Most people mistakenly believe their constitutional rights, especially free speech ones, will protect them from prosecution. Yet two recent cases illustrate otherwise.
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F. Andino Reynal
Reynal was retained by Jones in 2021 to represent him during a trial where the jury ordered him to pay nearly $50 million to families of Newtown massacre victims as compensation for calling it an elaborate hoax on his Infowars website and radio show, but could face possible sanctions due to providing lawyers representing parents suing Jones with access to digital copies of his phone contents, such as text messages and medical records, according to court documents.
Reynal engaged Bankston in an emotionally charged exchange at the conclusion of Wednesday’s session, in which Reynal accused him of lying numerous times before giving him the middle finger and creating an uproar in front of jurors. Reynal attempted to present new video evidence after contending that Bankston presented incomplete and cherry-picked video clips. State Judge Maya Guerra Gamble told Reynal he could not do so due to exceeding the scheduled closing arguments time frame.
John Heos
John Heos was the attorney who flipped the bird during oral arguments of an appellate case taking place on Zoom. Representing the defendant in this particular instance and arguing against plaintiff, Heos was unaware that Zoom was recording them until later denied he flipped it when speaking about computer screens that weren’t working correctly.
Heos testified that he and Lanita Battle, another staff member, were outside with the children when Conoly allowed them to climb onto the fire truck, before going inside and continuing to watch from a window. Cunningham testified that Heos instructed the teens off of it; she did not recall hearing Him directly tell her to do this herself. According to Heos’ claim he left shortly before the accident happened; remaining outside with them for roughly thirty minutes prior.
Tamara Curtis
Tamara Curtis, the Broward County public defender who was widely condemned by Parkland victims’ parents for laughing and flipping the bird during Nikolas Cruz’s trial, is currently under investigation by the Florida Bar. A spokesperson confirmed to Law&Crime that Curtis is currently under a “pending” investigation by their organization.
Curtis recently created headlines with her behavior during a pretrial hearing when she appeared to rub her middle finger against her cheek while laughing with Cruz at their defense table – prompting several families of murdered victims to criticize Curtis in victim impact statements and social media posts. A video clip captured this incident and went viral, prompting several families to send statements criticizing Curtis as soon as it had gone public.
The Bar’s rules of professional conduct require lawyers to abide by legal protocols, as well as those who serve the legal system. Curtis’ actions go against everything we stand for at the Bar; we must remove her to demonstrate our justice system’s zero-tolerance for mocking victims or their families.
Mark Bankston
Lawyer Mark Bankston hails from Texas and is an accomplished litigator who specializes in high-profile cases. His expertise has helped numerous families and individuals hold wrongdoers accountable.
He is currently representing the parents of those killed in the Sandy Hook massacre and are seeking damages of $150 Million from Alex Jones for calling it an all-out hoax.
Bankston recently exposed an oversight by Infowars lawyers while arguing over text messages sent to plaintiffs that should be provided to a House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. Media outlets such as The Washington Post, NBC News and Law360 reported this development from court proceedings in Travis County.
Reynal accused Bankston of lying and raised his middle finger at him – known as “flipping the bird”. This gesture has its roots in Roman times and has often been employed as part of political protest.