On Friday, March 17, 2023, the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommended that attorney Bonnie B. Humprey’s petition for reinstatement be approved. The case is entitled “In the Matter of Bonnie B. Humprey,” and was brought by the Office of the Disciplinary Counsel with case no. 22-DB-028.

During the hearing for the petitioner’s reinstatement, the main issue was whether or not the petitioner had carried her burden of proof showing her eligibility to be readmitted. Several people gave testimony in support of the petitioner’s request. The committee was very impressed with the credibility of the witnesses, all of whom were accomplished members of the community, who gave clear and consistent testimony concerning their professional and personal relationships with the petitioner. This testimony was completely in the latter’s favor and it was not weakened by the dignified and polite cross-examination.

The filing states:

“The committee believes that the testimony of Col. Linda Rohatsch sums up the entire record with respect to the Petitioner’s honesty and integrity:

Yes, sir, happy to. First, I’ll touch on my professional relationship with Bonnie. Bonnie – I wrote a letter, and I don’t have it in front of me. I’m having some IT challenges today. But Bonnie is a consummate professional. I- I- honestly, I’ve never worked with anyone with the heart that she has and the tenacity that she has. In the branch that she leads, she’s responsible for covering the S54 states and US territories where she has approximately- I mean, a maximum of 113 folks beneath her. She’s professional; she’s caring; she’s tenacious; she produces quality work. She’s the person – if you’re going to need something is done that’s done perfectly, she’s the one you go to.”

The filing continues:

“This evidence, the committee believes, shows a true act of redemption and this was recognized by Mr. Plattsmier on page 91 of the transcript where he stated:

“And, first of all, I will tell you that, based on everything I’ve heard in the testimony and the interview I conducted with Ms. Humphrey, I believe she is to be commended for doing an amazing job of picking up her life and moving forward with that life. And I think that we can all probably feel the same way.”

In consideration of the positive and strong testimonies of people in support of the petitioner, along with the fact that the latter proved to the court that she has satisfied her MCLE requirements, and paid all the dues she owed to the bar, the board recommended for the petitioner’s reinstatement.

The Recommendation states:

“The committee finds that the Petitioner has carried her burden of proof by “clear and convincing evidence” and recommends that she be readmitted to the practice of law under two conditions. Before discussing those conditions, the Committee must mention that the Petitioner testified that she does not intend to return to the practice of law in Louisiana. Rather, she intends to continue working for the federal government until retirement. However, being readmitted to the practice of law in Louisiana would allow her to gain admittance to the federal bar and practice law in the federal system. See Transcript pp. 144-146. Nevertheless, should the Petitioner change her mind about practicing law in Louisiana, the Committee must account for that potentiality. Given the time period, she has been away from the practice, certain conditions should be placed on the Petitioner’s readmission.”

Ms. Humprey practices in New Orleans, Louisiana. She is licensed in Louisiana. Her info can be found on lawyer-map.com.

A copy of the original filing can be found here.