Lawyer Self-discipline
Regardless of pardon, court docket says disbarment is likely to be acceptable for lawyer who stormed the Capitol
Police making an attempt to carry Jan. 6, 2021, rioters on the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photograph/Andrew Harnik)
Public reprimand was not sufficient punishment for a lawyer who admitted to getting into the U.S. Capitol Constructing with rioters on Jan. 6, 2021, the Georgia Supreme Courtroom just lately discovered.
The Jan. 21 opinion includes W. McCall Calhoun Jr., and rejects the State Bar of Georgia and a particular grasp’s advice that he obtain public reprimand. Proof consists of Calhoun’s social media posts, which “clearly recommend” that he supposed to take part in a “violent takeover” of the capital, in accordance with the opinion.
“If Calhoun was as concerned as his posts point out, then it’s laborious for us to see how something lower than disbarment will be accepted right here,” the court docket wrote in a unanimous opinion. The matter is remanded for additional proceedings.
Calhoun didn’t instantly reply to an ABA Journal interview request. On Jan. 9, 2021, he informed the Atlanta Journal Constitution that individuals who compelled their means into the Capitol have been “heroic” and “patriotic.”
The Americus, Georgia, lawyer was convicted of felony and misdemeanor fees associated to the Jan. 6 occasions. President Donald Trump granted Calhoun a pardon for all of the offenses in January 2025.
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