Court Opinion

ID: 9537003
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 07:10:52.859022+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:55:41.944706
License: Public Domain

MANIPELLA, Special Justice
(dissenting).
With all respect to the majority of my fellow special justices for a written opinion based on hard work and conscientious attention to all matters before us for consideration, I must dissent with the opinion voiced by the majority while concurring with a part thereof.
I would agree and concur with the majority opinion in the finding that the opinion of the Board of Governors should be affirmed. The Board of Governors was performing a fact finding function primarily in deciding whether the applicant Grimes had rehabilitated himself sufficiently to be approved for reinstatement. This was the extent of the directions of the court as stated in the opinion of the majority as follows:
“Upon the respondent making an application for reinstatement, the Executive Counsel is hereby directed to conduct an investigation and submit to this court its findings and recommendation as they deem appropriate and necessary.”
The opinion of the majority of the Board of Governors was proper and in keeping with the evidence presented and the limitations of their function as set forth by the decision of the court. In this I concur.
Uppermost in my consideration, however, is the major premise before this court that all previous decisions and orders of the *638court are properly subject to review or modification at any time.
The court in its decision rendered on September 13, 1967, discussed and reviewed all of the matters before it and no good purpose would be served in further repetition thereof.
The court specifically found that there was a combination of unfounded, irresponsible charges of bribery and also specific substantiated charges of bribery subsequently proven to be true.
This rather unique situation must have certainly piqued the conscience of the court as evidenced by the references to the majority opinion wherein it was stated that six and one-half years of disbarment was sufficient disciplinary punishment. This same thought was also reflected in the dissenting opinion by Justice Hodges, but his dissent was based on the fact that the extent of punishment was not open for consideration at that time and should only be considered when properly presented.
In this present convening of this court, we have been given the opportunity of examining the case again in toto. Based on the arguments of counsel and the briefs of the applicant and respondent which covered all aspects of this case I can only conclude that the applicant is entitled to further relief and modification of the order of disbarment previously entered herein. In addition, it might be noted that wherein the previous court was concerned with a term of six and one-half years of disbarment, we have the further passage of time to consider and it may be noted that the applicant has now been disbarred for over 11 years.
I can only conclude that if the theory of equitable consideration is to be given adequate consideration in the fullest sense, the order of disbarment should be further modified by terminating same at this time.
The applicant and his behavior was the end product of an era of judicial climate in Oklahoma which certainly needed to be publicized and destroyed. The fact that the court on the judiciary had not been created was no fault of the applicant. He had apparently sought many different forums to act on his accusations, all to no avail.
I would therefore hold that the applicant has been sufficiently punished for his rash and irresponsible statements which were not subsequently proven.
However, compatible with the doctrine of equitable consideration I would also hold that because of the truthful assertions of bribery made by the applicant as borne out by the subsequent events of impeachment and resignation of the justices concerned therein, the order of disbarment should be further modified by terminating the disbarment forthwith.
The applicant should be reinstated.