Once a dapper Beverly Hills attorney known for his bow tie, Richard Fine has been held in solitary confinement at Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail for 14 months, even though he’s never been charged with a crime. Fine, a 70-year- old taxpayer’s advocate who once worked for the Department of Justice, is being held for contempt of court.
Superior Court Judge David Yaffe found Fine in contempt after he refused to turn over financial documents and answer questions when ordered to pay an opposing party’s attorney’s fees, according to court documents.
Fine says his contempt order masks the real reason why he’s in jail. He claims he’s a political prisoner. “I ended up here because I did the one thing no other lawyer in California is willing to do. I took on the corruption of the courts,” Fine said in a jailhouse interview with CNN.
