Ethics

BigLaw partner leaves firm after reprimand for DWI and alleged nose punch

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A partner at Husch Blackwell in Madison, Wisconsin, has left the law firm after receiving a reprimand for allegedly punching a bar manager and driving while intoxicated.

Lawyer Jeffrey McIntyre, 58, was reprimanded by the state supreme court June 26, the Wisconsin State Journal reports.

McIntyre’s employee profile was on the Husch Blackwell website Tuesday morning, but it was removed as of Tuesday afternoon.

The law firm issued this statement Tuesday: “We were surprised and disappointed to learn of Jeff’s misconduct and the resulting Supreme Court reprimand. Obviously, our firm does not condone or tolerate his behavior. Jeff has withdrawn from the firm, and as of today, he is no longer affiliated with Husch Blackwell.”

The reprimand cites two incidents. The first happened in the early-morning hours of Christmas 2017. The general manager of a bar in downtown Madison told police that McIntyre was with two women who were not happy that the bar was closing. One of the women pulled down her pants, urinated on the floor, looked at the bar manager and laughed, the manager told police. McIntyre and the two women then left the bar.

The bar manager told police that he followed one of the women to a downtown apartment building. That woman, McIntyre and the other woman entered the building. McIntyre made an obscene gesture toward the bar manager from the lobby, exited the building, and punched the bar manager in the nose, the bar manager alleged.

McIntyre pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge in May 2018 under a deferred prosecution agreement that would erase the charge in nine months.

In the second incident, in February 2018, a police officer said he observed McIntyre’s vehicle traveling at a speed that appeared to be well above the posted speed limit of 65 miles per hour. When the officer pulled over the vehicle, McIntyre showed signs of intoxication, the officer reported. McIntyre submitted to a blood draw about an hour later; the result was a blood alcohol level of 0.143.

McIntyre pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated in October 2018. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail, with privileges that allow inmates to leave jail for work. He had two prior convictions for the same offense—in March 2003 and in August 2014.

McIntyre had no prior record of discipline. He did not immediately respond to an email request for comment by the ABA Journal sent to his email address at Husch Blackwell before his profile was removed from the firm’s website.

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