| Field | Value |
|---|
| Firm name | The Defense Firm (dba Law Office of Ryan Helmick & Associates) |
| Market | Las Vegas, NV (Clark County) |
| Practice areas | Criminal defense (exclusively) |
| Firm size | 2 attorneys + 1 firm manager + 1 case manager + 2 investigator/consultants |
| Established | 2012 |
| Website | https://thedefensefirm.com |
| Phone | 702-HELMICK (702-435-6425) |
| Description | Family-run criminal defense firm focused on quality over quantity, handling high-profile cases in Las Vegas |
| Attorney | Role | Bar # | State | Bio | Dossier |
|---|
| K. Ryan Helmick | Founder & Lead Attorney | 12769 | NV (since 2012) | pending | dossier |
| Branden Helmick | Criminal Defense Attorney | Unknown | NV (TBD) | pending | dossier |
| Name | Role | Notes |
|---|
| Yadira Ramirez | Firm Manager | B.A. Criminal Justice, UNLV; 2L at Mitchell Hamline School of Law; 14 years with Ryan Helmick |
| Jazmin Torres Massey | Senior Case Manager | Legal Assistant Certificate, Northwest Career College |
| Jon Scott | Consultant/Investigator | 30+ year police veteran, US Marine; co-owner DeScotta Consulting Group |
| Phil DePalma | Consultant/Investigator | 27-year retired detective; homicides, sexual assaults, violent crimes; co-owner DeScotta Consulting Group |
- Battery & Assault
- Domestic Violence
- Drug Crimes / Drug Trafficking
- DUI/DWI
- Gun Crimes
- Kidnapping
- Murder
- Robbery, Burglary & Theft
- Sexual Assault / Sex Crimes
- Federal Criminal Cases
- Felonies & Misdemeanors
- Expungement
- Juvenile Delinquency
- Probation Violations
- Motor Vehicle Offenses
- Criminal Fraud / Tax Evasion
- Las Vegas: 8180 Rafael Rivera Way, Suite 205, Las Vegas, NV 89113
Note: Same building as Pacific West Injury Law (Suite 200).
- Full legal name: Kirk Ryan Helmick (verified via Justia, LVRJ, court records)
- Bar: #12769, State Bar of Nevada, admitted 2012 (likely accurate per Justia; needs direct NV Bar confirmation)
- Bar status: Active, no public discipline found
- Education: B.S. Criminal Justice, UNLV (verified); J.D., Thomas Jefferson School of Law, Dean’s List x2 (verified)
- Note: Thomas Jefferson School of Law lost ABA accreditation in 2019 and closed in 2021; Helmick graduated and passed the bar before the school’s decline
- Mentorship: Trained under Bill Terry (verified via LVRJ obituary coverage) and Gerry Spence / Trial Lawyers College (likely accurate per multiple directories)
- Notable roles:
- Member, Office of Appointed Counsel, life sentence cases (likely accurate; listed on Super Lawyers profile, since 2012)
- Ombudsman, Police Fatality Fact-Finding Review Board (verified via Las Vegas City Wire)
- High-profile cases (verified):
- State v. Kristina Kerlus — murder/child abuse charges dismissed Dec. 2022 (PR Newswire, A&E, KTNV)
- State v. Kody Harlan — first-degree murder, Henderson teen case (LVRJ)
- State v. Robert Telles — murder of LVRJ reporter Jeff German; briefly retained, later replaced (LVRJ, Court TV)
- State v. Tyler Johns — teen accused of murder (LVRJ)
- Recognitions (verified, Tier 1):
- Super Lawyers Rising Stars: 2021, 2022, 2025 (verified via Super Lawyers profile)
- National Trial Lawyers Top 100: 2023, 2024, 2025 (verified via NTL member page)
- National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40: 2015, 2016 (likely accurate per Justia, Avvo)
- “Best Criminal Defense Attorney of Las Vegas” — LVRJ readers’ poll, 2022 (likely accurate; listed on Super Lawyers profile)
- Recognitions (Tier 2 — client-choice/directory):
- Avvo Client’s Choice Award: 2016, 2017, 2019 (verified)
- MyLegalWin Top Attorneys in America: 2025-2026 (verified)
- Recognitions (Tier 3 — pay-to-play or unverified; use with caution):
- “Lawyer of the Year” (2024, 2025) — awarding organization unidentified; needs client confirmation
- Litigator of the Year (2021, 2024) — issuing body unclear
- 10 Best Attorneys, American Institute of DUI Attorneys (2018-2021) — pay-to-play
- Lawyers of Distinction, NACDA, AIOLP — pay-to-play / low-selectivity
- Media:
- A&E “Accused: Guilty or Innocent?” Season 4, Episode 6 (Feb. 16, 2023) — verified via PR Newswire, IMDb
- Author: “The Defense Begins” — verified on Amazon (ASIN B0CD16FNM4)
- Reviews: 73 on Avvo (72 five-star, 1 one-star); Firm-level 4.9 stars across 362+ reviews on Google/Birdeye
- Disclosure: In 2013, arrested for inadvertently bringing a handgun into the Regional Justice Center; pleaded no contest to misdemeanor, paid ~$1,500 in fines, relinquished weapon. No bar discipline resulted per publicly available records. (Verified via LVRJ)
- Full legal name: Unknown — firm site may only use first name “Branden”; surname “Helmick” is assumed from context but not independently confirmed
- Bar: Not found in any public directory (State Bar of Nevada, Avvo, Justia, Martindale, FindLaw, Super Lawyers)
- Bar status: Unknown — no State Bar of Nevada record located
- Relationship to K. Ryan Helmick: Unclear. Kirk Helmick Sr.’s 2020 obituary lists only two sons (Kirk Ryan and Kristopher Michael); no Branden mentioned. May be half-brother, step-brother, brother-in-law, or unrelated. Needs direct confirmation.
- Education (firm website claims only, not independently verified):
- B.A., San Jose State University (Cum Laude)
- J.D., UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law
- CALI Award for Excellence in Criminal Law-Adjudication
- Recognitions: None found in any third-party source
- Media: None found
- Directory presence: Zero profiles across all major legal directories
- Case attribution: No cases found attributed specifically to Branden in court records or news coverage
- Critical note: Every piece of biographical information traces back exclusively to The Defense Firm’s website. Bar admission, bar number, and licensure status must be confirmed before any credibility-building or directory work.
| Person | Role | Contact |
|---|
| Client point of contact | |
| Approval authority for bios/outreach | |
The following items require direct input from the client before work can proceed:
| # | Item | Detail | Priority |
|---|
| 1 | ”Lawyer of the Year” (2024, 2025) | This claim appears across multiple directory profiles but the awarding organization could not be independently identified. Which organization issued these awards? If unknown, this claim should be removed from marketing materials. | High |
| 2 | Branden Helmick — identity and bar status | Full legal name, bar number, bar admission date, bar status, and relationship to K. Ryan Helmick all need confirmation. Kirk Helmick Sr.’s obituary (2020) names only two sons: Kirk Ryan and Kristopher Michael. No independent source confirms Branden’s licensure. | High |
| 3 | 2013 courthouse incident | K. Ryan Helmick was arrested in 2013 for inadvertently bringing a handgun into the Regional Justice Center (LVRJ coverage exists). Does the client have a prepared response if this is surfaced by competitors or media? | High |
| 4 | Primary phone number | Two numbers appear across sources: 702-435-6425 (702-HELMICK, firm site) and 725-286-0002 (Super Lawyers profile). Which is the primary number for directory listings and marketing? | Medium |
| 5 | Duplicate Justia and LinkedIn profiles | K. Ryan Helmick has two Justia profiles (one under “K. Ryan Helmick,” one under “Kirk Ryan Helmick” — same ID #1651721) and two LinkedIn profiles. These should be consolidated to one authoritative presence on each platform. Does the client want us to handle this? | Medium |