By age 12, Dennis Deters and his childhood friend, Dan Haughey, knew that one day they would practice law together.
After leaving his hometown of Cincinnati, Deters earned a degree at the University of Notre Dame before returning home for law school. Meanwhile, Oxford-native Haughey earned a degree at Miami University.
"[Haughey] and I ended up in the same law class at the University of Cincinnati," Deters said.
Since passing the Bar, Deters said he has worked as a Hamilton County Common Pleas Court constable, a law clerk to several Cincinnati area judges, an associate attorney defending police departments and insurance companies and as a Butler County Area II Court Felony public defender. More recently he has become a hearing officer for the Princeton City School Board and a Colerain Township Trustee. Throughout his career, he has continued to prosecute personal injury claims.
In 2004, Deters put that all on hold to help his brother, Joe Deters, with his write-in campaign for Hamilton County Prosecutor, a position Joe holds today.
"After 2004, [Haughey] called and asked me to join him at his personal practice," Deters said.
Since, Deters has been heavily involved with Miami students and affairs in the Oxford area and beyond.
According to Deters, 80 or 85 percent of his caseload involves Miami students, with whom he said he prefers to work as opposed to other clients.
"I think that Miami students, particularly my client base, have a respect for the situation that they are in, which is something that some of my other clients may not have," Deters said.
He said he greatly enjoys helping students when they find themselves in a difficult situation.
"Based upon my experience, usually my client is someone who is getting in trouble for the first, and probably the last time," Deters said. "Unfortunately, the system they are in has a zero-tolerance policy for alcohol."
Enjoy what you're reading?
Signup for our newsletter
Deters works with students charged with everything from underage drinking to the use of a fake ID or disorderly conduct. He said he aims to get the students through the legal process as quickly and painlessly as possible so they may return to their academic pursuits.
"In a different time, maybe decades ago, if an officer saw someone who was intoxicated on the street or intoxicated behind the wheel of a car, and they were a younger person, maybe 18, 19 or 20 years old, they might say, 'Look, we're going to call your parents,'" Deters said. "Now the approach is, 'We're going to charge you with a crime.'"
Deters said students often face the same charges from different entities. According to Deters, when a student is charged with anything involving alcohol in the vicinity of Oxford, those charges are sent to Miami, and the university will usually further discipline the student.
"It's a completely different playing field as far as how that gets managed," Deters said in reference to university charges. "For a lot of students, that has more of an effect on them than the actual criminal charges do."
Deters had some words of wisdom for those who find themselves up close and personal with law enforcement.
"Be respectful and understand that law enforcement is trying to do their job," Deters said.
But Deters said not all parts of his job are so rewarding. With a lot of cases comes a lot of tedious paperwork.
"But that's just a part of my job," Deters said. "I enjoy what I do."
Read More
How one professor and her classes are preserving Oxford’s Black history
By Sean Scott | March 20, 2024Jazma Sutton, an assistant professor of history, teaches The Black Midwest (HST 350Q) and Black Women in America (HST 450D) classes. In both courses, she has students working with the Smith Library of Regional History and Miami’s archives to document and preserve Black history in Oxford.
Miami faculty members recount Freedom Summer in new documentary
By Luke Macy | February 25, 2022After seven years of work, “Training for Freedom,” a documentary highlighting Oxford’s involvement in the Freedom Summer of 1964, premiered on PBS Western Reserve on Valentine’s Day.
“Documenting the COVID-19 Pandemic”: History in the making
By Alice Momany | August 29, 2021In March 2020, Miami University’s archives launched “Documenting the COVID-19 Pandemic,” a collection focused on life during the COVID-19 pandemic.