BY PORTSIA SMITH

RICHMOND—The Virginia Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday in the appeal of a disciplinary violation against Caroline County Commonwealth’s Attorney Tony Spencer.
The Sixth District Committee of the Virginia State Bar issued a public admonition to Spencer for talking with an imprisoned defendant about a case without notifying the defendant’s lawyers about the discussion or offering to allow them to be present.
The committee, chaired by Spotsylvania County Commonwealth’s Attorney Bill Neely, determined that on April 3, 2008, Spencer went to the Rappahannock Regional Jail accompanied by a deputy and questioned Thomas Reynolds III about a civil case regarding a forged will and a criminal firearms charge.
An attorney for the Virginia bar asked the justices to affirm the public admonition, saying that Spencer violated the rules regarding communications with persons represented by counsel.
Craig Cooley, who represented Spencer, said his client did talk to Reynolds, but the charges were referenced only to get more information about an unrelated case.
“There was never any discussion or mentioning of facts,” Cooley said. “The charge is there. He just told him, ‘If you talk to us on this unrelated matter, we may can help you [with the other charges].’’’
Cooley also argued that Spencer was not given proper notice of the violation so that he could respond to it.
The justices generally take several weeks to make a decision.
The justices asked whether the state bar would bring a violation against every attorney who offered a deal to a defendant and why Spencer wasn’t given time to respond. They also wondered whether the bar considered the impact on an attorney’s reputation that a public admonition would cause.
Spencer was not present in court Thursday, but has stated that he acted within his rights.
“I’ve done absolutely nothing wrong and expect to be vindicated on appeal,” he said earlier. “Everything I did was in the interest of public safety in mind.”
The committee cleared Spencer of three other misconduct allegations, which included questions of fairness, impartiality and decorum of the tribunal and responsibilities of a prosecutor.
Reynolds was eventually sentenced to two years in prison on the charge of possession of a firearm by a felon, according to court records. The forgery charge was dropped.
Portsia Smith: 540/374-5419
psmith@fredericksburg.com