NEW ORLEANS (Louisiana Record) — Longtime Baton Rouge attorney Carl Binus Duke Jr., who represents clients in traffic court, has been indefinitely suspended following a July 31 Louisiana Supreme Court order and his arrest last month for DWI and other charges after a high-speed chase.
In its single page order, the state high court suspended Duke pending further court order after receiving a petition from the office of disciplinary counsel asking for the interim suspension for "threat of harm." The court's order was effective immediately. The court also ordered the office of disciplinary counsel to appointed a trustee, "if appropriate," to protect the interests of Duke's clients.
Duke, a criminal defense attorney who represents clients in traffic courts in the Baton Rouge area, was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on Oct. 9, 1998, according to his profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association's website. No prior discipline was listed on his state bar profile or in a search of Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board's online database.
Duke was admitted to the State Bar of Texas Sept. 27, 2007, and is listed in that state as inactive with no history of discipline.
Duke was arrested in the early hours July 20 by Baton Rouge police officers after a chase at speeds higher than 100 m.p.h., according to multiple news stories at the time that cited a Baton Rouge Police Department report.
Officers reportedly first noticed Duke speeding in his blue Jeep on Tara Boulevard and attempted to stop him at a red light at Old Hammond Highway, where the chase began. The chase reached its highest speeds on Airline Highway.
Duke ultimately arrived at a grassy lot and then continued the chase off-road for another mile until he crashed his vehicle into a fence and was apprehended.
Police reported Duke smelled of alcohol, was "extremely argumentative" and "uncooperative" and he refused officers' verbal commands and a breathalyzer test, but did consent to a blood draw test. Duke also reportedly refused an eye exam because of prior eye surgeries and said he could not perform portions of the usual field sobriety test because of knee surgeries from his prior military career.
Duke reportedly was arrested on charges of aggravated flight from an officer, resisting an officer, DWI, criminal damage to property and speeding.