Dmitry Gorin: Difference between revisions

American defense lawyer

Dmitry G. Gorin is an American defense lawyer and academic best known for his work as Los Angeles County District Attorney and for handling a number of high-profile public cases.^[2] He has been a faculty member in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles since 2003.^[1] He also serves as a faculty member at Pepperdine University School of Law.^[1]

Early life and education

Dmitry Gorin was born in the Soviet Union.^[3] In 1979, when he was nine, his family immigrated to the United States.^[2][4] Upon arriving in the U.S., Gorin did not speak English and initially aspired to become an engineer during his junior high years.^[2] He attended Fairfax High School, where he participated in mock trial programs during which he developed interest in law.^[2][4]

Gorin pursued higher education at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), earning a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1992, graduating magna cum laude and receiving Phi Beta Kappa honors.^[4] He subsequently earned Juris Doctor degree from the UCLA School of Law.^[1]

Career

For over a decade, Gorin served in the Los Angeles County District Attorney‘s office, retiring as a Senior Deputy District Attorney in 2006.^[1] He specialized in prosecuting cases such as gang-related murders, sex crimes, major narcotics offenses, and white-collar crimes.^[1]

Gorin entered private practice in 2006 as a founding partner of Eisner Gorin LLP.^[4][2] Both partners have received certification as Criminal Law Specialists from the State Bar of California.^[5] Gorin’s defense practice focuses on serious criminal matters, including white-collar and other financial offenses such as fraud, tax-related violations, and regulatory infractions.^[4]

In June 2025, he received the Los Angeles Daily Journal White Collar Crime Award for his work in high-profile federal litigation and “bet-the-company” cases involving substantial financial stakes.^[4]

Notable cases

• On May 30, 2017, Kathy Griffin posted a video of herself holding “a mask styled to look like the severed, bloody head” of then U.S. President Donald Trump.^[6] It was posted on her Instagram and Twitter accounts. She wrote: “I caption this ‘there was blood coming out of his eyes, blood coming out of his … wherever'”, referencing a comment Trump had made about Megyn Kelly. The video was from a session with photographer Tyler Shields, who is known for producing “shocking” imagery.^[7][8] Griffin later took down the image and apologized for posting the image, saying that she went too far and adding, “I beg for your forgiveness”.^[9][10] Later, a lawsuit was filed against Kathy Griffin and Gorin represented her along with Lisa Bloom.^[2]

• On June 9, 2018, Sergey Kovalev was arrested in California for punching a woman in the face; the woman suffered a broken nose, a concussion, and a displaced disc in her neck. He was charged with assault likely to cause great bodily injury, which is a felony; he pleaded not guilty on 27 August 2018, and he was released on $50,000 bail. On 4 April 2019, Kovalev was held to answer for felony assault causing great bodily injury; the Court found that there was enough evidence to proceed to trial on the felony charge. Kovalev was arraigned on 19 April 2019.^[11] Gorin represented Kovalev until January 2020.^[12]

• On 3 June 2019, Naasón Joaquín García was arrested and charged by prosecutors from Los Angeles County with sexual abuse charges involving minors.^[13][14][15] Susana Medina Oaxaca and Alondra Ocampo were also charged. Joaquín García was held on $50 million bail, Ocampo on $25 million, and Oaxaca remained free on bail. A fourth defendant, Azalea Rangel Melendez, who was previously charged with rape, remained at large.^[16] Gorin represented García throughout 2019.^[17][14][18]

• On September 29, 2020, Rebecca Grossman was reportedly driving her white AMG Mercedes SUV at 81 mph in a 45-mph zone when she entered a crosswalk at Triunfo Canyon Road and Saddle Mountain Drive, striking two boys—Mark Iskander, 11, who died instantly, and Jacob Iskander, 8, who later succumbed to his injuries. The accident occurred shortly after a black Mercedes-Benz driven by former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, 54, passed through the intersection; both vehicles were described by the boys’ mother, Nancy Iskander, as “racing” and “zigzagging” at high speeds. During her preliminary hearing, Grossman, represented by Gorin and his team, faced serious charges including second-degree murder, with the prosecution alleging a hit-and-run after her vehicle stopped remotely due to airbag deployment.^[19] She was released on $2 million bail.

• In 2024, federal prosecutors alleged that members of the Khanna family acted as “fences” for stolen catalytic converters, extracting precious metals worth more than US $100 million and selling them to a refinery. Gorin represented the defendants in this multi-jurisdictional matter. Following several months of bail litigation, courts in Sacramento and Oklahoma ordered the pre-trial release of the Khanna brothers after the defense addressed concerns over potentially missing assets.

• In December 2024, Gorin represented Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Brian Williams during an FBI search of his home, conducted as part of an investigation into a bomb threat targeting Los Angeles City Hall. The investigation sought to uncover details about the origins of the threat.^[20] In June 2025, Williams plead guilty to reporting fake bomb threat.^[21]

• Other notable cases include the child abduction involving Maria Pfeifer,^[22] the UCLA student stabbing,^[23] a manslaughter incident at a Persian New Year party,^[24] and a child pornography case involving a UCLA professor.^[25]

References