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Attorny Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Thompson12/17/2001
Opinion by Harrell, J. Bell, C.J., Raker , and Cathell, JJ., dissent.
Pursuant to Maryland Rule 16-709(a) , Bar Counsel, on behalf of the Attorney Grievance Commission (Petitioner) and at the direction of the Review Board, filed with this Court a petition for disciplinary action against Gary E. Thompson, Esquire (Respondent). In the petition, Bar Counsel alleged violations only of Rules 8.4(b) and (c) of the Maryland Rules of Professional Conduct (MRPC) . This Court referred the matter to a judge of the Circuit Court for Montgomery County to conduct an evidentiary hearing and make findings of fact and conclusions of law in accordance with Maryland Rules 16-709(b) and 16-711(a) . After an evidentiary hearing, the hearing judge was unable to find by clear and convincing evidence that Respondent violated MRPC 8.4(b) or (c). Petitioner filed with this Court exceptions to the findings of fact and conclusions of law, and a recommendation for sanction. Respondent filed a brief reply to Petitioner's exceptions.
From the evidentiary record made below, the hearing judge made the following findings of fact:
Respondent is a 47-year old male who is married and has two sons. He was admitted to the Maryland bar in November 1978 and has practiced law exclusively in the state of Maryland for over 21 years. Respondent's law practice consists primarily of estates and trusts, business law and elder law. He also devotes a substantial amount of time to pro bono representation of the elderly.
On March 24, 1998, Bar Counsel filed a Complaint with Petitioner against Respondent based upon a charge brought against the Respondent on February 1, 1998 in the District Court of Maryland [sitting in] Montgomery County. On August 27, 1998, Respondent pled guilty to the offense of stalking, in violation of section 32-20 of the Montgomery County Code, which provides in pertinent part:
Sec. 32-20 Stalking. (a) In this section to stalk means to engage in a persistent pattern of conduct which:
(1) alarms, annoys, intimidates, frightens, or terrorizes a person; and
(2) causes the person to reasonably fear for his or her safety, or that of any third person.
Respondent was sentenced to six months incarceration with all time suspended, three years probation fn1, one hundred hours of community service and a $1,000.00 fine.
The stalking charge stemmed from Respondent's interactions with a 13-year old boy he met at a Montgomery County swim center in October 1997. Pursuant to one of their conversations approximately one month after their initial meeting, Respondent made an inappropriate sexual remark to the boy.fn2 Subsequently, Respondent spoke to the boy at a shopping mall, called him on the telephone and on one occasion, appeared uninvited at the boy's home. Charges were then filed against Respondent. Respondent testified that it was only after being charged that he learned that the boy had been very upset as a result of Respondent's conduct with him.
Although Respondent has no previous sanctions for professional misconduct, his testimony revealed that he was previously acquitted of charges arising out of his conduct with another teenage boy in 1995. Respondent acknowledged that he has been sexually attracted to pubescent boys since he was in his late teens. After being charged with the stalking offense, Respondent sought treatment from Dr. Fred S. Berlin, M.D., Ph.D.fn3, who diagnosed Respondent with nonexclusive homosexual Ephebophilia fn4. Since his evaluation by Dr. Berlin, Respondent has enrolled in a treatment program, which includes therapy sessions and antiandrogenic medication (which has the effect of loweri
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