David Kenner, an attorney for Fugees rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michél, recently copped to a serious charge.
Kenner, whose past clients include Snoop Dogg and Tory Lanez, pled guilty to criminal contempt of court on Friday after he reportedly leaked evidence to reporters in the federal conspiracy case against Michél, according to the Daily Beast. The attorney received one year of probation and a $5000 fine.
“I am deeply sorry to be standing in front of you, and I fully accept responsibility,” Kenner said to U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta, per the Washington Post. “I had a wonderful 56-year career, and while I tried to be a zealous advocate in my cases, including for Mr. Michél, this is a low point.”
Kenner served as Michél’s legal counsel last year, where the artist faced charges related to an alleged international conspiracy scheme where millions in foreign currency were used to influence U.S. government officials.
Last April, Michél was found guilty on all 10 counts and faced up to 20 years in prison.
According to court documents, Kenner admitted to sharing materials that were under a court protective order with two reporters from Bloomberg News in an effort to “provide invaluable assistance as part of the defense team,” per the Daily Beast.
Although the reporters signed the court’s protective order disclosure that assured they would not share the documents’ contents, one of them supposedly ripped up a signed copy in Kenner’s presence and shared concerns about having signed it.
Kenner reportedly still allowed the reporters to view “hundreds of documents within the discovery materials” before they went on to publish “multiple articles” based on the classified information.
Michél’s new legal team did not have flattering words for Kenner.
“Two weeks before the trial, a member of Kenner’s trial team was so alarmed by the state of Kenner’s preparations and understanding of the case that he asked a law school classmate, a trial attorney in Miami, if he would fly to Los Angeles to help,” wrote the defense in a court filing submitted in October.
Kenner now faces disbarment in light of his conviction.
