Former lawyer James E. Gray, whose license to practice law was suspended more than two years ago, has given up his law license as part of a plea agreement that allows him to stay out of prison.
Gray reached the plea agreement in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court. It included having six felony theft and forgery charges reduced to misdemeanors.
He pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor petty theft charges and a misdemeanor of attempted forgery involving up to $125,000 in thefts he committed while working on court cases for five clients between 1998 and 2004.
Gray’s law license was first suspended in the summer 2006 by the Ohio Supreme Court after the Trumbull County Probate Court uncovered problems with Gray’s work on a probate case involving his aunt, Elsie Bryn, which led to Gray admitting to the probate court judge to using Bryn’s money and assets for his personal benefit.
The probate court determined that Gray took $85,359 from his aunt. A judgment entry ordered Gray to pay the $85,359, plus a 10-percent penalty and an investigator’s fee of $10,094, to his now-deceased aunt’s estate.
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To avoid prison, former lawyer gives up license
Gray reached the plea agreement in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court. It included having six felony theft and forgery charges reduced to misdemeanors.
He pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor petty theft charges and a misdemeanor of attempted forgery involving up to $125,000 in thefts he committed while working on court cases for five clients between 1998 and 2004.
Gray’s law license was first suspended in the summer 2006 by the Ohio Supreme Court after the Trumbull County Probate Court uncovered problems with Gray’s work on a probate case involving his aunt, Elsie Bryn, which led to Gray admitting to the probate court judge to using Bryn’s money and assets for his personal benefit.
The probate court determined that Gray took $85,359 from his aunt. A judgment entry ordered Gray to pay the $85,359, plus a 10-percent penalty and an investigator’s fee of $10,094, to his now-deceased aunt’s estate.
Full Article and Source:
To avoid prison, former lawyer gives up license
3 comments:
Why does it take so long for processing these rats out of the "legalized theft" business?
This perp got off too easy, what a sweet deal. He deserves just punishment, no mercy or leniency, which includes time in prison.
I think he got off easy, of course, but he did get some punishment -- ordered to pay back the estate, plus penalty and disbarred.
It's something.
It's not nearly enough, but still most of these creeps get off scott free.
All of these thieves need to be ordered to repay their victims, plus penalty -- that's a given and we need to keep harping on it. But, I wish there were a way to hold them accountable for the emotional damage they've done.
Money is important but compared to peace of mind or somebody's life, it's nothing at all.
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