in Fort Myers and worked with a firm in Naples, focusing on litigation involving real-estate and investment disputes. I look forward to using my knowledge, experience, and determination to help you get past whatever legal hurdle happens to be in your way.

Attorney David A. Haenel is one of the most celebrated criminal defense, DUI and traffic ticket attorneys in Florida. Since 2000, Mr. Haenel has been working to ensure the best possible results in each case he tries. After graduating in the top third of his law school class at the Widener University School of Law, Mr. Haenel went on to earn a Master of Law degree in criminal law from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Mr. Haenel’s career began in the State Attorney’s Office. He was named the State of Florida DUI Prosecutor of the Year while he was in this role. His experience as a prosecutor is now put to work on behalf of clients who are accused of various criminal, DUI and traffic offenses. Mr. Haenel has earned a stellar reputation among his clients and peers. Mr. Haenel is admitted to practice law before the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the State Courts of Florida and the State Courts of New Jersey. He is a member of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Sarasota County Bar Association.

Mr. Coyne started his career as a prosecutor for the State of Florida in the Twelfth Judicial Circuit. While acting as a prosecutor, he individually handled thousands of cases. He specialized in DUI and domestic violence. After leaving the State Attorney's Office, Mr. Coyne accepted a position representing the City of Sarasota and specifically the Sarasota Police Department. Mr. Coyne acted as the chief litigator for the City of Sarasota, representing the City in asset forfeitures, personal injury cases, contract disputes and civil rights violations. Mr. Coyne also advised several civilian volunteer boards, including but not limited to the Nuisance Abatement Board, the Police Advisory Board, the Board of Rules and Appeals (Building Department) and other temporary boards.