Florida Lawyers Rally Around Indicted Florida Attorney

A prominent South Florida criminal defense attorney has been indicted in Federal Court on federal money laundering charges. The attorney, Ben Keuhne, received $200,000 from Columbian drug kingpin Fabio Ochoa, as attorney fees for representing him. Mr. Keuhne had signed off on documents filed in court, that the source of funds that Ochoa used to pay his attorney fees for his defense on cocaine trafficking charges was untainted. Federal prosecutors claim that Keuhne knew that the funds were linked to the drug trade when he signed off on the source of funds documents. Keuhne's attorneys said that he thought the money was legitimate and did not participate in any cover-up. Under federal law, an attorney is not allowed to accept money that came from illegal activity. The case against Keuhne is the first such case filed against an attorney claiming that the attorney did not properly verify that the fees paid came from illegal activity. Criminal defense attorneys throughout the country are rallying to Keuhne's defense calling the case filed against him an assault on a defendant's right to counsel. The local bar has been particularly supportive of Mr. Keuhne who is nationally known for representing Democratic Presidential candidate Al Gore in the 2000 Florida recount.

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