Bonnie K. Potter

       Bonnie K. Potter has been practicing law for 21 years here in Kentucky. Her first 15 years were spent defending all types of criminal law matters ranging from juvenile cases, misdemeanor theft, DUI, misdemeanor/felony drug charges, capital murder and everything in between at the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy (KY DPA). 

     Bonnie is a highly experienced trial attorney who has conducted dozens of District Court trials and more than 30 jury trials in Circuit Court alone, with a strong track record of success.

   For the past five years, she was in the Capital Trials division at the KY DPA 

where she represented defendants across the state who were charged with complex capital murder cases and who all were facing the death penalty.  Despite 5 years of handling arguably the most gruesome and difficult criminal cases in the state she is proud to say that none of her clients ever received the death penalty.  

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       Bonnie’s experience is primarily with criminal law but she also handles cases involving real estate, insurance defense, general litigation defense, and has experience litigating matters involving general liability and automobiles.

Case Highlights

 • In 2020, she successfully defended Jeremiah Yates, a man who had spent over two years in jail for a murder he did not commit. The jury came back with a verdict of not guilty in less than two hours.  

https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article240659236.html

• In 2021, she successfully defended Antonio Canada who spent over four years in jail for murder.  The jury found him not guilty and Bonnie was there when Mr. Canada was released from jail into the arms of his family. 

https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article255333441.html

• She has also successfully negotiated thousands of cases at this point in her career. In a 2024 negotiation, one of her most high profile clients, Nikki James, received a 20 year nonviolent sentence (20% parole eligibility) for killing her two children. 

https://people.com/mother-sentenced-20-years-fatally-stabbing-her-2-children-8672538 

https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article289148569.html

• Another client who was facing Life in prison, Dontate Lamont Burruss, received a 10 year sentence after Bonnie mediated the case successfully. https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article257091352.html

Memberships

• Kentucky Bar Association

• Fayette County Bar Association

• Kentucky Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

• Claims and Litigation Management Alliance

Practice Areas

• Criminal Law – Capital Murder

• Criminal Law –All Felonies, Misdemeanors, and Traffic Offenses

• Civil Litigation Insurance Defense

• General Civil Liability

• Personal Injury

• Real Estate

Honors and Awards

      • In 2024, she was asked to teach ”Deselection in Non-Capital Cases” at KY DPA’s annual statewide conference.

        • In 2024, she was honored to be recognized as an inspiring woman in DPA 

for Women’s History Month. 

        • In 2023, she was asked to assist the KY DPA’s Education Branch to develop a workshop to teach young lawyers how to conduct successful jury selection. She was a keynote speaker and a small group coach for three years since the inception of the workshop.

 • In 2021, she was honored to be asked to teach at the National Public Defender’s Women’s Conference.

         • In 2012, she won one of only two scholarships awarded in the entire state public defender system to attend the two-week National Criminal Defense College in Macon, GA. 

        • As a young attorney, in 2007, she was recognized with a Horton Award at the Trial Practice Institute for excellence in courtroom argument skills.

Education 

• University of Kentucky College of Law, J.D.

• University of Pikeville B.A. History and Political Science