U.S. Lawyer Loses Disbarment Appeal After She Was Found Guilty of Stealing $1,100 From a Sleeping Passenger During a Flight to South Korea

A U.S. attorney has lost her appeal against being disbarred from practising law in the district of Colombia after she was convicted of stealing $1,100 in cash from a sleeping passenger during a flight to South Korea.

Jinhee Wilde is currently the CEO of WA Law Group in Maryland but in May 2007 she was the partner of another law firm where she practised immigration law. It was during this time that she was accused of theft by another passenger on a flight to the South Korean capital Seoul.

A local court heard how a flight attendant onboard the plane had allegedly witnessed Wilde going through the other passenger’s purse. The passenger had boarded the plane with at least $1,500 in cash but when she checked her purse, only four $100 bills remained.

The inflight purser confronted Wilde and examined the cash in her purse, discovering that the serial numbers of some of the bills were sequential to the bills that remained in the victim’s purse.

On arrival in South Korea, Wilde was taken away by police and questioned. After providing a statement, Wilde was released and later charged with theft. When she initially failed to appear at her trial, the court issued a default ruling against her.

After learning of her default conviction, Wilde requested a formal trial and was again found guilty of theft. She appealed the ruling and submitted bank documents that Maryland’s Attorney Grievance Commission alleged were forged.

During a Hearing Committee, more than 20 witnesses were called to provide evidence over seven days, and more than 100 exhibits were submitted. The committee concluded that Wilde had not only committed the theft but had also forged bank employee letters and several checks.

Wilde appealed the committee’s and disciplinary board’s findings on a number of issues, but following a years-long process, the DC Court of Appeals has ruled that Wilde’s disbarment stands.

“In this case, we conclude that disbarment is warranted based on Ms. Wilde’s theft and repeated and pervasive dishonesty,” the judgment read.

The full ruling can be read here (PDF link).