![]() ![]() Respondent admits her conduct violated Rule 8.4(b), RPC, Rule 407, SCACR (prohibiting a criminal act that reflects adversely on the lawyer's fitness as a lawyer). On May 17, 2022, the charge against Respondent was expunged from her public record. On April 6, 2022, the Fifth Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office exercised prosecutorial discretion and dismissed the charge against Respondent. Respondent successfully completed the outpatient program and was discharged on April 20, 2022. Additionally, Respondent admitted herself into an intensive outpatient program with Prisma Health Behavioral Care Day Treatment. Following the incident, Respondent contacted Lawyers Helping Lawyers (LHL) for assistance and subsequently entered into a one-year monitoring contract. On March 10, 2022, this Court placed Respondent on interim suspension. Respondent self-reported this charge to ODC on January 28, 2022. Respondent was charged with one misdemeanor count of third-degree domestic violence. On the night of the incident, law enforcement observed Respondent smelling of alcohol and using slurred speech. As a result of the altercation, Respondent sustained bruising to her arms, and Respondent's fiancé sustained a significant bite mark on his neck. As Respondent's fiancé attempted to disarm her, the firearm accidentally discharged. Respondent was in actual possession of the firearm during the altercation. Respondent's fiancé broke into the bedroom, at which time he and Respondent engaged in a physical altercation. Respondent then attempted to remove herself from the dispute with her fiancé by locking herself in the bedroom. On January 14, 2022, after engaging in a verbal dispute with her fiancé, Respondent went to her vehicle and retrieved a number of personal items, including her firearm. The facts, as set forth in the Agreement, are as follows. We accept the Agreement and suspend Respondent from the practice of law in this state for a period of six months. In the Agreement, Respondent admits misconduct, consents to any sanction ranging from a confidential admonition to a definite suspension of six months, and agrees to two years of alcohol monitoring as a condition of reinstatement. PER CURIAM: In this attorney disciplinary matter, Respondent and the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) have entered into an Agreement for Discipline by Consent (Agreement) pursuant to Rule 21 of the Rules for Lawyer Disciplinary Enforcement (RLDE) contained in Rule 413 of the South Carolina Appellate Court Rules (SCACR). Pappas, Jr., of Rikard & Protopapas, LLC, of Columbia, for Respondent. Wilson, both of Columbia, for the Office of Disciplinary Counsel. Nichols and Assistant Disciplinary Counsel Jamie E. 28119 Submitted Septem– Filed OctoDEFINITE SUSPENSION Disciplinary Counsel John S. THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA In The Supreme Court In the Matter of Elizabeth Anne Perkins, Respondent. ![]()
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