I think the words you quoted are the reporter's interpretation.
This sounds far more serious (at end of article):
University of North Carolina law professor Joe Kennedy described the bar's tone in the most-recent documents as somewhat incredulous. He pointed to the bar's following point: "Nifong is arguing that he can make false statements to a court
then use his misrepresentations to claim he committed no violation."
That's the MONEY QUOTE, as they say.