Ernesto Gapasin - Springfield Military Law Lawyer Reviews & Ratings

Ernesto Gapasin Bio
Ernesto C. Gapasin is a Senior Counsel at Tully Rinckey, PLLC. Ernesto works out of Springfield, Missouri and is attached to the Buffalo, New York office.  Ernesto continues to obtain outstanding results for his clients and attributes much of his success to years of experience, solid and disciplined courtroom skills, and a diligent work ethic. Ernesto has been a licensed attorney since November 1999, when he became a member of the State Bar of Nevada and then became a licensed attorney in Missouri in 2004. Ernesto is a Member of the National Trial Lawyers Association, having been named a Top 100 Trial Lawyer for multiple years, as well as being awarded a Top 40 Under 40 Trial Lawyer.. Ernesto earned a commission to the United States Army as a Judge Advocate General and graduated from the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School (TJAGLCS) in Charlottesville, Virginia in May 2005. Because of Ernesto's civilian experience as a criminal defense lawyer, he desired to focus all his efforts on Military Trials. As a result, he aggressively sought an assignment to Okinawa, Japan as a Defense Counsel. Ernesto was tasked with raising a Trial Defense Service ("TDS") office on Okinawa where none had existed before. He established and ran the first-ever Trial Defense Service office on Okinawa that serviced Soldiers in Okinawa, mainland Japan, and Korea. Harkening back to his past experiences as a criminal defense lawyer in Las Vegas, Nevada, Ernesto established a policy of aggressively contesting all cases. He developed a reputation for wargaming a court-martial from beginning to end with an aggressive cross-examination style that resulted in a number of acquittals in Okinawa, mainland Japan, and Korea. Ernesto worked a number of high-profile cases that led him to various locales in the Pacific Rim in order to conduct pre-trial investigations. In one high-profile case, Ernesto even took depositions in the city of Manila, Philippines in order to effectively defend his client against rape charges. This resulted in the dismissal of rape charges despite the highly politicized nature of the case involving his U.S. service member client and a Filipina accuser on Okinawa. The dismissal was reported on the first page of local and national papers.. After successfully completing his assignment on Okinawa, Ernesto returned to the Continentinal United States and accepted the position of Senior Defense Counsel at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. As the Senior Defense Counsel, Ernesto oversaw hundreds of courts-martial and separation boards that litigated at this very busy field office. Although Senior Defense Counsels are not typically expected to try cases, Ernesto broke the mold, trying a number of courts-martial as the Senior Defense Counsel, and achieving a high-rate of success in an incredibly high number of contested trials. Ernesto also achieved a full acquittal in another highly-publicized contested rape case that resulted in a full acquittal. In a dramatic turn of events, Ernesto’s cross-examination of the accuser resulted in a revelation that she was the perpetrator of a burglary of the home of the accused. The client in this case successfully obtained his Medical Board benefits due to injuries from an I.E.D., and successfully and voluntarily retired from an honorable 14-year career.. When Ernesto was in the military, he also served as an appointed Part-Time Military Magistrate. His function was to preside over pre-trial confinement hearings and to render decisions on whether probable cause existed. He alone determined whether the factors were present that required the pre-trial confinement of an accused. Ernesto also analyzed investigation files to determine the legality of the issuance of search and seizure warrants. As a Part-Time Military Magistrate, it was Ernesto’s duty to balance the facts presented, analyze witness statements and allegations and to render whether or not probable cause to conduct a search and seizure is warranted. Having held the position of a Part-Time Military Magistrate, and having been trained by a Military Judge prior to his appointment, Ernesto is especially skilled in drafting Motions to Suppress or any motions to the Military Court seeking to suppress illegally obtained evidence.. Ernesto graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1996, where he was active in student government as well as participating in a number of sports, to include the Notre Dame Boxing Club. Ernesto also lived in Westwood, California and studied economics at the Unversity of California – Los Angeles. When he graduated from Notre Dame in 1996, Ernesto was accepted into the University of Missouri (“Mizzou”) School of Law in Columbia, Missouri.. After his first year in law school, he served as a clerk intern in Kansas City, Missouri under The Honorable Dean Whipple, Federal District Judge of the Western District of Missouri. Judge Whipple was a highly regarded Eighth Circuit Federal Judge in Kansas City. Because of this opportunity to work directly with Judge Whipple and his clerks, Ernesto became keenly aware of the intricacies of complex civil and criminal Federal litigation. Working on influential Federal cases from “in chambers” became an important chapter in his development as a military lawyer.. Much of Ernesto's reputation as a relentless cross-examiner began during his career in Las Vegas. He worked on several high-profile criminal cases as a young associate such as State of Nevada v. Murphy, a homicide case dubbed the “Binion Murder Mystery” as portrayed on CNN, Court TV, and numerous other local and national television shows. Several books, such as Murder in Sin City and Quicksilver were based on this high-profile murder case involving the death of Benny Binion, an heir to the family empire that began with Binion's Horseshoe Casino in downtown Las Vegas. Ernesto began his career learning from the best lawyers in the city handling complex murder cases as well as difficult federal cases involving high-level drug distribution and possession allegations. He also had the opportunity to work with famed Harvard Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz, on the Murphy case. The client was ultimately released from jail following a successful appeal that resulted in the overturning of her conviction two years prior.. Ernesto also worked a high-level appellate case in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals for an accused charged with smuggling millions of dollars’ worth of narcotics from Mexico into the United States. This appeal was complex and involved international border issues as well as cutting-edge case decisions involving the presentation of drug evidence in the courtroom. Ernesto also litigated criminal immigration defense cases in Las Vegas that were appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals, which is akin to being the Supreme Court in the field of Immigration Law.. While in the JAG Corps, Ernesto served in a number of positions that broadened his experience in Military Law and Courts-Martial Defense. Ernesto also deployed to Baghdad for a 15-month deployment with the First Cavalry Division out of Fort Hood, Texas. In Baghdad, Ernesto was assigned a position as an Operational Law Attorney advising commanders on the Rules of Engagement and Contract and Fiscal Law in theater. This experience of working Contracts and Fiscal Law downrange also provided knowledge he would later use in the representation of service members facing court-martial for financial fraud crimes against the Government. Ernesto served as a Prosecutor in the Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division and this service as a former Prosecutor gives him a unique advantage that many military defense lawyers do not have. Ernesto served as the primary advisor to the Special Court-Martial Convening Authority and subordinate commanders on cases in which he served as the lead prosecutor. Ernesto also served as a Recorder (the government representative) in administrative separation boards, and coordinated criminal investigations with MPI, CID, investigating officers, and company commanders. As a former prosecutor, Ernesto also advised company and battalion commanders, prepared charge sheets, and litigated government motions. Ernesto's service as a prosecutor with the Air Cavalry Brigade undoubtedly gives him a unique advantage as a criminal defense lawyer.. Ernesto focuses on court-martial defense and separation boards. He has litigated hundreds of courts-martial and trials beginning as early 2007 that garnered high-profile media attention and were covered by major news outlets such as CNN, ABC News, Fox News, and even periodicals such as Rolling Stone. Ernesto also contributed to a multi-series documentary titled, The War Comes Home, by Elliot Smith of Bloomberg News, which is about service members who deploy to war but return with serious mental and behavioral issues. The Washington Post had contacted Ernesto to act as a subject-matter expert for articles involving a high-profile sex assault scandal at the Naval Academy involving allegations against several football players from the Academy.. Since leaving Active Duty with an Honorable Discharge, Ernesto has tried hundreds of military courts-martial and separation boards all around the globe, to include the Continental United States, Hawaii and Alaska, Germany, England, Italy, South Korea, Japan and Okinawa. Gapasin has also represented service members in Poland, Belgium, Turkey and Djibouti, Africa.