'Spygate' attorney gets his due

By David Frank The Daily Record Newswire It's taken a few years, but Patriots fans hoping to exact revenge on a Kentucky lawyer whose "Spygate"-inspired lawsuit made headlines in 2008 have finally gotten what they wanted. In a laughable $100 million class-action suit that was filed in Louisiana, an attorney named Eric Deters (who refers to himself as "Bulldog") alleged that the Patriots gained an unfair advantage by surreptitiously videotaping a Rams practice the day before the 2002 Super Bowl. Although Deters quickly withdrew the lawsuit, the case -- along with others that followed -- permanently cast a cloud over the Patriots' 21st-Century success. The crux of the flimsy federal suit, which started the clock on Deters' 15 minutes of fame, stated that "an unidentified source, but one the Boston Herald relied upon enough to publicize the allegation," claimed a team worker secretly recorded the walk-through session. Bulldog's critics were quick to point out that the 1987 Salmon P. Chase Law grad had failed to talk to a single witness with first-hand knowledge of what went down at the Super Bowl. Not even Matt Walsh, the ex-Pats employee believed to be the Herald's source was questioned. Yours truly talked to Deters at the time. Among other things, I asked him how he planned to pull off the suit without that stuff most lawyers believe is kind of crucial to a successful case -- evidence. Deters, who had just finished a CNN interview before he got on the horn with me, eloquently responded: "These freakin' lawyers in Boston who love the Patriots and say this is a brazen publicity stunt can kiss my you-know-what." Clarence Darrow couldn't have said it better. Notwithstanding the Dog's swagger, there were lots of lawyers back then, present company included, who figured the day would come when Deters would be disciplined. When I floated the prediction by him, I got this response: "I think you're all crazy. ... I'm at peace of mind, sleeping well at night, that we won't be sanctioned." The criminal and civil attorney added that he was a big shot back home and had never been disciplined by anyone. Well, he can't lay claim to that anymore. On Feb. 23, the Kentucky Supreme Court took Deters' ticket away for 61 days and ordered him to attend the state bar association's ethics and professionalism enhancement training program. Bulldog's ethical woes began in 2009 when the Kentucky Bar Association's disciplinary committee charged him with 19 counts of misconduct based on his behavior in six different lawsuits. In a scathing 21-page report, Frank P. Doheny Jr., the trial commissioner appointed to oversee the two-day disciplinary hearing, found that Deters had "engaged in a pattern of conduct that simply stated is 'sue first, ask questions later' and 'say anything I want, because I'm a lawyer and no one is going to hold me accountable.'" In the end, Deters got off easy. If Doheny had gotten his way, the Kentucky attorney would have received a 181-day timeout. Doheny says he was unaware of Deters' role in the Patriots suit and that it had nothing to do with his suspension. Deters, meanwhile, calls Doheny "a cufflink-wearing defense lawyer from Louisville" -- which I suspect is not a compliment. As for any ill will Patriots loyalists may still harbor, Deters, who is also admitted to practice in Ohio and Florida, isn't losing any sleep over it. "I could care less if people in Massachusetts are celebrating, because the Bulldog has the fastest-growing law firm in the Cincinnati area," he says. "I'm a very busy, successful lawyer and businessman, with 15 lawyers working for me, and have my own radio show. And I'm in negotiations for some national radio and television stuff." Wow. He's modest, too. While Deters maintains he did nothing to warrant the suspension, give him credit for one thing. Five years later, he admits he was wrong to sue the Patriots and the team's head coach, Bill Belichick. "After we filed, I got cold feet when some more information came out, and we started wondering if the Herald reporter was full of s--t," he says. "On behalf of Bulldog Nation, I apologize to the Patriots for the lawsuit. No hard feelings." Thanks, Bulldog Nation. We feel better already. Published: Mon, Mar 5, 2012