NEW ORLEANS (Louisiana Record) – Baton Rouge attorney Christopher Gerard Young was indefinitely suspended following a recent Louisiana Supreme Court order after he was sentenced last spring on a child pornography charge.
The Supreme Court also instituted "necessary disciplinary proceedings" against Young, according to the high court's single-page order. The high court's order followed a petition for interim suspension filed by the office of disciplinary counsel and recommendation from a Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board hearing committee, according to the order
Young pleaded guilty in November to a federal misdemeanor charge of being an accessory after the fact to interstate transmission of obscene and child pornography images, according to a press report at the time. In April, he was sentenced to two years probation and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine, according to another press report.
Young's plea and sentencing stemmed from allegations that between 2013 and 2015 he shared with friends, family and clients videos of prepubescent boys engaging in sex acts with donkeys.
Young was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on April 23, 1993, according to his profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association's website. No prior discipline was listed on his state bar profile.
In May 2016, a federal grand jury indicted Young, then 53, for distribution and possession of child pornography, according to a U.S. Justice Department press release issued the same month. A federal indictment against Young stemmed from a period when he was part-owner of a hotel in Costa Rica "where he traveled frequently for business and leisure," the press release said.
"Young allegedly received two videos depicting prepubescent boys engaging in bestiality from an associate in Costa Rica," the press release said. "From 2013 through 2015, Young allegedly distributed the child pornography videos to approximately 38 different individuals, on 33 separate occasions, through his smart phones," the press release said.
The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by assistant U.S. attorneys.