17/08/2026
At 27 years old, I was given the immense responsibility of field producing one of the most significant murder trials of the decade.
For weeks, our team worked 17-hour days in the sweltering Florida heat, reporting from a makeshift mobile setup as the world watched the Casey Anthony trial unfold.
When the verdict came down, Casey Anthony was acquitted of murdering her three-year-old daughter.
Just days later, I flew back to Southwestern Pennsylvania for my brother’s wedding at Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, West Virginia.
Fast forward 15 years, and life brought me full circle.
This past weekend, the Washington County Bar Association invited me to speak at its Summer Bench Bar at — you guessed it — Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, West Virginia.
I had the absolute privilege of sharing some of my TV news “war stories,” including the Casey Anthony trial, and reflecting on how those experiences shaped the lawyer I am today.
Journalism taught me how to stay focused when the stakes are high, make decisions under immense pressure, meet impossible deadlines, ask difficult questions and — perhaps most importantly — be fully present when someone is counting on you. But that career also almost broke me physically and mentally. I walked away because I knew that no career was worth my personal well-being.
Those lessons have followed me into my legal career and continue to shape the way I advocate for my clients.
It was an even greater privilege to share the panel with Susie Brookman of the Wellness Warrior Group, who brought an important perspective on the physiological impact that demanding professions like journalism and law can have on our bodies and minds. She also shared key indicators when you may be experiencing signs of vicarious trauma and how to check in with yourself to put your well-being first.
Fifteen years, two careers and one very full-circle trip back to Oglebay.
I’m incredibly grateful for the experiences — and the people — that have brought me here.
