Reinstatement Denied To Convicted Former FBI Linguist

Reinstatement of a convicted attorney has been denied by the New York Appellate Division for the Third Judicial Department.

In December 2009, respondent pleaded guilty to the federal felony of disclosure of classified information, in violation of 18 USC § 798 (a) (3), and admitted to providing classified information gained in his role as an FBI linguist to an individual who hosted a public Internet blog. This Court determined that respondent had committed a “serious crime” (see Judiciary Law § 90 [4] [d]; 72 AD3d 1190 [2010]) and, by decision entered October 21, 2010, suspended respondent from the practice of law for a period of three years.

The court

Upon review of the submissions and in consideration of the circumstances in the record before us, we conclude that respondent has not established by clear and convincing evidence that he has fully complied with the provisions of the order suspending him…

Details on the criminal matter from the Federation of Concerned Scientists. (Mike Frisch)