A Tucson lawyer with ties to the Dr. Bradley Schwartz murder case isn't fit to be a lawyer and should be disbarred, according to the majority of the State Bar of Arizona's disciplinary commission.
Former Deputy Pima County Attorney Lourdes Lopez engaged in misconduct over an extended period of time and has demonstrated a "pattern of criminal conduct, deceit, dishonesty and deception. ... Such conduct by an attorney cannot be tolerated," the disciplinary commission wrote in a report released Wednesday.
The report goes on to say while most of Lopez's offensive behavior occurred in her personal life, "it is precisely because of respondent's legal background, her understanding of the law and the position she held as a prosecutor, that if she is unable to distinguish between her personal and professional life and if her personal life has rendered her judgment impaired, then she is not fit to practice law."
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The State Bar of Arizona filed a complaint against Lopez in November 2005 saying she had engaged in criminal conduct that "reflects adversely on the lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects."
The bar said that even after Lopez was indicted in September 2002 on prescription-drug-fraud charges along with Bradley Schwartz, she continued a relationship with Schwartz despite being ordered not to and lied about it.
Schwartz is serving a life sentence for conspiracy to commit murder in the October 2004 slaying of his former employee, Dr. David Brian Stidham.
In December, a hearing officer with the State Bar's disciplinary commission said Lopez should be suspended for a year. But six of the nine disciplinary commission members voted with the State Bar's lawyers, who wanted Lopez disbarred.
The remaining three commission members recommended a three-year suspension for Lopez, saying other lawyers and judges engaged in more egregious behavior and received less serious discipline.
Lopez has 10 days to notify the Arizona Supreme Court if she plans to appeal, said one of Lopez's attorneys, Tim Eckstein.
If the Supreme Court decides not to review the case, the disbarment will stand, said Cari Gerchick, a spokesman for the court.
The State Bar could ask for an interim suspension in the meantime, but he has not yet heard if it will, Eckstein said.
In writing for the majority, J. Conrad Baran said that while Lopez has no past disciplinary record, has emotional problems and is remorseful and going through counseling, those mitigating factors don't overcome the aggravating factors in her case enough to justify a lesser penalty.
Board member Pamela Katzenberg, writing for the dissenting members, said Lopez's disbarment is not fair when compared to others who were just suspended or censured for more serious offenses, such as:
● A former Pima County Superior Court judge suspended for six months after being convicted on seven felony charges pertaining to income tax evasion.
● A lawyer who was suspended for six months, plus a day, after impersonating a CPS worker and telling a child sexual-abuse victim not to talk to the police or CPS.
● A lawyer censured for inappropriate sexual conduct with a vulnerable client.
"There is no question that (Lopez's) conduct warrants a severe sanction. Her conduct was knowing and dishonest," Katzenberg wrote. "However there are mitigating factors ..."
Although the State Bar argued Lopez's role in Stidham's slaying should be taken into consideration, neither the hearing officer nor the disciplinary commission did.
Lopez has acknowledged that prior to Stidham's death Schwartz spoke with her many times of his desire to see Stidham dead and of the possibility of hiring a hit man. She has repeatedly insisted she never thought Schwartz would carry through with his plot.
Lopez has demonstrated a "pattern of criminal conduct, deceit, dishonesty and deception. ... Such conduct by an attorney cannot be tolerated."
Conrad Baran, writing for the majority of the State Bar of Arizona's disciplinary commission
