Usually when a lawyer is described as a drunk driving attorney, you would assume that this means that they are a defense attorney who handles DUI cases. And you would be right. Most of the time. But while the term drunk driving attorney certainly applies to Kevin Rieman, it isn’t for the most obvious reasons…
Rieman, a practicing attorney in the Bay City area, was recently arrested for drunk driving. While this in and of itself is not usually cause for scandal, the fact is that Rieman was on probation at the time. And the reason that he was on probation is because he is currently facing numerous charges for fraud and embezzlement.
According to court records, Rieman was arraigned in December of 2014, on charges of forgery, uttering and publishing, and embezzlement between $1,000 and $20,000. However, in April of this year, he was again arraigned on seven new charges. He is now also facing single counts of embezzlement between $1,000 and $20,000, embezzlement of between $20,000 and $50,000, and false pretenses between $1,000 and $20,000. In addition, he is also charged with two counts each of forgery and uttering and publishing.
Police records show that Rieman was allegedly cashing checks that were intended for his clients, and keeping the money for himself. In addition, he is alleged to have represented clients on the understanding that he would receive 33 percent of their final settlement amounts. However, after he received the total amount of money, he did not pass on to his client the two-thirds amount that was due to them.
This arrest and series of charges has brought about some very major changes in Rieman’s life. Prior to his initial arrest, Rieman was part of a firm located in downtown Bay City entitled Rieman & Reyes. He is, however, no longer a part of this firm, and it’s name has been changed to reflect his absence – Reyes and Bauer. In addition, Rieman was formerly the president of the Bay County Bar Association. Since his arrest, though, he has resigned from that position.
When Rieman appeared in court for his arraignment on the drunk driving charges, his attorney entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf and asked that his bond be consistent with his alleged crime. In other words, a standard drunk driving second offense bail amount. But the prosecution disagreed. After all, they pointed out, this is hardly a standard DUI second offense. Rieman was out on conditional bond at the time, and forbidden to consume alcohol at all.
All of the Bay County Judges have recused themselves from the case, and so the task fell to Midland County Circuit Judge Michael J. Beale. Judge Beale agreed with the prosecution, and denied Rieman bail of any kind. He did however say that another hearing could be scheduled in a few weeks to reevaluate the bond. There is currently no other information available regarding Rieman’s next hearing.
