Doctor’s Note

I mentioned in a previous post that the redesign of the web page of the Colorado Presiding Disciplinary Judge has made it far more difficult to access recent bar discipline decisions.

But such difficulties cannot deter the dedicated blogger.

From The Colorado Lawyer

The [Presiding Disciplinary Judge]  approved the parties’ conditional admission of misconduct and suspended Kallman S. Elinoff, attorney registration number 18677, for 30 days. Elinoff’s suspension took effect on February 20, 2016.

In 2015, Elinoff represented a client in a criminal matter in Jefferson County District Court. Nine days before his client’s trial, Elinoff filed a motion to continue in which he indicated that he was undergoing a medical procedure that week. Two days before the trial, Elinoff appeared at a hearing and asked to approach the bench, where he exaggerated the nature of his medical procedure in an effort to persuade the court to grant a continuance. That same afternoon, Elinoff brought medical documentation to the court, admitted his misrepresentation, and took responsibility for his actions.

Elinoff’s conduct violated Colo. RPC 3.3(a) (a lawyer shall not knowingly make a false statement of material fact or law to a tribunal) and Colo. RPC 8.4(c) (a lawyer shall not engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation).

This was not the attorney’s first brush with bar discipline; he was suspended for three years in 2000.

That case also tangentially involved the attorney ‘s physical condition

On or about March 17, 1998 Elinoff appeared before Judge Kathleen Bowers in Denver County Court with his client, Douglas Rathbun in connection with a domestic violence charge. The day before the appearance, Elinoff had injured his arm in a snowboarding incident and was taking medication. Judge Bowers was made aware of the incident, the medication usage and inquired into Elinoff’s ability to proceed with the scheduled hearing. Based upon her observations and Elinoff’s assurances, Judge Bowers found there was no need to continue the hearing and that Elinoff was able to properly represent his client’s interests. Notwithstanding his medication usage, Elinoff was in full control of his mental faculties on the day of the Rathbun hearing.

The officers had allowed the client a cigarette before transporting him to the pokey when

 Although Elinoff had no prior contact with either Ollila or Mullen, he disclosed to them that his father had been a police officer and he had once applied to join the force. During their conversation, Rathbun continued to plead to be released. Elinoff told the detectives that they needed to talk about his client on a level they all could understand. Elinoff then reached into his shirt pocket and removed several bills of U. S. currency. The visible bill was a $100 bill. Elinoff extended the bills toward Detective Mullen and stated that if the detectives would forget the matter for that day, Rathbun would turn himself in the next day. Elinoff intended by this conduct to influence the decision made by Ollila and Mullen to jail Rathbun…

Elinoff, in testimony before the PDJ and Hearing Board, characterized his conduct as a joking effort to show his client that he was going to jail and that nothing would prevent the detectives from transporting him immediately. Elinoff also admitted, however, that if one of the detectives had accepted the funds offered, he would have reported the “bribe” to the police department with the anticipation that the detective would have been arrested

He was reinstated to practice in 2003 after returning from Israel

Due to the terror crisis in Israel and the demands on the regional police units, Elinoff was asked to join the regional police force as a volunteer police officer. He was selected because of his prior combat experience and exemplary military record. He received training in the classroom and in the field and was deputized to perform the same duties and was held to the same responsibilities as a regular police officer. He was legally authorized to make probable cause determinations, effectuate arrest procedures, investigate crimes and testify at trials. He was held accountable as a professional in all regards. He accompanied regular police officers on calls, set-up and manned security checkpoints and roadblocks, and patrolled the area for both criminal and terrorist threats. His opportunity to stand in a police officer’s shoes afforded him a tremendous insight on how difficult an officer’s job can be and how the public perceives their roles. Elinoff now understands the two officers he offended during the bribery incident and the disrespectful behavior that led to his suspension.

Elinoff was also a volunteer assisting the sex assault unit of the prosecution office in Haifa, Israel. Although his role was very limited in nature, his primary objective was to stay active in the profession and by doing so, learned about the Israeli legal system from investigation through trial, lectured to the sex assault investigators of the Department of Social Services, and provided to the unit sorely needed literature available only in the United States…

Elinoff had made a fundamental change in his character and his perception of the role of attorneys in our society. His objective undertakings, both the activities engaged in and the results obtained, reveal genuine efforts to restructure those professional shortcomings which culminated in the prior discipline. His efforts have been exemplary. Elinoff has established by clear and convincing evidence that he is, in fact, rehabilitated. Elinoff has testified and the evidence has shown that he has not merely taken responsibility and shown remorse for his conduct, but that he has used the suspension in a positive way to learn to be a different individual and a better professional.

(Mike Frisch)