Maria Guzman has been sworn in as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones. Guzman will serve in the Narcotics Section and brings over 30 years of experience in both state and federal courts.
Guzman holds degrees from Columbia University and the University of Miami School of Law. She began her legal career as an Assistant District Attorney in Houston, Texas, where she handled more than fifty jury trials involving misdemeanors and felonies. After working in private practice on criminal and civil matters, she returned to public service as an Assistant State Attorney for Miami-Dade County. In that role, she prosecuted cases related to violent crime, robbery, and homicide, eventually becoming Assistant Chief of the Robbery/Career Criminal Unit and Felony Division Chief. During her time there, she tried about thirty homicide cases.
She later spent seventeen years as an Assistant Federal Public Defender in the Middle District of Florida. There, Guzman was lead trial counsel on hundreds of federal cases covering issues such as firearms offenses, narcotics crimes, RICO conspiracies, child exploitation, fraud, immigration violations, and international money laundering.
Most recently, Guzman worked as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Middle District of Florida. Her responsibilities included prosecuting violent crime, narcotics trafficking, health care fraud, immigration offenses, overdose death cases, and OCDETF investigations. She also served as Violent Crimes Coordinator for her office.
U.S. Attorney Reding Quiñones commented on her appointment: “Maria is the kind of prosecutor who makes a district stronger the moment she walks through the door. She has tried more than 300 cases, served our justice system from every angle, and brings a depth of experience that is rare in any district. Our Narcotics Section gains a steady hand, a battle-tested trial lawyer, and a public servant committed to protecting our community.”
Guzman is fluent in English and Spanish and admitted to practice law in both Florida and Texas. She will begin work immediately with the Narcotics Section.
