Today's stunning news that controversial attorney and anti-gaming zealot Jack Thompson will be disbarred for life from practicing law by the Supreme Court of Florida seems to have done little to faze the attorney himself. In response to our request for comment Thompson sent Kotaku a copy of an emergency motion he filed with the federal court. In the motion Thompson outlines what he hints at as a perversion of justice, one that won't allow him, for instance, to meet with a potential client who he says is an inmate in a state prison. Thompson also sent over a press release saying that the disbarment is in retaliation for, among other things, Thompson's Tyndale House book Out of Harm's Way which he says blew the whistle on what he describes as the Florida Supreme Court's attack on his activism against the American entertainment industry.
The timing of this disbarment transparently reveals its motivation: This past Friday Thompson filed a federal civil rights action against The Bar, the Supreme Court, and all seven of its Justices. This rush to disbarment is in retribution for the filing of that federal suit. With enemies this foolish, Thompson needs only the loyal friends he has.
The emails from Thompson wrap up with: "...this should be fun, starting now" Full press release and motion are on the jump for your perusal.Immediate News Release – Sept. 25, 2008 Miami Attorney Jack Thompson Disbarred by Florida Supreme Court Miami attorney Jack Thompson, nationally and internationally known by virtue of his effective and successful opposition over the last 20 years to the broadcast, marketing, and sale of adult-rated entertainment to children, has just been informed by the Florida Supreme Court that he has been disbarred from the practice of law today. This disbarment is in retaliation, among other things, for Thompson's Tyndale House book Out of Harm's Way, published in 2005, which blew the whistle on the Florida Supreme Court's earlier efforts in the 1990's to literally pathologize his faith-based and successful activism against the American entertainment industry. The Florida Bar's insurance carrier was forced to pay Thompson money damages for that earlier assault upon his First Amendment rights, which is the only known payment of damages by any state bar to any lawyer for improper disciplinary efforts. It appears that the State of Florida will be paying Thompson more damages this time around for its illegal, now repeated, use of "discipline" to punish a Christian lawyer for his activism in the public square. The timing of this disbarment transparently reveals its motivation: This past Friday Thompson filed a federal civil rights action against The Bar, the Supreme Court, and all seven of its Justices. This rush to disbarment is in retribution for the filing of that federal suit. With enemies this foolish, Thompson needs only the loyal friends he has. Thompson looks forward to successfully litigating his federal claims, now before US District Court Judge Marcia Cooke in the Southern District of Florida. Thompson always wanted to own a Bar. Now, armed with multiple US Supreme Court rulings that no state bar can do what it has done to Thompson, he is set to own that Bar. IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT IN AND FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA CASE NO. 08-22603-CIV-JUDGE COOKE/MAGISTRATE BANDSTRA JOHN B. THOMPSON, Plaintiff, v. THE FLORIDA BAR; THE SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA; RAOUL G. CANTERO, INDIVIDUALLY; THE FOLLOWING INDIVIDUALLY AND IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES: CHIEF JUSTICE PEGGY A. QUINCE, JUSTICE CHARLES T. WELLS, JUSTICE HARRY LEE ANSTEAD, JUSTICE BARBARA J. PARIENTE, JUSTICE R. FRED LEWIS, JUSTICE KENNETH B. BELL, JUSTICE CHARLES T. CANADY; THE FOLLOWING INDIVIDUALLY: REFEREE DAVA J. TUNIS, BENEDICT KUEHNE, THE ESTATE OF STEVE CHAYKIN, BARNABY MIN, SHEILA TUMA, KEN BRYK, JAN WICHROWSKI, BARRY RICHARD; THE FOLLOWING FLORIDA BAR EMPLOYEES INDIVIDUALLY AND IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES: JACK HARKNESS, JOHN BERRY, KEN MARVIN, PAUL HILL, MARY ELLEN BATEMAN; THE FOLLOWING FORMER FLORIDA BAR OFFICERS INDIVIDUALLY: KELLY OVERSTREET JOHNSON, ALAN BOOKMAN, HENRY COXE, FRANK ANGONES; THE FOLLOWING INDIVIDUALLY AS WELL AS IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES WITH AND FOR THE FLORIDA BAR: PRESIDENT JOHN G. WHITE, PRESIDENT-ELECT JESSE DINER, BAR GOVERNORS RAMON ABADIN, ALVIN ALSOBROOK, ALLISON BETHEL, ROBERT BRUSH, ARNELL BRYANT-WILLIS, BRIAN BURGOON, DOMINIC CAPARELLO, JAY COHEN, JEWEL COLE, GREGORY COLEMAN, IAN COMISKY, DANIEL DECUBELLIS, MAYANNE DOWNS, CHARLES EBBETS, STEPHEN ECHSNER, EVIN GONZALEZ, NANCY GREGOIRE, ROGER HAUGHEY, SCOTT HAWKINS, JACK HICKEY, DENNIS KAINEN, WILLIAM KALISH, LAIRD LILE, DENISE LYN, CLIFTON MCCLELLAND, SCOTT MCMILLEN, ERIC MEEKS, EUGENE PETTIS, DAVID PRATHER, ANDREW RINGERS, DAVID ROTHMAN, JULIET ROULHAC, CLIFFORD SANBORN, ANDREW SASSO, EDWIN SCALES, JOHN SCHICKEL, WILLIAM SCHIFINO, CLAY SCHNITKER, CARL SCHWAIT, LAWRENCE SELLERS, MURRAY SILVERSTEIN, LISA SMALL, JOHN STEWART, RICHARD TANNER, NORMAN VAUGHAN-BIRCH, FRANK WALKER, SAMUEL WELLS, and GWYNNE YOUNG. Defendants. PLAINTIFF'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO STAY FLORIDA SUPREME COURT'S PERMANENT DISBARMENT ORDER OF SEPTEMBER 25, 2008 COMES NOW PLAINTIFF, on his own behalf, and moves this federal court, pursuant to the applicable Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, for the following emergency relief on the following grounds, stating: 1. All seventy-seven defendants have been served with the complaint herein; thus, they are all fully on notice as to the nature of this suit, the relief sought, and the basis therefor. 2. Today, at approximately 11 am, on September 25, 2008, the Florida Supreme Court, has entered an order, a copy of which is attached hereto, permanently disbarring plaintiff Thompson, the respondent therein, effective in thirty days. Thus, the clock is now running on those thirty days. This is an emergency. 3. Under this order, Thompson is unable, for example, to meet, as he is scheduled to do next Friday, with Richard Gorman, who is an inmate in a state prison for the purpose of being retained by him as his lawyer. Mr. Gorman is sitting in his prison cell solely because of the unethical conduct of Assistant State Attorney Matthew Alex Smith and the obstruction of justice by the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar. The attached Report of No Probable Cause is a smoking gun document that proves that the entire Board of Governors of The Florida Bar is involved in a cover-up in order to keep this innocent man in jail, all for the purpose of protecting the corrupt Leon County State Attorney's Office. It is the single most remarkable document Thompson has ever seen in his 31-year legal career. It indicts the entire Bar's disciplinary process which in that instance is being perverted to keep an innocent man in jail. It is little wonder that these same Governors would then do to Thompson what they have demonstrably done over the past four years. 4. Thompson was to meet with Mr. Gorman for the purpose of securing his release from jail, and now Thompson cannot be retained by Mr. Gorman for that or for any other purpose. Thus, one of the consequences of this disbarment order is not only Thompson's inconvenience, to say the least, but more importantly the thwarting of the retention of Thompson by an innocent man in jail who is the victim of the obstruction of justice of The Florida Bar and its Governors. 5. Plaintiff herein thus seeks an immediate stay, on an emergency basis, of the Florida Supreme Court's disbarment order because he can show a substantial likelihood of success on the merits, irreparable harm unless the injunction issues, including public damage to his career and to the rights of others, such as those of Mr. Gorman, that this harm far outweighs any conceivable harm to defendants if the injunction issues, and that the injunction will not disserve but actually serve the public interest. 6. Further, there are demonstrable factual errors in the disbarment order itself, which provide the basis for the disbarment, which can be easily and quickly proven. Additionally, it is fascinating that Justice Cannady, who has undoubtedly reviewed absolutely nothing about this disciplinary case, has put his name to this disbarment order on the day that he was served with the federal civil rights action. What a coincidence. WHEREFORE, plaintiff respectfully seeks an order, on an emergency basis, staying the Florida Supreme Court's disbarment order until such time as an evidentiary hearing, either before Judge Cooke or Magistrate Bandstra, can be secured as to the granting of apreliminary injunction sought in the complaint. I HEREBY CERTIFY that this pleading has been provided to all defendants and/or their counsel by various means, including fax and e-mail, this September 25, 2008. JOHN B. THOMPSON, Plaintiff Attorney, Florida Bar #231665