Probe Prompts Review of Landmark Race Case Sunday December 19, 2004 8:01 PM
By TERENCE CHEA SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Accusations against an attorney who worked on a federal case in which black farmers claimed the government denied them loans because of their race could affect the landmark civil rights settlement.
Margaret O'Shea, 38, faces charges she worked as a public defender without a license to practice law in California, and critics are now questioning dozens of individual settlements with black farmers she previously handled at the U.S. Justice Department.
O'Shea worked on the federal case, known as Pigford vs. Veneman, from April to September 2002. She was hired by the Monterey County Public Defender's Office in August.
``It's a disgrace,'' said John Boyd, a Virginia farmer who is president of the National Black Farmers Association. ``After all we've been through, we had an unlicensed attorney reviewing cases and affecting the lives of black farmers across the country.''
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