Suspended Attorney Is Criminally Charged, Along with Elderly Client, in Another Foreclosed Home Case
A suspended California lawyer who was criminally charged earlier this month in connection with another client’s foreclosed home is in the news again.
This time it’s because Michael Theodore Pines, 59, is charged along with his former client, Hector Zepeda, who is in his 70s, with breaking into the Newport Coast home Zepeda lost in foreclosure, according to the Orange County Register.
Both are charged with second-degree burglary, unauthorized entry of a dwelling and a misdemeanor count of vandalism.
Pines considers himself a “modern-day Henry David Thoreau,” who, like the 19th-century writer and abolitionist, sees certain illegal behavior as a morally justifiable former of civil disobedience, the State Bar of California, which disagrees with Pines’ alleged views, has stated.
Earlier coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Foreclosure Lawyer Goes Extra Mile, Helps Clients Break Into Their Former Homes”
ABAJournal.com: “Lawyer Who Advised Clients to Break Into Foreclosed Homes Faces Criminal Charges”
