False Report Of Email Harassment Draws Suspension

The Oklahoma Supreme Court imposed a one year suspension for an attorney’s false report of email harassment.

The action was

based upon Respondent Julia Marie Ezell’s plea of guilty to two misdemeanor counts of (1) Falsely Reporting a Crime in violation of 21 O.S.2011, § 589, and (2) Use of a Computer to Violate Oklahoma Statutes in violation of 21 O.S.2011, § 1958.

An interim suspension for the conviction was ordered in November 4, 2019. The court here (over three dissents) granted credit for time served on that suspension.

The offense

Ezell became General Counsel for the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) in November 2017. The agency tasked Ezell with drafting the rules and regulations to govern the implementation of legalized medical marijuana in Oklahoma. Ezell contends interested parties within the Oklahoma state government and the Oklahoma State Board of Health were attempting to influence the promulgation of the administrative rules, pushing to include two unlawful rules which required pharmacists in each dispensary and banning “smokables.” Ezell voiced her concerns regarding the unlawful rules, but the interested parties told her to draft the rules to include the two constraints.

Ezell experienced extreme stress due to the pressure to draft the medical marijuana rules, including those she believed were unlawful, and problems in her personal life. On account of the stress, Ezell began sending threatening emails from a fictitious email address to her official government email address that appeared to be authored by proponents of the medical marijuana referendum. She obtained the fictitious email address from protonmail.com (Proton Mail). From July 8, 2018, until July 12, 2018, Ezell sent ten emails to herself with escalating threats to her safety.

Ezell immediately reported the first email to an investigator at OSDH. On July 9, 2018, OSDH requested that the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) investigate the threatening emails. The Edmond Police Department provided surveillance at Ezell’s workplace and home. The Edmond Police Department also escorted Ezell from work and checked Ezell’s personal vehicle for a GPS device. The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center’s Police Department provided Ezell further security while she was at her workplace. OSBI placed pole cameras in Ezell’s neighborhood to monitor Ezell’s house and the traffic in the neighborhood.

After OSBI launched its investigation, Ezell continued to send emails with escalating threats to herself. Ezell also provided to OSBI names of individuals that she believed could have access to her phone or be sending her threatening emails. As a result, OSBI obtained information on medical marijuana proponent groups and contacted law enforcement across the United States requesting information on similar threats. OSBI, through the assistance of a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) request to Switzerland, ultimately determined that the Proton Mail account was registered to Ezell’s husband.

On July 12, 2018, Ezell turned her phone over to OSBI, who performed a forensics examination of the phone. OSBI determined Ezell was responsible for creating the Proton Mail email account and sending the emails at issue. On July 13, 2018, OSBI met with Ezell to discuss the results of the forensics examination of her phone. Ezell continued to implicate other individuals who could be responsible for the emails and did not take responsibility for her actions. It was not until OSBI confronted Ezell with the information gathered from the forensics examination that Ezell admitted her wrongdoing. Ezell then confessed to OSBI that she was responsible for the threatening emails.

On July 17, 2018, the Oklahoma County District Attorney charged Ezell with two felonies, Presenting False Evidence at Trial and Using a Computer to Violate Oklahoma Statutes, and one misdemeanor, Falsely Reporting a Crime. The Oklahoma County District Attorney eventually dismissed one felony charge and reduced the other felony charge to a misdemeanor. Ezell pled guilty to two misdemeanor counts, Falsely Reporting a Crime and Use of a Computer to Violate Oklahoma Statutes. The district court ordered her to pay $21,810 in restitution for the costs involved in the OSBI investigation, which Ezell paid upon entering her plea of guilty. The district court deferred sentencing until October 15, 2024. Ezell fully paid all court costs, fees, and probation fees in advance.

The offense merited discipline

Ezell’s criminal conduct reflects adversely on her honesty and fitness to practice law in violation of ORPC Rule 8.4(b) and (c) and RGDP Rule 1.3 and warrants discipline. Ezell sent emails to herself containing escalating threats and falsely reported the emails to OSDH, which launched an OSBI investigation that cost over $20,000. Ezell was not forthcoming with the truth when confronted with the information obtained by OSBI regarding the source of the threatening emails. Ezell’s attempts to cover up her involvement in this scheme obstructed OSBI’s investigation, and Ezell implicated a co-worker, a former high school acquaintance, and medical marijuana proponents as potential suspects. Ezell’s actions resulted in the misuse and waste of state resources. Ezell admittedly had a motive and purpose to deceive her coworkers and law enforcement–even if the motive was for law enforcement to obtain evidence regarding potential fraud in the promulgation of the medical marijuana rules. State ex. rel. Okla. Bar Ass’n v. Besly, 2006 OK 18, ¶ 43, 136 P.3d 590, 605. Ezell pled guilty to the crimes of falsely reporting a crime–undoubtedly a crime involving dishonesty, fraud, and deceit–and the use of a computer to do so. Her conduct warrants discipline.

Sanction

 Ezell’s actions provide clear and convincing evidence of engaging in conduct that reflects adversely on the legal profession in violation of her professional duties pursuant to ORPC Rule 8.4 and RGDP Rule 1.3. The conduct serves as a basis for the imposition of discipline, which we must determine. We appreciate Ezell’s remorse regarding her actions, and we are mindful of Ezell’s mitigating circumstances, specifically her efforts to get counseling. This is the right course for her to take. Considering the Olmstead and Kinsey cases, we conclude the Trial Panel’s recommendation is appropriate. This Court suspends Ezell from the practice of law for one year, effective from the date of her interim suspension.

Justice Combs dissented and would impose a suspension of two years and a day

The main reason I find this case so egregious is the fact that prior to being caught the Respondent continued to falsely and knowingly implicate other individuals and groups for her crime. These included a co-worker, a high school acquaintance and the medical marijuana proponents. Had the investigation been protracted, it is not hard to see how those individuals’ lives and the proponents’ cause would have been negatively and possibly irreparably affected. The Respondent’s actions were also the subject of intense state and national media coverage. In my dissent in State ex rel. Oklahoma Bar Ass’n v. Hastings, I disagreed with the majority’s final discipline of a two-year suspension from the practice of law. 2017 OK 43, ¶1, 395 P.3d 552 (Combs J., dissenting). I found the nature of Hastings’ conduct deserved a suspension of two years and one day which would place significant requirements on seeking reinstatement. Id. Part of my reasoning was based upon Hastings’ conduct which was the subject of intense media coverage and “thoroughly embarrassed and undermined the legal profession as a whole.” Id., ¶3. Like Hastings, the majority opinion notes that Respondent’s actions “gained wide-spread media attention on both the local and national level.” Her actions have brought disrepute and harmed the public image of the legal profession. See also Olmstead, 2012 OK 71, ¶7, 285 P.3d 1110.

… The Respondent’s deferred sentence will last another four years. I have repeatedly expressed my concern on how this Court can protect the integrity of the legal profession if we allow a lawyer to practice law while on probation. State ex rel. Oklahoma Bar Ass’n v. Bernhardt, 2014 OK 20, ¶6, 323 P.3d 222 (Combs J., dissenting); State ex rel. Oklahoma Bar Ass’n v. Brown, 2013 OK 40, ¶3, 303 P.3d 895 (Combs J., dissenting). During this time a lawyer is subject to an accelerated judgment and sentence upon a violation of the terms and conditions of the order of deferred sentence. This is especially a problem where, as here, there is a lengthy deferred sentence. I believe a suspension from the practice of law for the duration of her deferred sentence is appropriate here. Upon successfully completing the terms of the deferred sentencing and when the criminal charges are dismissed, she could seek reinstatement of her license to practice law pursuant to Rule 11, RGDP. At the very least, I would suspend her for no less than two years and one day

(Mike Frisch)