Revenge Of The Eastern Shore Hicks

A road rage incident led to a 30-day suspension by the Maryland Court of Appeals

Paul was admitted to the Bar of this Court in June 2002. He is a full-time solo practitioner who has maintained a law office in Anne Arundel County.

This attorney grievance matter stems from two separate incidents. The first involved multiple confrontations between Paul and another driver which occurred in Wicomico and Dorchester counties. The second incident involved contentious litigation between Paul’s client, David Burke, and opposing parties, some of whom were represented by Edward Kerman, Esquire

Notably, he had a prior reprimand in a case where a dissent would have suspended him f or 90 days. 

The rage

The vehicular incident consisted of dangerous driving, a confrontation at a traffic light, and an accident that led to Paul being charged with multiple misdemeanors. Paul’s behavior and recollections both before and at the district and circuit court proceedings are also at issue.

At the evidentiary hearing, Paul chose not to testify to this portion of Bar Counsel’s allegations. Instead, Paul’s deposition testimony, taken on August 24, 2017, and testimony during the District Court trial in the criminal case, held on August 20, 2013, was admitted into evidence.

According to Paul’s version, in late afternoon on May 13, 2013, he was driving in the westbound lane on Route 50 in Wicomico County after attending an unrelated pretrial settlement conference held in Salisbury. Paul was traveling in the left lane when a black car in front of him slowed down and he observed that the female driver of the black car  was using her mobile phone. Paul moved to the right lane, beeped his horn while passing the black car, and then switched back to the left lane. During his deposition, Paul stated that he beeps his car horn every time he observes a driver using a mobile phone as a way of telling drivers to not use their phones while operating a vehicle.

Editor’s note so do I.

The black car then sped past Paul, driving approximately seventy miles per hour and “cut him off while waiving her hand at him.” Paul admitted that, after being cut off, he probably drove too close to the black car. The black car sped up and then braked suddenly, causing Paul to nearly collide with the back of the black car. At first, Paul believed that the black car’s sudden stop may have been due to the driver’s use of her cell phone. After three consecutive sudden stops though, Paul determined that the black car’s driver was intentionally slamming on her brakes. Soon after, Paul and the black car approached a red traffic light, at which point Paul exited his vehicle and questioned the driver of the black car about why she was purposely decelerating suddenly. Paul stated that, while he was outside of his vehicle, the driver of the black car made faces at him, gave him the middle finger, stuck her tongue out at him, and generally acted belligerent. After the traffic light turned green, Paul moved to the right lane to “get away from the black car.”

Minutes later, now in Dorchester County, Paul attempted to move from the right lane to the left lane. Although Paul witnessed a car approaching in the left lane from
behind, he determined he had enough time and room to enter the left lane. While Paul was shifting lanes, the approaching car sped up and attempted to keep Paul from entering the left lane. Paul then realized that this car was the same black car from the earlier encounter. Paul alleged that the black car moved onto the shoulder located to the left of Paul’s car and sped up. Paul heard the rumble strip being driven on and saw the mud flap of the black car being torn off. Paul stated that the black car then attempted to merge into the left lane so he moved into the right lane. Paul was confident that the two vehicles did not make contact.

The black car then slowed down and eventually entered the left lane. Paul continued driving until he entered Easton and pulled off at a restaurant to use the restroom. When Paul entered the parking lot, a Maryland state trooper approached Paul and asked what had happened to his vehicle. Paul stated that nothing had occurred. The trooper pointed to paint on the side of Paul’s vehicle, and Paul asserted that he did not know where the paint came from. The trooper then told Paul that the driver of the black car had reported that Paul hit her vehicle, which Paul immediately denied. After another trooper arrived, Paul was arrested and given traffic citations charging negligent driving, failure to stop after accident involving damages to attended vehicle/property, unsafe lane change, and failure to return to/remain at scene of accident involving attended vehicle/property damage.

He showed up for trial without counsel but retained counsel on the day of trial. A continuance was denied because two witnesses had travelled distances to testify.

During the trial, the driver of the black car, Jasmine Taylor, recalled the details of May 13, 2013 differently than Paul’s trial testimony. Taylor testified that Paul was tailgating her car presumably because Paul wanted Taylor to move into the right lane. When the cars stopped at the red traffic light, Taylor stated that Paul exited his vehicle and began “aggressively yelling” and displayed his middle finger to Taylor before finally returning to his vehicle. After approximately eight miles, Taylor recalled that, while in the
process of passing Paul’s vehicle, Paul “swerved his car into [hers].” Taylor described being almost off the road due to Paul’s maneuver until Paul eventually moved into the right lane. After this, Taylor moved into the right lane behind Paul, and Paul sped off. Taylor asserted that her car was damaged.

A driver of a different car who observed both the altercation at the red traffic light and the impact between the vehicles, Roselle Harde, also testified. At the traffic light, Harde asserted that Paul exited his vehicle, displayed both of his middle fingers towards Taylor, and reentered his vehicle and drove off. Approximately eight miles later, Harde was driving in the right lane while Taylor drove next to Harde in the left lane. Harde witnessed Paul’s car drive in between Harde and Taylor’s cars, causing Harde to move to the right shoulder. Harde attempted to alert Paul that he could drive in front of her in order to avoid injury to any party. Thereafter, Harde observed Paul’s vehicle make contact with Taylor’s vehicle. After the cars hit, Harde stated that Paul moved behind Taylor and took a picture of Taylor’s license plate. Once Taylor then pulled off onto the shoulder, Harde did the same and gave Taylor her name and address. Harde later drove to Easton at the request of the police to identify Paul as the person who struck Taylor’s vehicle.

The district court judge considered the testimony of Harde to be credible and found Paul guilty of two charges: failure to return to/remain at scene of accident involving damage to attended vehicle/property and negligent driving. The district court judge then sentenced Paul to sixty days of incarceration, suspending all but twenty days, to begin immediately. The district court judge did not immediately set a bond and made a request that Paul’s attorney return at 4:30 p.m. While confined in a holding cell, Paul made a phone call to his wife. Paul told her that he had not received a fair trial because “these people on the Eastern Shore, they’re a bunch of hicks here and they hate people from Annapolis.” Paul asserts that, when his attorney conversed with the district court judge at 4:30 p.m., the district court judge set a $100,000 bond because “he didn’t appreciate [Paul] calling people from the Eastern Shore hicks.” That evening, Paul paid a bondsman $10,000 to secure his release.

Paul appealed the district court judge’s ruling to the circuit court and hired a new attorney for the appeal. Although Paul was not privy to the conversations between his new attorney and the Assistant State’s Attorney, Paul believed that the attorneys had worked out a plea agreement prior to the court proceeding. At the circuit court trial on September 16, 2013, Paul’s attorney offered a plea agreement for the record but the Assistant State’s Attorney claimed that the State had not agreed to that deal. In his deposition, Paul admitted that his attorney “maybe thought he had a deal and maybe put too much emphasis on that thought.” Thus, before the circuit court judge, Paul pleaded guilty to the two charges he  had been found guilty of in district court. After the Assistant State’s Attorney reiterated the factual background, the circuit court judge described Paul’s actions in the road rage incident as “not only strange” but “dangerous behavior.” The circuit court judge sentenced Paul to twenty days of incarceration to be served on weekends, with credit for the one day Paul served prior to posting bond following the district court case.

The other matter involved a misrepresentation to opposing counsel. The court found those allegations were not proven.

The court rejected a host of charges made by Bar Counsel but found some misconduct

We agree with the hearing judge’s assessment of Paul’s conduct; Paul’s dangerous and threatening conduct reflected adversely on his trustworthiness and fitness as an attorney. Accordingly, clear and convincing evidence supports the conclusion that Paul’s conduct violated both MLRPC 8.4(a) and (b).

Maryland Bar Counsel overcharged the case as per its recent custom and had several charges rejected, including those relating to the “bunch of hicks” remark that apparently was overheard on surveillance and reported to the judge violated Rule 8.2.

Paul suggested that the district court judge imposed a greater bond upon him because the district court judge had heard of his telephone conversation with his wife in which Paul stated “you can’t get a fair trial from these people on the Eastern Shore. They’re a bunch of hicks here and they hate people from Annapolis.” The hearing judge found that Paul “was merely stating his opinion to his wife” and that there was “no evidence that he was aware his private conversation could be overheard” or that Paul intended his opinion to be made public. The hearing judge concluded that without testimony from Paul’s lawyer in the district court case, whom Paul testified at his deposition told him that the district court judge had imposed the high bond because of overhearing the conversation, or from the district court judge himself, Bar Counsel did not meet its burden. For these reasons, we agree with the hearing judge’s determination that Bar Counsel failed to present clear and convincing evidence that Paul violated MLRPC 8.2(a) for his statements regarding the district court judge.

In the second matter, two issues emerged.

First, Bar Counsel prosecuted a “sad duty to report opposing counsel” complaint. 

Second, the court again rejected Bar Counsel’s charge of a Rule 3.1 frivolous litigation violation. Perhaps that office should re-evaluate its understanding of that rule. 

The court here rejected both Bar Counsel’s call for a longer suspension and the Respondent’s suggestion that he had been punished enough.

Interestingly, the court awarded full costs to Bar Counsel notwithstanding the rejection of several charges. The court has focused on this issue in a number of recent cases.

Oral argument video linked here. (Mike Frisch)