Moral Turpitude On The Facts

A District Of Columbia hearing committee has concluded that a conviction on plea of guilty to the crime of first degree assault involved moral turpitude on its facts. Disbarment is mandatory in D.C. for a moral turpitude conviction. A hearing was held because the Board on Professional Responsibility had concluded that the statutory elements of the conviction did not establish moral turpitude per se.

According to the plea proffer, the lawyer had come home angry about something relating to the Maryland or D.C. lottery. In an upstairs bathroom, he shot his wife in the head with a .32 caliber revolver. She survived. The attorney was sentenced to 25 years in prison. The bar discipline hearing was held in the Hagerstown Correctional Institute.

This link will take you to the bar web page. The case is Matter of Bingham, recommendation filed on July 17, 2009 with the Board on Professional Responsibility. The board in turn will make its recommendation to the Court of Appeals. (Mike Frisch)