Feds expand case against defense lawyer charged with perjury, indict another attorney
A criminal defense lawyer considered a rising star in Chicago prior to his federal indictment last year for perjury and obstruction of justice is now facing an expanded criminal case.
In a superseding indictment made public Friday, Beau Brindley is accused of encouraging witnesses to lie in five cases and making false statements in filings in a sixth case, the Chicago Tribune reports.
The new indictment also names as a defendant another lawyer in Brindley’s office. Attorney Michael Thompson is accused of conspiring with Brindley to encourage witnesses to lie under oath and to obstruct justice, reports the Chicago Sun-Times (sub. req.), which provides a link to the superseding indictment (PDF).
The Sun-Times said Thompson could not be reached for comment Friday. But Brindley has previously denied the charges and continued to appear in federal court in Chicago on behalf of clients.
The two are accused of lying when they said a client had taken the Fifth to avoid testifying before a grand jury in a murder case and falsely claiming that a client was too sick to come to court.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Feds raid criminal defense lawyer’s office, seek conflict hearings in multiple cases”
Chicago Tribune: “In role reversal, defense attorney pleads not guilty to perjury”
Chicago Tribune: “Witness who lied at trial to cooperate against criminal defense lawyer”
