Isat Buchanan pleads guilty to professional misconduct

Attorney-at-law Isat Buchanan has been found guilty of professional misconduct for offensive comments he directed at the country’s chief prosecutor, Paula Llewellyn.

Buchanan pleaded guilty before a disciplinary panel of the General Legal Council (GLC) on Saturday to breaching ethics rules that guide the conduct of attorneys authorised to practise in Jamaica, he confirmed on Monday.

The GLC is the body that regulates the legal profession in Jamaica.

He pleaded guilty to breaching canons I(b) and VIII(b) of the Legal Profession (Canon of Professional Ethics) Rules.

“I would not even attempt to justify descending into that arena. I would never try to conjure up an excuse and be cute with the legalities of conduct that is just … . I can’t even find the word for it,” Buchanan said during an interview with The Gleaner, explaining his decision to enter a plea of guilty.

“I disappointed myself. One cannot defend the indefensible.”

Llewellyn, the director of public prosecutions, declined “to make any comment on the matter whatsoever” when contacted yesterday.

With Buchanan’s agreement, a sanction hearing to determine his punishment was also conducted on Saturday and was adjourned to allow the three-member panel time to consider its decision.

Teachable moment

The attorney said his punishment is “entirely in the hands of the GLC”.

“It is a teachable moment for me. I certainly never intended to bring the profession into disrepute so it’s entirely in their hands,” he said.

In August, while co-hosting a programme on the social media platform YouTube, the attorney quoted from the lyrics of the song The Menace by convicted killer and dancehall artiste Vybz Kartel in which he directed that Llewellyn perform a sexual act.

The comment set off a firestorm of criticisms, triggering Buchanan’s resignation from several positions he held at the time and a complaint to the disciplinary committee of the GLC by GLC Chairman Denise Kitson, KC.

In documents seen by The Gleaner, Kitson indicated that her complaint was based on the profane language used by Buchanan and that his conduct constituted a breach of canons I(b) and VIII(b) of the Legal Profession (Canon of Professional Ethics) Rules.

According to her complaint, it was conduct that failed to maintain the honour and dignity of the legal profession and which “tend to discredit the profession and is unbecoming of a lawyer”.

Buchanan said he has “great respect” for Kitson and the GLC “and if she finds my conduct … or if it brought her to complain, then certainly, by my standard, that claim has merit.

“Notwithstanding that I quoted from the words of my client [Vybz Kartel] and my best efforts to articulate the importance of using mature consideration when dealing with constitutional amendments, I should never, under any circumstances, have conducted myself in that manner,” he said.

livern.barrett@gleanerjm.com