Profile

Attorney Jarrett Ambeau is a Criminal Defense Trial Attorney and a court-qualified Expert in Forensic DNA Interpretation. In his 14+ years of practicing criminal defense, he has brought more than 50 felony jury trials to verdict.  

Jarrett is committed to fighting for your rights and working diligently to achieve the best outcome possible in your legal matter. I am honored to practice law in the State of Louisiana, the Parishes of Ascension and East Baton Rouge, and the surrounding areas. I will care for your legal matter as though it were my own. I understand that you worked hard to earn the fees paid to my office – I will give you a diligent and honorable effort in return.

Personal Biography

Born and raised in Louisiana, Jarrett spent significant time in Tennessee and Georgia in the 90's but returned home to go to school and has lived here in Baton Rouge, Louisiana since 1998.

Jarrett is the father of six amazing children.

Educational Biography

Jarrett earned his undergraduate degree in Philosophy from Thomas Edison State College in New Jersey. He completed his undergraduate studies while deployed to Kuwait/Iraq in 2004 with the United State Military.  Before deployment, he studied at Louisiana State University for 3 ½ years. His undergraduate thesis at LSU focused on the ethics of Immanuel Kant and the formal logic analysis of his formulations of the moral law from his book ‘Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals'.

Upon return from Iraq, Jarrett graduated from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University in the spring of 2008. In law school, he was a two-time finalist in the Ira S. Flory Moot Court competition and a member of the 2007-2008 Moot Court Board.

In the Spring of 2020, Jarrett graduated from the University of Florida with a Masters's Degree in Forensic DNA and Serology. 

Military Biography

Jarrett joined the U.S. Military in October of 2001, 40 days after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, believing it was his duty to defend and serve his country. He was assigned to the 22nd LSO Trial Defense Service, a criminal defense arm of the JAG Corps, in December of 2003 to function as a 27D, paralegal.

In May of 2004, he volunteered for deployment to Iraq. He was sent to Kuwait and served as the NCOIC of the Kuwait Trial Defense Service office. The attorney for whom he worked was assigned to one of the Abu Ghraib soldiers, and the team functioned as her defense team for the duration of their deployment. Jarrett spent significant time traveling to Iraq to support other US Army soldiers as legal defense. During his deployment, they had 5 General Courts-Martial, 400 Article 15 proceedings and non-judicial punishment in the UCMJ. He was released from deployment in January 2005 and returned home.

He remained a member of the 22nd LSO, Trial Defense Service, Team 15, in New Orleans, LA until his retirement from the US Army in Oct of 2017.

Honors & Service

• Observer - AAFS, Academy Standards Board, DNA Consensus Body, 2022 to present
• Member - National Forensic College, DNA Leadership Group, 2020 to present.
• Member - American Association for Laboratory Accreditation, 2018 to present.
• Chair - LACDL Annual Forensic Science CLE 2017 – 2018
• Special advisor - Code of Criminal Procedure Revision Committee, 2013.
• Co-chair - LACDL DWI CLE 2013
• Member - Louisiana Bar Association - Criminal Justice Committee, 2011 to present.

Education

• Master of Science in Pharmacy, Forensic DNA and SerologyUniversity of Florida- Graduate School
• Juris DoctoratePaul M. Hebert Law Center, Louisiana State University- Graduate School2008
• Bachelor of Civil LawsPaul M. Hebert Law Center, Louisiana State University- Undergraduate School2008
• Bachelor in Science, PhilosophyThomas Edison State University- Undergraduate School2005

Continuing Education

Feb. 2021                                     American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS) – 73rd Annual Meeting

• Workshop: Interpreting and Communicating DNA Evidence in a Probabilistic Genotyping Universe (4 hours).
• Workshop: When “who” Doesn't Matter as Much as “how” – DNA Testimony given Activity Level Propositions (4 hours)
• Workshop: STR Wars: The Rise of Sequencing (8 hours)

Nov. 2020                                    NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY (NIST) – FORENSICS@NIST

• Virtual Conference by NIST.
• Attended two days of presentations on Statistical Methods in Forensic Science, Firearms and Tool Marks, Forensic Genetics, and Trace evidence.
• Attended workshop on DNA, including PCR-Based DNA Profiling Standard Use (SRM 2391d), Using Human DNA Quantitation Standard (SRM 2372a), Using STRbase 2.0, DNA Interpretation Software, SNP Marker Use, and Mitochondrial DNA Sequencing.

Sept. 2020                                   INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON HUMAN IDENTIFICATION (ISHI)

• Virtual Conference by Promega Corp. Attended Workshop on Validation Principles, Practices, Parameters; Implementation of Rapid DNA; and Probabilistic Genotyping.

July 2019                                     Elements of DNA Profile Interpretation and Probabilistic Genotyping

• National Institute of Justice – Online Presentation by: Dr. Tamyra Moretti, Dr. Peter Gill, and Lynn Garcia - Forensic Technology Center of Excellence, 4 hours

                                                     DNA Data Analysis and Interpretation for Forensic Analysts

• National Institute of Justice – Online training: Forensic DNA and Biology, 1 hour

                                                     DNA Extraction and Quantitation for Forensic Analysts

• National Institute of Justice – Online training: Forensic DNA and Biology, 1 hour

May 2016                                    NATIONAL FORENSIC COLLEGE, CARDOZO LAW SCHOOL

• Completed 40-hour course in forensic science; fingerprints, DNA, computer/cell phone, and confessions; with the Innocence Project, at Cardozo Law School in New York, NY

Instruction by Jarrett Ambeau

Dec 2021                                     CLE – Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys (LACDL)

• “Intro to DNA”, 1-hour presentation focusing on the fundamentals of forensic DNA science and mixture interpretation – Including updates on the state of forensic DNA science and analysis

Dec 2021                                     CLE – Public Defender's Association of Louisiana (PDAL)

• “Intro to DNA”, 1-hour presentation focusing on the fundamentals of forensic DNA science and mixture interpretation – Including updates on the state of forensic DNA science and analysis

Dec 2019                                     CLE – Solstice CLE, Lafayette, LA

• “Advanced DNA – Genotyping Software”, 1-hour presentation focusing on the use of computer programs to analyze the data produced in the lab; TrueAllele, STRMix, etc.

Nov 2019                                     CLE – Second Annual John F. Lavern CLE, Lake Charles, LA

• “Intro to DNA”, 1-hour presentation focusing on the fundamentals of forensic DNA science and mixture interpretation
• “Challenges to DNA Evidence”, 1-hour presentation focusing on science/evidence based challenges to DNA evidence

Oct 2018                                      CLE – Public Defender Association of Louisiana (PDAL)

• “Forensics 101”, 1-hour presentation focusing on forensic DNA science and mixture interpretation

Aug 2018                                     CHAIR/PRESENTOR, LACDL FORENSIC SCIENCE CLE

• Chaired Forensic Science CLE
• “DNA Intro”, 1-hour presentation on the fundamentals of forensic DNA science and mixture interpretation

June 2018                                    CLE – 23RD JDC BAR ASSOCIATION

• DNA Mixture Analysis and Interpretation

Aug 2017                                     CHAIR/PRESENTOR, LACDL FORENSIC SCIENCE CLE

• Chaired Forensic Science CLE

Practice Areas

• DWI DEFENSE
• FELONY CRIMINAL DEFENSE
• FAMILY LAW
• JURY TRIAL
• PERSONAL INJURY