Illinois Man’s Tax Convictions Hold Despite Disciplined Counsel

An Illinois man lost his bid to undo tax fraud convictions after a federal appeals court said he failed to show ineffective assistance of counsel.

To rebut the presumption that a defendant received effective assistance of counsel, a defendant must show an error or omission that prejudiced his case, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit said Tuesday. It isn’t enough that a defendant’s attorney was disciplined in another matter.

Airrion Blake’s trial lawyer was removed from the Seventh Circuit bar a couple of months after his conviction for attorney misconduct in an unrelated case.

The court declined ...