COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A disciplinary board has recommended a six-month license suspension for a lawyer whose emails to Ohio State University’s former football coach triggered a scandal that toppled the former coach.
The Ohio Supreme Court’s Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline also recommended that attorney Christopher Cicero pay $2,800 in court costs.
The board’s ruling Tuesday now goes to the Supreme Court, which can accept, reject or change the recommendation.
Cicero sent emails to former coach Jim Tressel in April 2010, warning him that players were selling memorabilia or trading them for tattoos. The correspondences helped launch the scandal and end Tressel’s Ohio State career.
An NCAA investigation also led to a bowl ban this year and reductions in scholarships.
