Former judge advocate general suspended for 2 years due to violent outburst

AND Warren County A barrister has been suspended from practicing law for two years after he attacked two women in a violent outburst of alcohol.

Supreme Court of Ohio suspended William McClain on Friday, a former judge advocate general at the 88th Air Base Wing, for two years, for which he can boast of serving a suspension.

According to the court, McClain, who lives in Franklin, Ohio, has been on temporary probation since March 2023, a month after he was convicted of aggravated assault and inducing panic, both felonies.

McClain’s night out in October 2022 with his fiancée, her daughter and two other women ended with him chasing the women around his neighborhood with guns.

According to courtMcClain attacked his fiancée in a bar parking lot. The women left the bar without McClain, but eventually took his fiancée back to their shared home. The women attempted to remove many of McClain’s guns from his home, which led to an argument. A lawyer attacked his fiancée’s daughter, who then stabbed him in the torso with a kitchen knife.

All four women fled the home and McClain chased them with a gun. He held his fiancée and her daughter at gunpoint, but they managed to escape. He fired one shot in the air and returned home, we read in the court’s opinion.

Police, the Warren County Tactical Response Unit and the SWAT team had to place gas canisters in the house to get McClain to surrender.

He pleaded guilty to aggravated assault causing panic, misdemeanor assault, domestic violence and using a weapon while intoxicated. McClain was sentenced to three years of community control, which allowed him to avoid court-supervised prison. He was also required to undergo mental health and substance abuse counseling.

According to the opinion, McClain served as Judge Advocate General at Wright Patterson Air Force Base prior to the attacks that occurred on Oct. 29, 2022. In this position, he provided legal support to Air Force officers, Airmen, civilians and more. The Ohio State Commission on Professional Conduct found that he had served honorably in the U.S. Army since the age of 18.

The board concluded that McClain’s violent outburst was caused by excessive drinking and untreated mental health problems. In its recommendation to suspend McClain for two years, including time credited, the board also found that he is undergoing treatment for mental health issues and alcohol abuse and has remained sober since his arrest. The board found that “in sobriety, (McClain) is a respectful and compassionate person, a loving father, and a hard-working and talented attorney.”

The court agreed with the board’s recommendation that McClain be suspended for two years with credit for the time he was already suspended, meaning his suspension will be lifted in March 2025. To be eligible for reinstatement, he will also have to meet five conditions, which include meeting the conditions of his criminal sentence, psychiatric treatment and more.

This article originally appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer: Former Ohio judge advocate general suspended after assault

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