West Virginia Tax: Attorney pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The state Supreme Court has suspended the law license of a Parkersburg attorney who was sentenced to prison in April after he pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges, the State Bar's Office of Disciplinary Counsel announced.
Richard A. Hayhurst, 61, admitted in federal court in November that he owes more than $400,000 in taxes, including personal income and employment taxes he withheld from employees but didn't turn over to the Internal Revenue Service.
Hayhurst is serving a 21-month sentence at the U.S. Penitentiary in Hazelton.
He was also convicted of tax evasion in the 1990s, and served four months at a community center followed by four months on home confinement.
With Hayhurst having pleaded guilty to crimes involving moral turpitude and professional unfitness, the Office of Disciplinary Counsel petitioned the Supreme Court to suspend his law license.