Gizelle Rodriguez has been practicing law since 2011, bringing more than a decade of experience in immigration law, criminal prosecution, and courtroom litigation. Her career has spanned both state and federal practice, including service as an Assistant State Attorney and later as an Assistant Chief Counsel with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

At U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), she represented the government in removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). Her work involved litigating a wide variety of cases on both detained and non-detained dockets, including matters related to asylum, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, immigration bonds, and criminal grounds of removability. She also drafted appellate briefs submitted to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and provided legal guidance to law enforcement agencies and immigration officers on complex immigration enforcement matters.

Before her federal service, she worked as an Assistant State Attorney for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, where she gained significant trial experience prosecuting both misdemeanor and felony offenses, including drug trafficking, domestic violence, DUI, robbery, and violent crimes. She conducted numerous bench and jury trials, handled plea negotiations, litigated pre-trial motions, and coordinated with law enforcement agencies throughout the investigative and trial process. She was promoted to Assistant Chief of County Court, where she supervised over 20 attorneys, led legal training programs, reviewed case closures, and helped develop office-wide policy and training initiatives.

She began her legal career at the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) as a Children’s Legal Services Attorney, where she litigated dependency and termination of parental rights trials on behalf of abused and neglected children. Her litigation skills and leadership led to an early promotion to Senior Attorney, where she trained and mentored junior attorneys and interns.

In addition to her government service, she served as an Adjunct Professor at Miami Dade College’s School of Justice, educating future professionals in legal and criminal justice studies.

Gizelle Rodriguez earned her Juris Doctor from St. Thomas University School of Law in 2011, graduating cum laude. During law school, she was awarded the Florida Bar Public Service Fellowship, competed on the Mock Trial Team, served on the Intercultural Human Rights Law Review, and received Top Student Awards in Criminal Procedure and Legal Research and Writing.

She also holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Florida International University, where she was awarded the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship. She is a member of the Florida Bar and is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.