This disciplinary matter is before the Court on two reports of the special master, recommending that the Court accept Eric Robert Johnson II’s petitions for voluntary disciplinary, impose a 30-day suspension, and two public reprimands, and require full refund of fees that were accepted from clients under circumstances that constituted a violation of Rules 8.4 a 4 State Bar Docket # 5057 and 3.3. a 4 State Bar Docket #5058 of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct, found in Bar Rule 4-102 d. With respect to State Bar Docket # 5057, the State Bar filed a formal complaint seeking disbarment, and Johnson subsequently filed two petitions for voluntary disciplinary, the second of which the State Bar supported. Based on the admissions in that petition, the special master found that Johnson was admitted to the Bar in 2003. In March 2005 Johnson was working as an assistant public defender in DeKalb County, but represented two clients in separate criminal matters in DeKalb Recorders Court and accepted payments from both. He failed to inform either client that she might be eligible for a court-appointed public defender or inform the judges hearing the matters that he was appearing in a private capacity rather than in his usual role as public defender. Finally, he failed to inform his superiors at the Public Defender’s Office of the representations, in violation of office policy. Johnson admits that he should not have engaged in these actions. He was terminated from his employment because of these actions.
With respect to State Bar Docket # 5058 the special master concluded that a violation of Rule 3.3 a 4 had been shown by Johnson’s admission that he took no remedial measures after learning that a client had testified falsely.
