A six-month suspension is proposed for a Los Angeles lawyer after she was found to have edited celebrity photos to include images of herself and had them posted on her firm's website, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Attorney Svitlana Sangary appears to be posing in the photos with high-profile politicians and Hollywood celebrities, including President Barack Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton, George Clooney, Leonardo DiCaprio, and others, TMZ says.
However, during a trial in July, testimonies from experts mention that "many, and perhaps all" of the pictures were altered using Photoshop "to make it appear as though [Sangary] was in the presence of a celebrity," says a report by a judge of State Bar Court of California, according to the Daily Mail.
Judge Donald F. Miles, who proposed the suspension, said in an18-page decision that the lawyer had committed four counts of misconduct.
The counts comprised one count related to posting the pictures, two counts of failing to cooperate with state bar investigators and one count of refusing to forward a former client's legal file to the client's new lawyer.
The decision also mentions "grave concerns" about Sangary's "demonstrated lack of insight and her contemptuous conduct" during the proceedings.
The defendant's "failure to remove the deceptive images from her website, even after the State Bar brought this issue to her attention, and her demonstrated disregard for the disciplinary process gives little reason to believe that her misconduct will not continue," the judge said.
In an email to the LA Times, Sangary she "had a lot to say" about the proposed suspension and "was working on it." She also said she was given a 30-day period to ask for a review of the recommendation.
Other personalities she made herself out to be posing with are Vice President Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Dr. Phil. There are more than 50 such photos posted on her website.
Sangary had not been made to undergo any disciplinary actions prior to this.