Possibly The Greatest Ethical Misstep Ever

Prosecutor forced to resign over DJ gigs.

UPDATE (10/26/17 1:10 p.m.): We think we’ve learned this guy’s actual DJ name. See below.

Sometimes you’re just reading a piece about a Florida politician forced to resign in disgrace after pleading guilty to a campaign finance violation and wondering if that’s even a crime down there when the perfunctory follow-up paragraph gobsmacks you with some pure, unfiltered Florida.

Per the Miami Herald’s coverage of Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Grieco’s current plight:

Grieco, a former assistant state attorney, was investigated by the same office that once employed him. He resigned from the Miami-Dade state attorney’s office in 2006 after an ethical misstep — he was accused of using his position as the prosecutor on a high-profile case to promote his side job as a weekend nightclub disc jockey.

When people say, “only in Florida” this is what they’re talking about. A shady Southern prosecutor uses his position to inflate his portfolio of private prison stock — a shady Florida prosecutor leverages his job to spin more Pitbull.

The 2006 case that earned Grieco a swift departure from the state attorney’s office was the prosecution of the late Sean Taylor, the Miami football star who faced felony assault charges while with the Washington Racist Nicknames. As that case plodded forward, one of Taylor’s attorneys noticed some media coverage about the case on a random DJ’s website:

Sharpstein said Grieco’s Web site, which as of Tuesday night contained profane language, erotic photographs and numerous messages from people claiming to have partied with Grieco, inappropriately provided links to media coverage of the Taylor case. Those links, Sharpstein said, demonstrated Grieco’s desire to use the Taylor case “for his personal gain and publicity.”

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There are so many questions here. Did he only go to law school to make ends meet while pursuing the real dream of becoming the next Skrillex? How was it possible for a prosecutor to have a gig at any South Beach club and not instantly be confronted with a bevy of conflicts of interest ranging from underaged drinking to under-the-table compensation to knowing too much about Tony Montana’s operation? But the only question that seems especially pressing is what DJ name properly befits a sitting prosecutor? MC Lesser Charge? DJ JD? EDM Esq.?

These are the real questions that keep you up at night.

UPDATE (10/26/17 1:10 p.m.): And this wondering shall plague us no longer! A tipster with personal knowledge of Grieco’s years as a DJ reports his name was… DJ Esquire. That’s so perfect.

UPDATE 2 (10/26/17 1:45 p.m.): If you’re interested in the sort of work DJ Esquire was doing, here are some old bulletin board posts. One fan put it:

This guy’s career is over. Also he may never see another courtroom.

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Proved you wrong. It counts as seeing another courtroom when you plead guilty to campaign finance violations, sucka!

Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Grieco will resign as he faces criminal charge [Miami Herald]
Prosecutor Resigns From Taylor Case [Washington Post]


HeadshotJoe Patrice is an editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.