Hernandez, Dolly

Joanne Roney Hepworth grew up in the Washington Metropolitan area and is a graduate of the Catholic University of America and the Columbus School of Law in Washington, D.C. After law school, Ms. Hepworth served as law clerk and assistant counsel in construction contract litigation which resulted in a $95,000.00 summary judgment award.

Following this sojourn into commercial litigation, Ms. Hepworth turned her attention to her first love, representing people against powerful governmental bodies. Initially, she was a sole practitioner member of the Superior Court Criminal Justice Act panel and tried innumerable cases to juries in the District of Columbia. Notably, Ms. Hepworth won a suppression motion in a narcotics case on the basis of the failure of the police to knock and announce. Later this resulted in a $150,000.00 judgment against the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police for violation of civil rights.

In the late 1980's and early 90's, Ms. Hepworth's practice expanded into the areas of civil rights and employment discrimination. She successfully represented clients against the District of Columbia, the United States Department of Energy and the United States Marshals Service in courts and administrative agency proceedings. As a member of the bars of the District of Columbia and Maryland, and of the local and federal courts in both jurisdictions, Ms. Hepworth has successfully represented parents in paternity, divorce, custody and support matters in the District of Columbia and in Prince Georges, Montgomery, Anne Arundel and Charles counties, in Maryland. She also has significant experience as plaintiff's counsel in personal injury cases, including cases arising from injuries due to inadequate security in prisons and jails.

Also during this period, Ms. Hepworth served on the Superior Court panel for Abused and Neglected Children, representing children and their parents in abuse cases. She is proud that she enjoys close relationships with many of the children for whom she served as guardian, some twenty years later.

In 1988 Ms. Hepworth was recommended for the United States District Court CJA panel of defenders by Federal Judge Stanley Sporkin. Ms. Hepworth has served on this panel for the ensuing twenty years. As a criminal justice act defender she has represented scores of individuals charged with major federal crimes. She has represented accused crew members in racketeering prosecutions involving multiple murder and major drug felonies. Some of her trials lasted as long as eight months. Ms. Hepworth has successfully represented persons charged with murder, assault with intent to kill while armed and drug distribution. She served as lead counsel in the highly publicized racketeering trial of serial armed bank robberies in 2004-2005.

In 2007 she and Reita Pendry formed the partnership of Hepworth & Pendry, with offices at 601 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. and in Bethesda, Maryland. The Partnership is dedicated to the practice of compassionate criminal defense, offering expert litigation and sentencing consultation to other practitioners and to moving the criminal justice system from punitive to restorative justice. Recognizing the need for positive efforts for reintegration of citizens returning to society from incarceration, Hepworth & Pendry is forming a nonprofit organization for funding and training ex-offenders in entrepreneurial ventures serving their communities.