Lawyer Reprimanded For Being A Concerned Friend

Would you violate your ethical responsibilities for a friend?

Many women pride ourselves on being good friends. If there is a breakup, there you are with a tub of ice cream and a bottle (or 4) of wine. A death in the family, here’s a casserole and a Hallmark card. And if your bestie needs you to bury a body, there you are with a shovel.

So if your friend was dating a new guy, would you do some snooping to see if he had any skeletons in his closet? What if your job provided you with access to a comprehensive database of criminal offenses? Even if you knew it was against the ethical guidelines of your profession, would you do it?

One Ohio attorney, Erin Rosen, did just that (okay — she looked up info on her own dates as well). Earlier this week, the Supreme Court of Ohio publicly reprimanded Rosen for using criminal databases she had access to as an Assistant Attorney General (emphasis added):

On October 6, 2014, relator, disciplinary counsel, charged Rosen with professional misconduct for conduct that occurred between August 2007 and August 2008 while Rosen, then an Assistant Attorney General in the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, was serving as general counsel for the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway (“OHLEG”). OHLEG allows criminal justice agencies and their personnel access to several data systems, some of which contain confidential information reserved for law-enforcement personnel only. Relator alleged that Rosen improperly accessed the OHLEG system to seek information about four individuals that either she or her friends were dating.

This public call out may seem a little harsh to laypeople… after all, all Rosen did was indulge a little natural curiosity. But, as Cincinnati.com reported when the allegations against Rosen first broke, it could have been a lot worse for her.

Like “felony conviction” bad.

So in the grand scheme of things, resigning your position and having misdeeds from 7 years ago become public knowledge are small prices to pay. Plus it is great leverage against your friend should you ever have your own body to bury.

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(Read the full reprimand on the next page…)

Reprimand For Improper Access To Dating Partner Information [Legal Profession Blog]
WATCHDOG: Attorney used database to snoop on boyfriend [Cincinnati.com]

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