Terry Shoemaker is one of Florida’s leading criminal defense attorneys with years of experience defending the accused. Shoemaker has an amazing track record defending those charged with DUI. He’s also successfully defended those accused of much more serious violent crimes.
As a former Florida State Prosecutor he understands better than most lawyers what you’ll be facing in the courtroom. Terry also has over years of diverse professional experiences as a U.S. Navy veteran, former MLB Baseball trainer for the Houston Astros and college professor. He’s truly seen it all.
Education
Florida Coastal School of Law, Jacksonville, Florida, 2003 J.D.
Honors: Top 10 of Graduating Class
State University of New York (SUNY), Brockport, NY 1990—B.S.
Honors: Dean’s List
Major: Physical Education and Athletic Training
Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana, 1992—M.S.
Norma joined Shoemaker Law in 2022, bringing 30 years of experience as a prosecutor and criminal defense attorney in St. Johns, Putnam, and Flagler counties with her. During this time, Norma handled juvenile delinquency, misdemeanor, and felony cases as a prosecutor as well as a criminal defense attorney.
Before becoming an attorney, Norma earned a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Florida and worked for United Way and the Hillsborough County Public School System in Plant City, Florida.
After 5 years in that field, Norma returned to the University of Florida and earned her law degree. While at UF, she was elected President of the John Marshal Bar Association, competed as a member of the Trial Team for 2 years, interned with an attorney who specialized in malpractice cases, clerked for 8th Judicial Circuit Judge Benjamin Tench, was admitted to Florida Blue Key, and was a student member of the Chester Bedell Inn of Court in Jacksonville.
When Norma was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1988, she was working as an associate at Margol, Fryefield, and Pennington, handling product liability and medical malpractice cases, carrying that experience into Harris, Guidi, Rosner, and Dunlap. In 1993, Norma left private practice to become a prosecutor in the State Attorney’s Office until joining the Public Defender’s Office in 2005. She became Division Chief for both the Putnam and St. Johns Offices of Public Defender, continuing in that role until her retirement at the end of 2020. That retirement lasted 2 months. Norma joined Gennusa Law, gaining exposure to family law, but criminal justice is where her passion lies.
Along life’s way, Norma has been a rancher, learned to fly, became a Major in the Civil Air Patrol, was a fencer (sabre was her favorite), competed in USPSA pistol competitions, and has a daughter working in the criminal defense field. Growing up on the Space Coast and through her father’s work and position in the space program, Norma has been fortunate to meet, interact, and work with astronauts and celebrities as part of the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation and Buzz Aldrin’s ShareSpace Foundation.
Gay comes to Shoemaker Law with 20 years of experience in criminal law. During her career, she has assisted in numerous high-profile cases, including the death penalty and appellate. She was Terry’s first paralegal when he made the move to private practice in 2007 and has since come back home, where she belongs.
Gay has lived in St. Augustine for 35 years and is the proud mother of three sons. Downtime includes traveling to her mountain retreat and spending time with her children’s children.
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