United States v. Patrick H. Wright, Jr, and William E. Armstrong

This is a case that ought never to have been brought, certainly not in the United States District Court. It involved conduct by two Louisiana lawyers that would merit severe disciplinary action by either the Louisiana Bar or the Louisiana courts, or both. And, indeed, it was the revulsion of the distinguished District Judge to these flagrant transgressions of elemental legal ethics that brought down his strong condemnation in the form of a conviction for violation of the Hobbs Act because of the interference of these local activities with interstate commerce.

Critical to the judge’s factual…