Dayton Bar Ass'n v. O'Brien

{¶ 1} We are called upon to determine the appropriate sanction for an attorney who has told his client that the trial judge who presided over his criminal case and who was preparing to sentence him might be persuaded to grant a motion to withdraw the client’s guilty plea if the client had the money “to afford that kind of treatment.”

{¶ 2} A three-member panel of the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline recommended a six-month stayed suspension and upon review, the entire board recommended a public reprimand. We reject both recommendations. For the following reasons, the conduct…