Former Town and Country Prosecutor Reprimanded by Supreme Court

The Missouri Supreme Court issued an order of reprimand as its form of discipline for Town and Country prosecuting attorney Keith Cheung after a note he sent a judge reportedly caused a mistrial in St. Louis County Circuit Court.

According to Missouri Supreme Court documents, Cheung sent a handwritten note on June 7, 2010, to a judge who was overseeing a case Cheung was not involved in.

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The order comes after a Missouri Supreme Court Chief Disciplinary Counsel investigation of the incident found Cheung guilty of professional misconduct. The counsel investigates reports of attorney misconduct in the state of Missouri.

In papers filed in November, Cheung denies he intended to engage in conduct to disrupt a trial, but admits that his note did disrupted the trial.

On Jan. 19, Cheung filed a statement of acceptance with the Missouri Supreme Court. The statement of acceptance states that Cheung agrees with the disciplinary counsel's recommendation that he be publicly reprimanded and pay $750.

"We agree that he violated the rules and that he should be reprimanded," Cheung's attorney, Paul D'Agrosa, told Patch in January.

According to Beth Riggert, communications counsel for the Supreme Court of Missouri, the court could have issued three types of discipline for the rules of conduct violation including disbarment, suspension of Cheung's license to practice law or an official reprimand. 

The court chose to issue the least severe, the order of reprimand, that will go on Cheung's permanent record but still allows him to practice law. He also has to pay the $750 fine.

"This is the form of discipline that the court found appropriate at this level," Riggert told Patch.

Town and Country Mayor Jon Dalton tells Patch that Cheung took an an indefinite leave of absence from his position as the Town and Country city prosecutor in January.

Cheung also worked as attorney for the cities of Ballwin, St. Ann and Frontenac and as a judge in Ladue.

Cheung has no prior disciplinary history, according to supreme court documents. He also cooperated with the disciplinary counsel's investigation and apologized to the judge and attorneys involved in the case in question.