Should the traveling TB lawyer be disbarred?

It is hard to understand how a person, required by the laws governing his chosen profession to act ethically, could be as irresponsible as Andrew Speaker. This Georgia lawyer was told not to fly because he might infect others with tuberculosis (TB), a contagious and life threatening disease. His father-in-law is a tuberculosis researcher, and Speaker should have fully understood the risks he was imposing on the thousands of people he would come in contact with on his planned trip to Europe. According to the World Health Organization, each person with TB infects 10 to 15 other people on average.

Yet, Speaker got on a plane and flew to Paris. He later flew on five flights to cities in Europe, getting married in Greece. In Rome he was tracked down, and told further testing showed he had an extremely drug resistant form of TB and to await further instructions for treatment. Instead, he flew to Prague, booked a flight to Canada and drove across the U.S. border to avoid detection.

Now, he is under quarantine in a Denver hospital with "a form of TB that kills a high percentage of those infected around the world." Hundreds of his fellow airline passengers may have to be tested for TB. He faces years of treatment that "will involve risks of side effects that could damage his kidneys and liver" and may have to undergo major surgery to remove part of his lung. Anyone he infected on his honeymoon travels may face the same fate. He was reported to be "concerned about the publicity his case was receiving."

Lawyers have a public image of being greedy, selfish and unscrupulous, and the profession's reputation was dealt another blow by Speaker's reprehensible behavior. The laws of Georgia call for an attorney's disbarment for conviction of "a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude." Should Speaker be prosecuted if he violated any laws in his evasion of public health authorities? Should he be disbarred if convicted? Do the answers to these questions change if he infected anyone with TB during his trip?

The phone number for the United States Attorney's Office in Atlanta is:
404-581-6000 Fax: 404-581-6181

The State Bar phone number for reporting attorney misconduct in Georgia is:
800-334-6865 ext. 720 or 404-527-8720

If you want to contact Speaker directly, his contact information published by the State Bar Georgia is:
Mr. Andrew Harley Speaker
Speaker Law Firm
4651 Roswell Road, Suite D-302
Atlanta, GA 30342
Phone: 404-531-9868
Fax: 404-531-4835
Email: aspeaker@speakerlawfirm.com
Admit Date: 10/27/2004
Law School: University of Georgia