Sunday, February 17, 2008

Adam Kilgore: Wimpicus Maximus

(Adam Kilgore, General Counsel of the Mississippi Bar)

Adam Kilgore, Consiglieri to the Mississippi Bar, shows exactly what is wrong with the Mississippi Bar in an interview with The Clarion-Ledger today, rejecting any suggestion of reforming the legal system in Mississippi as he hopes to head off the fire and pitchfork crowd:
"It is a natural reaction to what has happened to examine all aspects of the situation and call for reform. I caution against jumping to conclusions and making changes to a system that has served Mississippi well for years. Sometimes it is not the system that is flawed, but some of the individuals that participate in the system. This must be a time for self-examination, but I do not yet see it as time to make major reforms to the legal system...."
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080217/OPINION/802170320/1046/OPINION03

The sand in which Mr. Kilgore buries his head must be opiate, not silica in nature as one would expect Mr. Kilgore to favor some reform, as the evidence of widespread corruption in our judicial system becomes more obvious: The attempted bribery of Judge Lackey...the alleged bribery of Ed Peters and Judge DeLaughter..... the criminal and disgraceful behavior of Judge Houston Patton regarding James Jennings and Keith Shelton.... the rumors of judges receiving target letters from the FBI..... the revelations in the Keith Shelton case ...the Commission on Judicial Performance took a dive in its investigation of Judge Patton.... the Attorney General giving legal contracts to friends who gave him $400,000, then stating he won't investigate them as they are picked off by the FBI one by one...where does one stop as the list continues to grow?

What exactly does Mr. Kilgore think "some of the individuals" means? In case he hasn't noticed, there are more than a few lawyers involved in this scandal as the judicial systems in the state's largest county has been compromised and some of the state's leading lawyers have either pled guilty or face prosecution for their alleged misdeeds and corruption. These guys were so brazen they tried to bribe a member of the Judicial Commission, making one think they were crazy for such an attempt, unless they had bribed others in authority over the legal system. In the Keith Shelton case, no less than four judges were involved in this travesty of justice. The fact is Mr. Kilgore, many individuals have been involved in these scandals as they turned the legal system in our state into a coat-and-tie brothel where justice is truly for sale to the highest bidder or those with the right friends at Char, while you stick your head in the sand saying no reform is needed.

Further evidence of Mr. Kilgore's yellow streak is his failure to request more powers for the Bar to police itself. The Bar currently can only investigate members if there has been a complaint and or if there has been a conviction of an attorney, as it has no authority to initiate its own investigations against suspected wayward lawyers. If Mr. Kilgore was truly serious about improving his profession, he and the rest of the Bar would be demanding they be given the same powers granted to boards and commissions for ALL OTHER INDUSTRIES in Mississippi. The fact Mr. Kilgore has not sought to do so shows exactly that the Bar is not interested in truly cleaning up the legal system in Mississippi, as those in authority always welcome any excuse to grab more power. Mr. Kilgore thinks so little of Mississippians he does not make bar complaint forms available on the Bar's website, something common to other state boards and commissions. It is also telling that while the ethics of the awarding of state legal contracts to campaign donors has been furiously debated at the state capitol, the Bar has been strangely silent.

However, keep in mind what Mr. Kilgore represents: a self-serving mafia resisting any attempt at reform as it considers itself above everyone else. The Mississippi Bar is the ONLY profession having its commissioners and officers elected by the membership instead of appointed by the Governor and Senate. It is the only profession combining its regulatory bodies and trade association under one roof. If this was done in other industries it would be called a serious conflict of interest. The members write their own by-laws and procedures. They regulate themselves and decide what their punishments should be and if they are somehow too strict, the Mississippi Supreme Court is always available to bail them out. (See earlier post: Incest in Dixie, http://kingfish1935.blogspot.com/2008/01/incest-in-dixie-mississippi-legal.html)

As I wrote a few weeks ago in Incest in Dixie: The Mississippi Legal Profession, the fix is in as the media and the Bar have chosen to ignore the iceburg it struck and instead focus on how the deck chairs are arranged even while the bodies Balducci said were buried begin to float on the surface. Do not expect any help from Kilgore and the Mississippi Bar in protecting you from a corrupt legal system. It is clear Mr. Kilgore is either trying to cover up for the Mississippi Bar or is so embedded in the system he cannot truly see why there is a need for serious reform. Once again it is clear the Bar itself needs to be reformed as shown by Mr. Kilgore's surreal statements void of any sense of reality. I will end this post by paraphrasing a quote from Cicero, a man who truly cared about public morals and ethics: "WHEN, Mr. Kilgore, do you mean to cease abusing our patience as you continue to abdicate your duty?"

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I don’t know if the Mississippi Bar has a new complaint form but the only ones I’ve seen forces the complainant to sign away their right to free speech in the matter under threat of imprisonment and/or fine. Corrupt to the core!

Anonymous said...

The investigator for the one call that’s all lawyer said there’s a cover-up going on.
The lawyer says he doesn’t want to step on anybody’s toes.
The lawyer years later emerges calling himself the heavyweight?
What’s up with the corruption in Hinds County Mississippi USA?

Anonymous said...

It surely appears that Houston Patton is going to escape any flack over his illegal actions. To hold a person in jail with no charges until they release a civil judgment just can't happen in the USA. Surely some punishment will come for Patton?

Angry Democrat said...

Beyond a quick and public trial for those accused, how do you propose to reform the legal system? I would suggest disbarment and appropriate sentencing for those convicted. What more is there to do?

Kingfish said...

Remove the power to elect comissioners from the bar.

Have the comissioners appointed, divide the appointments between Chief Justice, Governor, LTG, and Speaker.

If they want to have a president of the bar, let them start up their own trade assn. minus the regulatory prosecution authority.

Make the bar a state agency. Employees, including general counsel, work for the state.

Give the counsel the power to initiate his own investigations, not wait for a conviction or complaint. read my earlier post on it.

Anonymous said...

The Bar Association is a state agency. Mr. Kilgore and the other bar employees are already state employees. Attorney discipline is controlled by the Supreme Court under the Disciplinary Rules. The Supreme Court claims, as its inherent authority, the right to set rules for the bar and to discipline attorneys.
Mr. Kilgore is doing a great job, however, he has limited authority. The Supreme Court needs to step up to the plate but appears to be, instead, sitting on its hands.

Kingfish said...

The Commissioners and officers are elected by the members.

The Supreme Court has delegated its powers to regulate lawyers to the bar as authorized by the legislature.

The so called employees are chosen by the membership and are in charge of its regulatory functions.

Just a little bit different than your characterizing it as a state agency.

I don't see Mr. Kilgore in all of these interviews demanding more powers either.

Anonymous said...

Actually, it is not my characterization of the Ms Bar as a state agency. It is the characterization of the Ms Supreme Court as follows: ""[t]he State Bar [has been] in reality an agency of the state created in the exercise of the police power of the state . . ." Goeldner v. Mississippi Bar 891 So.2d 130, 133 (Miss.,2004). The Supreme Court likewise disagrees with your characterization that its authority has been authorized by the legislature or delegated to anyone. In this regard the Supreme Court has said: "The Mississippi Supreme Court retains exclusive jurisdiction of matters pertaining to attorney discipline and reinstatement, and this Court is the ultimate judge of matters arising out of the Rules of Discipline for the Mississippi Bar." Mississippi Bar v. Thompson, 797 So.2d 197, 198 (Miss.2000). The Rules of Discipline as promulgated by the Supreme Court stated: "From and after the adoption of these rules, all other rules or statutes pertaining to attorney disciplinary proceedings shall stand superceded by these rules . . " Rule 1 currently states "The Supreme Court of Mississippi (the Court) has exclusive and inherent jurisdiction of matters pertaining to attorney discipline. . ." So, it is the Ms Supreme Court, not the Bar, Mr. Kilgore or the Bar's officers that sets the rules and delineates the authority of the various disciplinary entities (ie Complaint Counsel, Committee on Professional Responsibility, Complaint Tribunals) involved in attorney disciplinary matters. If Mr. Kilgore is given additional authority, as he has with his present duties, he will carry out those duties admirably. I won't belabor the fact that the Ms Bar employees are state employees, in the state retirmement system, so forth and so on. The Supreme Court has a mind of its own, and I don't think they would react to Mr. Kilgore "demanding" that they do anything.


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Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


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Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

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