FARGO -- Lawyers in the case of a man accused of impersonating a lawyer have asked for a delay in the trial while federal prosecutors in other states decide whether to charge him.
Howard O. Kieffer, 53, is charged in North Dakota federal court with one count of mail fraud and one count of false statements. He has pleaded not guilty. His trial is scheduled for Nov. 18 in Bismarck, but Kieffer's lawyers have asked for the date to be pushed back at least three months.
The defense motion said prosecutors have not determined if other U.S. attorneys plan to file charges against Kieffer. Those decisions "may significantly affect the course of action which Kieffer pursues in the instant (North Dakota) case," the motion said.
Court documents show Kieffer has worked on federal cases in at least 10 states, but North Dakota is the first state to prosecute him. U.S. Attorney Drew Wrigley would not comment about the plans of prosecutors in other states.
"I can't really get into the nature of the discovery or other states that may or may not be involved," Wrigley said.
ADVERTISEMENT
North Dakota prosecutors are not opposed to delaying the trial, Wrigley said. U.S. District Judge Patrick Conmy, who was named to replace Judge Daniel Hovland in the case, has not yet ruled on the motion to delay.
Hovland signed Kieffer's application to the federal bar on March 16, 2007, after Kieffer said he had a degree from Antioch School of Law in Washington, D.C., and had been admitted to practice in a federal district in California. Kieffer paid $180 for the license, court documents show.
Hovland suspended Kieffer's license last June and ordered the U.S. attorney's office and the disciplinary board of the state Supreme Court to investigate the matter. The judge disbarred Kieffer in August.
Prosecutors said Kieffer lives in Duluth, Minn., where he has an office, and is the director of Federal Defense Associates, a Santa Ana, Calif., group that specializes in federal prison issues.
He has represented a former St. Louis Blues hockey player who pleaded guilty to plotting to kill his agent, and a Colorado woman who was convicted of trying to kill her former husband, documents show.
