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Chicago-area lawyer Alison H. Motta has been recommended a stayed suspension for her unprofessional conduct during a criminal trial in 2017. The recommendation was made by the hearing board of the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission in a March 29 report and recommendation. The board recommended a 90-day suspension, stayed by one year of probation, for Motta.
Motta was accused of repeatedly muttering under her breath and visibly reacting after a federal judge overruled her objections during a January 2017 criminal trial in Chicago. The judge heard Motta’s profanity-laden comment when it was picked up on the courtroom audio. Motta had commented that the judge warned her to stop her unprofessional conduct several times. Additionally, despite a sign banning photos, Motta took photos during the prosecutor’s closing argument.
Motta testified that she did not think the microphone would pick up her comment and intended only her co-counsel and intern to hear it. She also stated that she took photos during the closing argument because prosecutors had broken down a video into still frames identified by a series of numbers. Prosecutors then described what each frame supposedly showed. Motta said she took a photo because she thought the defense team needed more time to write down all the numbers, and she wanted to use the same images in her closing.
Motta’s conduct in the federal case in Chicago led to her suspension from practice in federal court there for 90 days. She was also accused of misconduct for pretrial statements about two Nebraska homicide prosecutions in March 2016. Motta had been admitted pro hac vice in Nebraska to represent the homicide suspect, who was arrested in Illinois.
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Motta told local news media in Nebraska that DNA evidence in the case against her client matched the DNA of a different suspect in a different murder. She said the evidence “conclusively exonerated” her client and hoped the charges would be dropped. Nevada ethics rules bar lawyers from making extrajudicial statements with a material likelihood of prejudicing a court proceeding. She was reprimanded in Nebraska for the conduct.
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The Illinois hearing board concluded that there were “extensive mitigating and minimal aggravating factors” in the ethics case. Motta accepted responsibility for her actions and understood that her conduct was wrong. She has no prior misconduct, and character witnesses testified to her excellent reputation. Motta is passionate about criminal law and is driven to take cases involving injustice, the underprivileged, and minorities. She often discounts her fees or takes nominal payments if she sees injustice or thinks people have been targeted because of their race.
Motta also represents people losing their homes pro bono and works with a charitable organization she founded called the Jacktivists. The organization uses the resources of fans of the band My Morning Jacket to raise money for charities and promote petition drives for causes such as voting, gun safety, and the environment. Motta’s passion outside of the law is live music and especially the band My Morning Jacket.
In conclusion, Motta’s unprofessional conduct during a criminal trial in Chicago has resulted in a recommended stayed suspension by the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission hearing board. Although Motta has been involved in misconduct previously, she has no prior misconduct. Her passion for criminal law, her pro bono work for underprivileged individuals, and her charitable work were considered mitigating factors in the case.
