Two ex-prosecutors from Fresno are suspended

Two former Fresno County prosecutors have been placed on interim suspension after both were convicted of criminal offenses in unrelated cases. MICHAEL GEORGE McKNEELY [#214896], 33, lost his license Jan. 14, 2008, after a theft conviction last year, and DAVID EVAN JONES, [#166794], 48, was suspended Aug. 27. Jones pleaded guilty in June to impersonating his ex-girlfriend online, a felony involving moral turpitude that could lead to summary disbarment. He also has been charged in Kings County with six misdemeanor charges of impersonating a county official by using his expired DA badge in the county courthouse.

McKneely pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor theft in October 2007; a felony grand theft charge was dropped as part of the plea deal. While he was treasurer of the Fresno County Prosecutors Association (FCPA), he stole approximately $2,800 from the fund by writing multiple checks to “cash” and to himself. When a successor took over, McKneely delayed providing receipts, logs or expenditure justification, and he had removed carbon duplicates from the checkbooks.

He repaid the stolen funds with interest after the discrepancy was discovered, and admitted he had a gambling problem. He had resigned from the Fresno DA’s office in March 2007.

Jones, whom friends described as a rising star and potential judicial candidate, also had been charged with identity theft and stalking in the Fresno case, but the charges were dropped.

According to a declaration filed by Robert Morgester, a deputy attorney general, Jones had a six-year-long affair with a woman who was a court employee. She broke off the affair when Jones reconciled with his wife, from whom he separated for a short time.

Morgester, who handled the case because the district attorney’s office said it had a conflict of interest, said the harassment began shortly after the woman disclosed the affair to Jones’ wife. It culminated, he said, with “Jones impersonating the woman on a variety of Internet single sites where he solicited individuals to contact (her) for sex. While impersonating (the woman), he encouraged men to meet ‘her’ at a location near her home that she frequents as well as call her.”

The victim often patronized a Starbucks near her home. She became fearful both for her own safety and that of her 16-year-old daughter.

She also received hang-up calls on her cell phone and at work, her car was vandalized twice and a rental car and her home were vandalized. The harassment lasted from July 2006 until October 2007, when the attorney general’s special crimes unit launched an investigation.

Jones was placed on administrative leave at the DA’s office and resigned last February.

Prosecutors said Jones created fake online profiles of the victim and posted sexually explicit messages. She received phone calls at work and at home from a dozen men who referred to a craigslist posting and e-mails they received, purportedly from the victim. She also discovered that her photograph had been posted online, along with explicit personal information.

Although Jones initially pleaded not guilty and claimed the charges were politically motivated because of his position as a prosecutor, he apologized to the victim and her family when he admitted to the Internet postings. “I am extremely embarrassed by my conduct,” Jones told a Fresno judge.

He was sentenced to five years of probation and 1,440 hours of community service.

In Kings County, authorities have accused Jones, who practices criminal defense, of using his expired DA badge to avoid security lines at the courthouse.