Legal Ethics

Prosecutor In Hot Water For Using A Wiretap To Spy On A Love Interest

Love triangle gone very wrong.

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Treason.Yeah… this is how not to do legal ethics.

In a tale that’s being touted as a “love triangle gone wrong” a Brooklyn prosecutor, Tara Lenich, is under arrest for allegedly using the wiretap capabilities available as part of her work to spy on a love interest, who just happens to be a NYPD detective. The exact nature of the detective and Lenich’s relationship is still unknown, and Lenich had also forged documents to eavesdrop on an unnamed woman’s phone. As the New York Times reports:

The prosecutor, Tara Lenich, was taken into custody and fired after investigators in the district attorney’s office learned over Thanksgiving weekend that she had conducted the illicit surveillance because of “a personal entanglement between her and the detective,” according to the law enforcement official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the delicate nature of the case. The authorities did not release the name of the detective, a man, or Ms. Lenich’s colleague, a female assistant district attorney.

Lenich faces 20 counts of possession of a forged instrument and two counts of eavesdropping.

The scheme went on for over a year, and required Lenich to allegedly fabricate a complex web to avoid the suspicion of co-workers:

Before her arrest, Ms. Lenich, 41, was a deputy bureau chief of the district attorney’s office’s Violent Criminal Enterprises Bureau, which specializes in using tactics like wiretaps to combat criminal gangs and drug organizations. Most wiretaps are valid for 30 days before they need to be renewed by a judge. But the law enforcement official said that Ms. Lenich repeatedly forged judges’ signatures to keep the eavesdropping scheme running for about a year. She also tried to avoid suspicion by telling fellow prosecutors that she had undertaken a secret investigation on behalf of the Police Department’s Internal Affairs Bureau and was the only person who could have access to the wiretap, the official said.

Lenich has since posted bail. A spokesperson for the DA’s office said they’ve “ordered a comprehensive review of our protocols and procedures to make sure that this abuse of authority never happens again.” One would certainly hope so.

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Brooklyn Prosecutor Accused of Using Illegal Wiretap to Spy on Love Interest [New York Times]

headshotKathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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