The Board of Professional Conduct of the Supreme Court of Ohio and the Mahoning County Bar Association have recommended that suspended attorney Robert J. Rohrbaugh II be indefinitely suspended from the practice of law in Ohio.

Rohrbaugh, 50, was sentenced to 52 months in prison in June 2023 after he was convicted at trial in January 2023 of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, aiding and abetting theft of government property, aiding and abetting false claims against the United States and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Rohrbaugh is housed in the minimum security Federal Correctional Institution in Morgantown, W.Va. and has a release date of Dec. 18, 2026, according to U.S. Bureau of Prison records. A filing in the case, however, pegs Rohrbaugh’s release from prison as being in April 2025.

Rohrbaugh had a law office on Belmont Avenue in Liberty and lived in the Youngstown area at the time he and two other men were indicted in federal court on fraud charges. They were accused of cashing and using a $1.3 million IRS check co-defendant Brandon Mace obtained fraudulently while in federal prison.

In January 2024, the Mahoning County Bar Association filed a complaint against Rohrbaugh with the Ohio Supreme Court Board of Professional Conduct, asking for Rohrbaugh to be disciplined by the Ohio Supreme Court as a result of his convictions.

The Ohio Supreme Court issued an interim felony suspension of Rohrbaugh’s law license Feb. 15, 2023.

The bar association alleged Rohrbaugh failed to act in the best interest of the company Speed Werks LLC, which he represented in the fraud, and “failed to withdraw from representation of a client when the representation would result in a violation of the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct or other law.”

The Mahoning County Bar Association in June stated that it and Rohrbaugh’s attorney were jointly recommending that Rohrbaugh serve an indefinite suspension of his law license, which means it would be suspended for at least two years.

The Bar Association, in a filing to the Board of Professional Conduct by attorney J Michael Thompson that case law suggests that Rohrbaugh not be eligible for reinstatement of his law license until after he completes a term of federal supervised release and executes a payment plan for restitution.

The Board of Professional Conduct filed a report called findings of fact, conclusions of law and recommendations that noted the matter went to a videoconference hearing June 21, 2024.

The report concluded that Rohrbaugh “acted with a selfish motive, using the $100,000 he was paid by Mace to carry out legal work needed to cash the $1.3 million IRS check “to pay monthly (Rohrbaugh’s) business and personal expenses.” But it found Rohrbaugh’s criminal conduct to be “aberrational.”

Rohrbaugh had represented Mace several times before the episode involving the $1.3 million IRS check in 2015.

“Unbeknownst to (Rohrbaugh) Mace in March 2015 filed about eight fraudulent tax documents seeking to receive a tax refund based on entities that did not exist,” the filing states.

Mace used the tax proceeds to pay Rohrbaugh’s $100,000 fee – paid by check and declared on Rohrbaugh’s tax return – which in part was for legal services rendered when the latter represented Mace.

Rohrbaugh wasn’t aware of the criminal activity nor the charges, the document states.

Rohrbaugh “did not establish any of the fictitious corporations or obtain federal employer identification numbers for the fictitious corporations. He did register in Ohio one of the entities that was previously established in Texas,” the board filing states.

Rohrbaugh “testified that he would have accepted responsibility and plead guilty (instead of going to trial) had he known that the primary allegation against him was receiving money that he knew or should have known was criminally ill-gotten and that he registered the Texas entity in Ohio,” it continues.

“As a result of the interim felony suspension and legal costs associated with (Rohrbaugh’s) conduct, (Rohrbaugh’s) family was required to sell essentially everything they had, including furniture and clothing,” it states.

Rohrabaugh “testified that losing everything but still being able to live upon a little more than the love and support of your family and close friends demonstrates that, no matter how much we think we need to have — homes, automobiles, cell phones, vacations and all of the rest of it — we really can get by on very little,” it states.

Rohrbaugh, “while in prison, has engaged in a residential substance abuse program and has significant involvement in spiritual groups and activities, strengthening his sense of community and accountability, as well as sobriety,” it states. He has acquired new skills in prison, “for example in commercial plumbing, which will help him earn gainful employment after release; in addition, he could be employed as a legal assistant.”

The filing states that Rohrbaugh’s conduct was “significantly lesser in degree, scope and motivation” than his two co-defendants, which mitigates in his favor.”

The filing noted that restitution is typically a condition of being reinstated to the practice of law, but in this case, as in others, the amount of restitution ordered by the sentencing judge, Benita Y. Pearson, “is not realistically achievable for an imprisoned attorney.” Rohrbaugh was ordered to pay $569,938 in restitution jointly with his two co-defendants.

“Regardless of the form which the reinstatement conditions takes, it is clear that full restitution is not necessarily required as a prerequisite to reinstatement, where it is effectively impossible to achieve.”

The web site of the Ohio Bar Association describes four types of punishment that can be imposed by the Ohio Supreme Court for violating the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct :

1. A public reprimand.

2. A suspension from practice for a definite period of time ranging from six months to two years.

3. A suspension from practice for an indefinite period of time (at least two years).

4. Disbarment, which means the loss of license for life with no chance for readmittance to the Ohio bar. An attorney also may resign the right to practice law. In effect, resigning is the same as being permanently disbarred.

A July 5 filing by Rohrbaugh’s attorney, John Juhasz, noted that Judge R. Scott Krichbaum of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court wrote a letter to the board regarding Rohrbaugh.

The June 13, 2024, letter, submitted to the board separately, states that Krichbaum was subpoenaed to appear before the Board of Professional Conduct to offer testimony on behalf of Rohrbaugh, but it was his understanding he could write a letter “in lieu of live testimony.”

Krichbaum, a common pleas court judge for 34 years and defense attorney 12 years before that, stated that he has known Rohrbaugh 35 to 40 years. Rohrbaugh’s stepfather, former judge Lou D’Apolito “has been a good friend of mine about 50 years,” Krichbaum stated.

“In our profession, the message that we should give society is that once a criminal defendant has paid his debt to society, he should be given the opportunity to start anew.” He asked the board to “consider an indefinite suspension sanction in the case of Robert Rohrbaugh.” The judge said it would allow Rohrbaugh “to knock on your door at some time in the future and, perhaps if he proves himself worthy, to start anew.”

Juhaz wrote that Krichbaum is “a tough nut as a judge” and “known to be a tough sentencer and somebody who believes the people must pay for what they have done wrong.”