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Chicago attorney faced with reciprocal law license suspension for fatal crash

By: Michaela Paukner, [email protected]//April 28, 2020//

Chicago attorney faced with reciprocal law license suspension for fatal crash

By: Michaela Paukner, [email protected]//April 28, 2020//

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A Chicago attorney who lost his Illinois law license after a fatal drunken-driving crash may receive a reciprocal punishment in Wisconsin.

The Office of Lawyer Regulation filed a complaint against Attorney Guy Norman Maras in April providing details of Maras’ felony charge related to the crash and his punishment from the Supreme Court of Illinois.

Maras was convicted of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle for his friend’s death in July 2018. Maras and the friend had been staying at a cabin in Oconto County and drove to a nearby gas station to buy cigars. The complaint said Maras had been drinking and was driving about 100 miles an hour on the way back to the cabin. He lost control of the car and crashed into a tree stump. The impact caused his friend to be thrown from the car. The man died from the trauma.

According to the complaint, Maras told sheriff’s officials at the crash scene that he had four scotch drinks about two hours before the crash. A witness told police Maras also made several statements at the scene saying he killed his friend because of his alcoholism. Officials arrested Maras for operating while intoxicated.

Maras pleaded guilty to the felony homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and was sentenced to three years of incarceration and 10 years of supervision, both stayed. He also has to serve one year of actual jail time on work release, perform 80 hours of community service, complete 15 years of probation and pay a $5,000 fine.

As a result of the conviction, the Supreme Court of Illinois suspended Maras’ Illinois law license for three years and until further order of the court, although the suspension was stayed after six months by a three-year period of probation. The conditions of his probation call for abstaining from using alcohol and drugs, undergoing random substance testing, participating in a 12-step program and meeting with a probation officer from the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois concerning the status of Maras’ practice of law.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court will now decide whether to impose reciprocal discipline on Maras. The OLR is asking the Wisconsin Supreme Court to suspend Maras’ Wisconsin license for six months and order him to comply with the probationary terms of the Illinois order.

Maras was licensed to practice law in Illinois in 1995 and Wisconsin in 2009.

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