Colorado lawyer faces suspension after accusations he 'joked about sex, rape and child pornography'
Gabriel Nathan Schwartz, a controversial Colorado lawyer, will be suspended from practicing law for six months after he allegedly joked about sex, rape and child pornography. He's also accused of engaging in sexual banter with paralegals, slapped one paralegal on her butt and put his arm around a teenage girl and told her "to come see him when she turned 18."
The disciplinary order, obtained by CBS4, will take effect Sept. 13, 2022, although all of the incidents detailed in the disciplinary order took place four or five years ago. It's unclear why Schwartz is being disciplined now for events that took place several years ago.
State records show Schwartz was ordered to serve a one year and one day suspension in 2019 for an unrelated case.
In 2008, Schwartz gained a degree of notoriety when he reported he was drugged and robbed when he was a delegate to the Republican convention in Minneapolis. He said he took a woman to his hotel room during the convention, had a couple of drinks but says that was the last thing he remembers. He told police he believes he was drugged and the woman made off with about $50,000 worth of his belongings.
The latest discipline suggests Schwartz engaged in a pattern of sexual harassment and unwelcome sexual banter with co-workers and subordinates.
In 2017, Schwartz was mentoring a law student but during lunch one day, the student "reported that Schwartz commented on the physical attractiveness of his opposing counsel and joked about sex, rape and child pornography."
According the the disciplinary order, Schwartz said "he was attempting to explain to the law student the type of clients she would represent as a criminal defense lawyer."
In another case, Schwartz is accused of slapping a paralegal on the buttocks with his open hand.
"Schwartz did so after the paralegal told him not to. Later, in another incident, Schwartz put his arm around the paralegal's child and told the child to come see him when she turned 18," the order states.
CBS4 attempted to contact Schwartz but a voicemail left for the attorney, and emails were not returned. He was found by state regulators to have engaged in "professional misconduct."
