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Legal Ethics

Suspended Texas Lawyer’s ‘Sextortion’ Conviction is Upheld

Posted Oct 8, 2008, 06:34 pm CDT
By Martha Neil

A suspended Texas lawyer who was convicted, along with his attorney wife, of misusing the civil litigation system in a scheme to extort money from men who had sex with her, has lost an appeal.

The 4th Court of Appeals today upheld Ted Roberts' 2007 conviction on three counts of theft by deception and coercion, reports the San Antonio Express-News. He reportedly threatened to file, but never actually filed, court petitions threatening to reveal the affairs to employers and spouses of several men with whom Mary Roberts had sex.

"A Bexar County jury determined Ted Roberts lied when he told the men the money would go to charity. Instead, it helped the Ted and Mary buy a new home and finance their law firm," the newspaper article notes. Law bloggers have called it a "sextortion" case.

Mary Roberts, who is also suspended from practice, has also filed an appeal of her conviction which hasn't yet been decided, the article notes.

Her husband was sentenced to five years in jail, which has been stayed while he appeals, and she got 10 years of probation.

The couple has been bankrupted by their legal woes, and, in an opinion (PDF) last year, the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of an invasion of privacy suit filed on the Roberts' behalf by the bankruptcy trustee against the newspaper's publisher.

Earlier coverage:

ABAJournal.com: "Lawyer Seeks New Trial in Sex-Cash Case"

ABAJournal.com: "Lawyer Jailed for Extorting Wife’s Lovers"

Hat tip: How Appealing.

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