Lawyer Christopher Kirby certainly had quite a night when he appeared to represent the East Ramapo School District at a simple school board meeting. By the end of the evening, Kirby was leaving just before the arrival of police, a community was in full uproar, and his firm was terminated from further representation of the District. How can things get that bad, you ask? It started with a smirk.
When parent and special education advocate Peggy Hatton stood up to discuss the treatment of her son at Spring Valley High School, she was respectful and even complimentary to teachers at his school. Hatton raised the fact that her son had failed the science portion of his exam by one point, producing an audible laugh from the board lawyer, Kirby. Hatton responded reasonably by saying “Is it funny? I’m sorry. Shame on you.” Kirby then walked out. He should have stayed out but, as with much of the evening, seemed drawn to the controversy like a moth to a flame.
Kirby returned with a clear smirk on his face. Hatton objects that “You’re still smirking at me, please!” Kirby responded with an incredibly unprofessional “Oh would you please shut up, for Christ’s sake.” Another woman rightfully objects from the audience.
Here is that scene:
What is astonishing is the complete lack of response from the board who sit there without an apparent care in the world as their lawyer acts like a schoolyard bully. Hatton correctly objects “You should all be ashamed of yourselves, to let him sit there and treat me like that when I am not attacking anybody.” The board still just sits there as Kirby taunts “Still smirking.”
Undone, Kirby continues his antics in the parking lot where he calls a man with a videocamera an “asshole.” He then tries to start a fight and says “I’m standing in your way; you gonna do something about it?” He then accuses the man named Luciano of standing behind “your women. What a man, what a tough guy.”
In the meantime, police were called by Hattan as Kirby meltdown in profanity laced acts.
Here is that scene (warning graphic and disturbing language):
Notably, a board member has finally shown some life and intervened, if only to get Kirby to go home. Board member Yonah Rothman is shown trying to coax the district’s lawyer back to some level of sanity.
The board proceeded to terminate the contract of Minerva & D’Agostino, a Long Island-based law firm which has represented the district since 2009.
The next question is whether Kirby will face bar charges for his disrespectful and unprofessional conduct.
DR 1-102 states that it is a disciplinary offense for a lawyer to:
3. Engage in illegal conduct that adversely reflects on the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer. . . .
5. Engage in conduct that is prejudicial to the administration of justice. . . .
7. Engage in any other conduct that adversely reflects on the lawyer’s fitness as a lawyer.
Normally, an altercation in a parking lot is not a matter for the bar but this confrontation began in a representational setting where Kirby acted like a juvenile.
nick,
Tex and I both finished the book and liked it very much. Although you said it was a book intended for women, he called it a good read and looks forward to the next one … as do I.
If I was his boss at the law firm, I would have walked into his office and terminated his employment on the spot, then marched him out of the office with a trespass notice to boot.
As for the bar complaint, maybe it constitutes unprofessional conduct maybe it doesn’t. But if there is ever a lawyer deservinng such a process and investigation he is certainly a fine candidate.
This issue is sooo much more interesting than what happened in that parking lot. Here’s a bigger picture
http://nymag.com/news/features/east-ramapo-hasidim-2013-4/index1.html
There a fascinating divorce case in Connecticut styled Christopher Kirby v. Erin Kirby. There, the standup hubby left his wife on their third wedding anniversary to move in with his girlfriend leaving his wife with a “financial debacle.” The husband made about $3,900 a week; the wife just $270.00 a week. She’s doing fine now thanks to the judge.
Same spots. Same leopard? Just wondering.
http://caselaw.findlaw.com/ct-superior-court/1509127.html
Mark: Seems consistent. Nice work. That was my favorite part of litigation paralegal-ing — digging up the dirt.
Mespo,
To paraphrase Heinlein’s Razor: “Don’t attribute to stupidity what can be explained by drunkenness, but never underestimate stupidity.”
Gene H:
“What context justifies that? Temporary insanity?”
*******************
LOL. That’s about it — or as the on-scene but off-camera person asks, “Are you drunk?”
Bron,
Kudos to your wife. Be good to her, because people like her are ‘keepers.’
Both my grandson and youngest daughter had to have special services. My grandson, as I said, was cut off at the very time he needed it most. My youngest has a strange mix of exceptional talents as well as learning disability. She has trouble with math (dyscalcula) and when she started first grade we were told she would probably not learn to read past third grade. We made sure she got the services she needed. The school administration and some of the teachers joked about my “sternly worded letters.”
The kid who was not supposed to learn to read past third grade types over 100wpm, can shoot a group with a revolver at 25 yards you can cover with one hand, play the bagpipes and fly a plane–although she has not soloed. She also has her associate’s degree, going to college on a special education scholarship. All because I fought tooth and nail to keep them from giving up on her.
As for not knowing either of the parties. you are correct. However, I cannot think of any circumstance in a civilized society where that kind of behavior and language is appropriate, much less to be tolerated.
Tthis is a much more complicated issue and should especially interest Elaine. Ask yourselves what is going on in that school district – it gets very complicated a growing ultra-orthodox Hasidic upstate NY community that holds the majority on the (ahem, public) school board while all their children attend yeshiva. .Haven’t time to find the links now, but there are plenty of good slueths that don’t need me.
Bron,
Look back over the Deen thread. See what role “context” played in that conversation. Context is important as nick says, but this is prime facie evidence of unprofessional conduct. Sometimes context isn’t critical. Bad actions are just bad actions. Trying to start a fight in a parking lot? Calling someone a “c–t”? Seriously, man. What context justifies that? Temporary insanity?
Bron:
Your circumspection is admirable but we don’t need a lot of context for calling –in the heat of anger –the parent of a kid with special needs a “c*nt.”
There is probably an opening in the police department for a great voodoo guy like that.
Bron, Video is my specialty. I believe it can be misleading and deceptive, and context is always important. However, that conduct is entirely unprofessional on its face.
I note that Mr. Kirby is not listed on the Minerva & D’Agostino website. I trust they had the sense to terminate him.
I had a great day in court yesterday and this morning and was feeling proud of my profession. Then I saw this.
ST: “I wonder if he was drunk?”
Or on drugs? Or on meds? Maybe, off his meds?
OS:
I have a child who required an IEP in high school and college, my wife taught in alternative education for 10 years and had a 30 year career as a teacher. I personally know people who have gamed the system to get an advantage for their child. I do know a little bit about it.
I am not saying all people who have a special needs child are gaming the system.
I am also not saying this lawyer shouldnt be sanctioned all I am saying is that 2-4 minute videos doesnt give the entire picture and we dont know if something transpired prior to the videos, we dont know the history.
You dont know this lawyer, you dont know the woman.
I had a dog once who hated the neighbor kids because they would poke him with sticks through the fence and generally make his life miserable. He was a good dog and was very good with people and children but he hated those 2 children.
I was walking him one day and the 2 kids were out front of their house and the father was in the garage and the dog went insane, it was all I could do to restrain him from tearing those 2 kids a new a$$hole. Well of course the father did what any good father would do and told me he would shoot my dog if he attacked his children. I apologized for the dog and explained to him that his children antagonized the dog through the fence. He made sure it never happened again. And I quit walking the dog past his house.
This is the problem with a short video, there is no context. And people are quick to rush to judgment based on the optics.
Bron: You were the one making a judgment based on nothing. The rest of us made a reasonable judgment based on video evidence. And you’ve still failed to prove your assertion that parents are “gaming the system.”
Juliet, That’s a tough load, woman. The kid is lucky to have a tough, smart, mother. I know you folks must have some pretty dark days. Your positive attitude is key.
Nick: Thank you. It’s a bigger load than that, actually. The husband and I also have a pair of toddlers who seemed neuro-typical, at first, but are also on the spectrum. They are all three delightful, happy children. They make it easy to be positive.
City attorneys in general should get more scrutiny and they should regularly be replaced. In Steamboat Springs Colorado my impression is that their city attorney Anthony Lettunich is corrupt. I think so because:
a.) Anthony Lettunich doesn’t have a contract with the City of Steamboat Springs, Colorado yet has been the city attorney for decades.
b) Staff recommended that the City audit a program in which developers who had building materials delivered from outside the area had to pay a fee similar to what they would have paid in sales tax if they had bought the materials inside the city. Apparently about $6 million was not collected which was a lot to a city of 11,000 people. Lettunich did nothing to encourage an audit.
c.) While city attorney, Anthony Lettunich advertised that he had a private zoning practice. He makes no public reports about his “zoning practice”. A variance was granted to a big expensive time share, just so that it could build closer to the road. Because of that the city had to reduce the width of the road.
d) Lettunich did nothing to address the fact that former Steamboat Springs Colorado Planning Services Director Wendie Schulenburg AKA Wendie Rooney lied under oath and claimed to be a certified planner.
e.) Lettunich itemized in his attorney bills in 2004 that former city council president Kevin Bennett had an NCIC record. He was a convicted felon. Bennett’s conviction was for transporting drugs with intent to sell. The police reported to Kevin Bennett but Lettunich did not disclose the fact that he was a convicted felon. That was kept secret for at least 5 years after Lettunich put it in his bill. I had asked about Bennett’s criminal record years before but the police denied that he had a record.
f.) Lettunich tried to collect $10K in attorney bills from me for a case in which he did not file a notice of appearance or any documents.
g.) Lettunich billed the city for a three way ex parte conference call with Magistrate Schlatter and the lawyer for Colorado Intergovernmental Risksharing Agency that was not in the record in any other form.
h) Lettunich facilitated Kevin Bennett building two extra buildings on his property at 701 Princeton Ave that violated the regulation that said that only one building per property can have a sewer connection and he acted to stop city employees from comparing Bennett’s buildings to the ordinances.
i) Lettunich’s law firm Lettunich & Vanderbloemen was the law firm for the Haymaker Golf Course. It loses money and needs constant infusions of tax money. It was built as a private golf course and investors reaped large profits selling adjoining real estate with golf course views and then Lettunich transferred the course to the city so that tax payers would pay to keep it going. At the very least, the Haymaker Golf Course should have had a law firm that was not owned by the city attorney.
What mespo and OS said.
And another dose of “you don’t know what you’re talking about, Bron”. For two years in high school, the G&T program shared facilities with some of the special needs students and we saw parents coming in fairly frequently to address one issue or another. No one was “gaming the system”. There is no monetary gain in such an exercise. It was to a one just people trying to remove as many barriers as possible to their kids getting the same education as other students.
My oldest child is severely autistic and mostly non-verbal. His father is a law professor and I worked for over a quarter century as a legal assistant and paralegal. I also have a year of law school. We have had to hire attorneys on three separate occasions to protect our son’s rights and get him the services he needs. What chance do special needs kids have who don’t have that kind of firepower behind them, especially when the person making the call on what’s legal comes from someone like the one in the video?
Juliet, Thanks for your support. The book is doing well locally, many book clubs are reading it. Caroline will return in the Fall, definitely prior to Christmas. If you have any questions after finishing, just let me know.