{Louisiana} Board Suggests {Stephen} Edwards Be Permanently Disbarred

NEW ORLEANS - The son of former Louisiana Gov. Edwin W. Edwards should be banned permanently from practicing law for his conviction, along with his father, of extorting applicants for riverboat casino licenses, the state Supreme Court has been told.

The recommendation by the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board against Stephen Edwards comes 10 months after the ex-governor permanently resigned from practicing law.

Edwin Edwards is serving a 10-year federal prison sentence, while his son is serving seven years.

Permanent disbarment means a lawyer can not apply for readmission to the state bar. Disbarment means a lawyer can apply for reinstatement in five years, but the Supreme Court has the option of rejecting the application.

The disciplinary board said Stephen Edwards "intentionally engaged in a scheme of political corruption for monetary gain."

"At the great expense of the citizens of Louisiana, he lined his own pockets and the pockets of his cronies," the board wrote in its recommendation.

The disciplinary board said Stephen Edwards argues that permanent disbarment is not appropriate in his case because the Supreme Court did not impose the same sanction in the case of former state Sen. Larry Bankston.

The high court disbarred Bankston in 2002, retroactive to 1997 when the justices suspended him on an interim basis following his conviction in a bribery-related gambling case. Last week, the disciplinary board recommended to the court that Bankston be allowed to practice law again.

In recommending that Stephen Edwards be permanently disbarred, the disciplinary board noted that Bankston's case involved his acceptance of a one-time bribe of $1,550 from a video poker operator. The board said a federal appellate court found that Stephen Edwards participated in the extortion of at least $2.5 million.

By resigning permanently, Edwin Edwards is barred from practicing law or seeking readmission to the legal profession. The Supreme Court accepted his resignation April 1.

To think that it is taking them this long to "suggest" disbarring this criminal is a crime in itself.

Cleaning up corruption in Louisiana will not happen short of a revolution.

Lawyer discipline in Louisiana has been a joke for at least the last 20 years. The Supreme Court will disbar an attoney, and a year or so later, he or she will sucessfully petition for re-instatement. Then, a few years later, you will see the familiar name on the disciplinary list again.

The Louisana Bar Journal used to run a list of the attorneys will bar complaints against them. Some would be facing a dozen or more counts, and the cases against tbem didn't seem to make much progress. When the matter did get resolved, the name would pop up again a few months after the suspension had been served, or the disbarment reversed by re-instatement.

Here is an example from this story - 1997 offense, not disbarded until 2002, and now up for re-instatement.

"The high court disbarred Bankston in 2002, retroactive to 1997 when the justices suspended him on an interim basis following his conviction in a bribery-related gambling case. Last week, the disciplinary board recommended to the court that Bankston be allowed to practice law again."

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