Decades of Award-Winning Legal Service
J. Dean Keegan was born and raised in Waterloo, Iowa. After high school, Dean served in the United States Navy and eventually settled in Iowa City in 1975. He received a Bachelor’s of General Studies degree from the University of Iowa with coursework emphasis in social work and counseling. From 1979 until 1982, Dean worked as a probation officer with a caseload exclusively of people who were convicted of Operating While Intoxicated.
In 1982, Dean went to work for the University Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City as a Chemical Dependency Counselor. While employed there, Dean co-authorized a theoretical model for the treatment for alcoholism which he presented at the Thirty-First International Institute on the Prevention and Treatment of Alcoholism in Rome, Italy. As a presenter at the conference, Dean participated in a Special Private Audience with Pope John Paul II to discuss improved methods for treating alcoholism.
In 1989, Dean began the accelerated program at the University of Iowa College of Law and graduated in 1991. Dean joined with Kinnamon, Kinnamon, Russo and Meyer in 1992 as an association of sole practitioners.
J. Dean Keegan is a longstanding member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, the American Association for Justice, and the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association. Dean was appointed to the Board of Governors of the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association in 2003. He founded the Criminal Law Section of the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association in the same year. He was Chair of the Criminal Law Section from 2003 to 2006 and a member of the Executive Board of the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association from 2003 to 2006. Dean is currently a member of the Board of the Criminal Law Section of the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association and the Board of Governors of the Association. His position with the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association has allowed him to draft legislation and lobby in the state of Iowa for common sense amendments to laws governing OWI revocations and CDL cancellations.
In 2008, Dean was accepted for admittance into the National College for DUI Defense, an organization that promotes effective and aggressive defense of citizens accused of driving under the influence. This organization sponsors seminars for defense attorneys to hone their skills in the defense of OWI and DUI cases. In June of 2009, Dean attended a 28-hour comprehensive seminar co-sponsored by the College covering the forensics of blood and urine testing. In April of 2009, he completed training in the National Highway Safety Administration and International Association of Chiefs of Police DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety Testing — the same training that officers receive when they learn to administer field sobriety tests.
Dean's practice is limited to criminal defense with a major component being Operating While Intoxicated cases. Dean has presented at several conferences on topics related to OWI defense, including field sobriety testing, jury selection in OWI cases, Drug Recognition Evaluation protocols, and the use of video in OWI defense. Dean enjoys a reputation for being extremely knowledgeable in OWI Issues and for zealously representing the accused.
Areas of Practice
- Criminal defense
- DUI/OWI
- Drug violations
- Traffic violations
Bar Admissions
Education
- University of Iowa College of Law, Iowa City, Iowa
- J.D. - 1991
- Honors: With Distinction
- Law Review: University of Iowa Law Review, Associate Editor, 1990 - 1992
- University of Iowa
- Bachelor of General Studies
Published Works
- Prevention and Treatment of Alcoholism, (Co-Author), Thirty-First International Institute, Rome, Italy
Classes/Seminars
- Measurement and OWI, Iowa Public Defenders Association Annual Seminar, 2012
- Blood, Sweat, and Pee, The Agony of Forensic Alcohol Testing, Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Association for Justice, 2009
- OWI Defenses - Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, 2007
- Defending OWI Cases - Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, 2002
- Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, 1994
- Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, 1996
- Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, 1997
- Annual Criminal Law Seminar, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, 1999
Honors & Awards
- Iowa Association for Justice Verne Lawyer Outstanding Member Award, 2012
- Iowa Trial Lawyers Meritorious Achievement Award, 2004
Professional Associations & Memberships
- National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, Member
- National College for DUI Defense, 2008 - Present
- American Association for Justice, Member
- Iowa Association for Justice (formerly the Iowa Trial Lawyers Association), Member
- Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, Board of Governors, 2003 - Present
- Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, Criminal Law Section, Chair, 2003 - 2006
- Iowa Trial Lawyers Association, Member, Executive Board, 2003 - 2006
Past Employment Positions
- University of Iowa Hospital, Counselor, 1982 - 1989
- Department of Corrections, Probation Officer, 1979 - 1982
- United States Navy
- University Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, Chemical Dependency Counselor
