The council that oversees Connecticut lawyers wants to suspend the law license of Kent Mawhinney, the attorney facing charges in connection with the disappearance of Jennifer Dulos.
Mawhinney is an immigration lawyer and friend of Fotis Dulos, the estranged husband of Jennifer Dulos, who is charged with her murder. Mawhinney is currently behind bars, charged with conspiracy to commit murder.
On Friday, clients were waiting outside his locked office in Bloomfield frustrated and unsure of what to do next.
The state’s Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel has filed to temporarily take away Mawhinney’s law license, writing Mawhinney “due to his incarceration and any conditions that may be imposed upon his release from custody cannot attend to the legal needs of his clients and there exists a substantial threat of irreparable harm to his clients….”
Mawhinney’s lawyer said that at a January 28 hearing, Mawhinney will be “voluntarily suspending his license so a trustee can be appointed to service his clients.”
Tina Ponder works in the same building as Mawhinney’s office.
“It’s a little bit confusing because they don’t have any signs out saying what happened, or where to go, or who to call,” she said.
More on the Jennifer Dulos Case
She and other tenants who spoke with NBC Connecticut said Mawhinney’s clients have been showing up since his arrest last week.
“It’s a little bit sad to see people coming in to get help and they have nobody to turn to.”
In the warrant for his arrest, police say Mawhinney has changed his story about his whereabouts leading up to and after Jennifer’s murder.
Her body still has not been found.
Mawhinney’s lawyers said the state does not have a strong case against him. He has yet to enter a plea.
