Disbarred Attorney from Marshfield, Mass. charged with stealing more than $1 Million

[Ian David]

TRIAL BEGINS FOR MARSHFIELD ATTORNEY CHARGED WITH STEALING MORE THAN $1 MILLION FROM CLIENTS
August 6, 2007
CONTACT: Beth Stone
[phone]

BROCKTON – A jury has been empanelled and trial has begun for a disbarred Marshfield attorney charged with allegedly stealing $1.2 million from clients in six of his own cases. Gerard Battista, age 59, of Norwell, is charged with Larceny over $250 (5 counts) and Larceny over $250 From a Person Over 60.

The Attorney General's Office began investigating Battista in December 2005, after the Board of Bar Overseers referred several complaints against Battista. The complaints alleged that in several instances Battista had been entrusted with large sums of clients' money that he then failed to return to them.

According to authorities, in six instances Battista took money from clients and in five instances did not return it. In total, it is alleged that Battista stole more than $1 million from clients in these instances.

Battista was indicted on the charges August 18, 2006. Today, a jury was empanelled and the trial got underway in Brockton Superior Court. The prosecutor assigned to this case is Assistant Attorney General James O'Brien.

http://www.ago.state.ma.us/sp.cfm?pageid=986&id=1990

[no_hypocrisy]

1. What I don't understand is how he thought he could get away with that.

The state monitors your professional clients' account like a hawk. They look at bank statements and your accounts. $1.2 million?!

[Turbineguy]

2. Maybe

he was thinking of running for office. As a republican naturally.

[DURHAM D]

3. He wasn't actually thinking he could get away with it.

He wasn't actually thinking. It probably went up his nose. Or perhaps he has a gambling addiction.

As a CPA friend (investigates these kind of cases) recently told me - when attorneys steal large sums they usually find during the course of the investigation that the perp has no money. They don't find any assets.