The law license of Robert J. Powell, an attorney who has admitted to paying kickbacks to two Luzerne County judges, has been suspended by the state Supreme Court.Powell, 49, has pleaded guilty to failing to report a felony and abetting a conspiracy and is awaiting sentencing in federal court. Prosecutors say he paid the two judges for their help in securing county contracts for a for-profit juvenile detention center he formerly owned.
The order suspending Powell’s law license, handed down Monday, came in reaction to a joint petition from Powell’s lawyers and the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court, which investigates allegations of wrongdoing and unethical behavior by lawyers.
The board’s chief counsel, Paul Killion, said that in most cases, the board will not seek action against an attorney charged with a crime until sentencing, but the board felt a temporary suspension was warranted in this case. Powell’s attorney agreed to the suspension, Killion said.
“This is a case in which we don’t want him practicing law while things are pending. They could be pending for some time,” Killion said.
Full Article and Source:
Powell Loses Law License
See also:
Plea Agreement Rejected
:-)
ReplyDeleteOh Happy Days!
ReplyDeleteThat's how they should do all the severe cases of lawyer discipline. Take their license now and stop them from harming someone else.
ReplyDeleteThis further shows how corrupt Luzerne County was/is.
ReplyDeleteIt needs to be cleaned out - with bleach!
Guys like this make my skin crawl. Makes me wonder how many more like Powell are out there practicing law, answering phone calls, accepting clients, gives me night sweats and puts other lawyers in a bad light.
ReplyDeleteAs for these greedy judges being on the take, taking kickbacks and God only knows what they got away with, who can we trust?