Bar suspends law license of Chesapeake ex-public defender

A former public defender sentenced to six months in jail in Portsmouth on a charge of larceny from a person and who is also awaiting sentencing in Chesapeake for assaulting a police officer has had his law license suspended.

Eugene B. Harris, who was a public defender in Chesapeake, had his license suspended Friday based on his Feb. 9 conviction on the Chesapeake assault charge, according to a news release from the Virginia State Bar.

Harris has been ordered by the bar to appear on March 26 to show cause why his license shouldn't be further suspended or revoked, the release says. Harris, 31, was sentenced in Portsmouth on Monday.

According to court records, Harris set up a meeting in Portsmouth with a

client who owed him legal fees. During the meeting, money was taken from the client's pocket. When the client tried to leave, Harris jumped into the client's car and demanded a check.

Harris was found guilty in Chesapeake earlier this month, and a jury recommended a six-month jail sentence.

He is scheduled for sentencing on the assault charge in June.