On Thursday, May 22, 2025, the Supreme Court of Illinois suspended attorney Richard Boling from practicing law in the state for five years, effective June 12, 2025, following a reciprocal discipline order based on his prior suspension in Kentucky.
The case is entitled “In the Matter of Richard Boling,” with case no. M.R.032576.
The decision aligns with a ruling by the Supreme Court of Kentucky, which imposed a five-year suspension on Boling in June 2023. The Illinois order also mandates that Boling remain suspended until he is reinstated in Kentucky and requires him to reimburse the Client Protection Program Trust Fund for any payments made due to his conduct.
Boling faced disciplinary action stemming from two incidents during his tenure as Christian County Commonwealth’s Attorney in Kentucky. The first incident involved a letter Boling wrote in December 2019 to then-Governor Matt Bevin, advocating for a pardon for Dayton Jones, who was convicted of sodomy, wanton endangerment, and distribution of material portraying a sexual performance by a minor.
The letter, written on official Commonwealth’s Attorney letterhead, falsely suggested that the prosecution of Jones was politically motivated and involved corruption among the local Democratic Party, the prosecutor, the judge, and Jones’s attorney. Boling later issued a public apology, clarifying that the statements reflected the beliefs of Jones’s grandparents, who had donated $1,500 to his 2018 re-election campaign, rather than his own views.
The Kentucky Supreme Court found that Boling’s actions violated rules prohibiting false statements about judicial integrity and dishonest conduct.
The second incident occurred during the 2019 trial of Karen Brafman, whom Boling prosecuted for arson and attempted murder. During a recorded conversation with a detective, Boling learned that Brafman appeared intoxicated at the time of her arrest, a fact that could have supported a voluntary intoxication defense. However, Boling did not disclose this information to the defense and opposed a jury instruction on voluntary intoxication, arguing that no evidence corroborated Brafman’s claim of intoxication.
In his closing argument, he stated that no witness testified to Brafman’s intoxication, despite his knowledge of the detective’s observation. The Kentucky Supreme Court reversed Brafman’s convictions in 2020, citing Boling’s conduct as rendering the trial fundamentally unfair. The court determined that Boling violated rules requiring prosecutors to disclose exculpatory evidence and prohibiting false statements to a tribunal.
The Kentucky Bar Association initiated disciplinary proceedings against Boling in February 2020, and a trial commissioner recommended a five-year suspension, which the Kentucky Supreme Court upheld. Boling resigned as Commonwealth’s Attorney in February 2023.
The Illinois Supreme Court’s decision to impose reciprocal discipline was based on Illinois Supreme Court Rule 763, which allows for equivalent discipline when an attorney is sanctioned in another jurisdiction. The Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission noted that Boling failed to report his Kentucky discipline as required, and the commission learned of it through other sources in December 2024.
Boling had no prior disciplinary history. In mitigation, he offered apologies for the Jones letter and presented character witnesses. However, aggravating factors included his position of public trust as a prosecutor, a pattern of dishonesty, and his failure to acknowledge the wrongful nature of his actions in the Brafman case.
The Disposition states:
“Petition by the Administrator of the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission to impose reciprocal discipline pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 763. Respondent Richard Boling, who has been disciplined in the State of Kentucky, is suspended from the practice of law in the State of Illinois for five (5) years and until he is reinstated to the practice of law in the State of Kentucky.”
According to Avvo.com, Mr. Boling attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He acquired his law license in Illinois in 1994.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
