Las Vegas attorney Joseph Caramagno talks about his life following three months in rehab. Caramagno was one of the attorneys who helped secure an acquittal for Rick Tabish in the Ted Binion murder case, but his career went into a slide after he showed up intoxicated to court in August. Photo by John Gurzinski.

A lawyer who showed up to court drunk has been sober for 90 days now, and he said last week he's committed to rebuilding his shattered legal career in Las Vegas.

"Cocaine was my main problem," Joseph Caramagno said. "It got to a point where I was abusing it on an almost daily basis, and it was hard for me to function without it. There were many nights, especially on the weekends, when I was involved in that type of activity."

Caramagno said he is still in the early stages of sobriety, but he nonetheless plans to resume his career in Las Vegas despite his nationally publicized implosion in District Court in August.

"There is really no choice," Caramagno said. "The options are go back to alcohol and drugs, put a bullet in your head, or go forward with your life, and the other two are not options to me. I have to go forward, and I have to get back slowly what I gave away. I'm not going to run away from this."

As of 2005, Caramagno certainly had a lot going for him. The former prosecutor from New York was on the team of lawyers that earned Rick Tabish a murder acquittal in the high-profile Ted Binion murder case. He was widely recognized in the proceedings for his aggressiveness, and he was also the subject of a high-profile rebuke from District Judge Joseph Bonaventure in the case for his "win-at-all-costs" strategy.

Meanwhile, his law practice was also starting to take off, earning him a nice house on an exclusive golf course property in northwest Las Vegas and a luxury sports car in his driveway.

But Caramagno said he also was immersed in the city's party scene, and he liked it. He spent much of his nights gambling at casinos and partying with strippers.

"I guess I was, for a lack of a better term, intrigued by that lifestyle," Caramagno said. "It sucked me in."

In August, one of Caramagno's clients, Dale Jakuchunas, went to trial on a kidnapping charge that feasibly could have landed him in prison for life. On the second day of the proceedings, Caramagno showed up to the courtroom of District Judge Michelle Leavitt more than 90 minutes late, and with a young woman wearing a black halter top and tight pants in tow.

A video recording of the proceedings showed Caramagno slurring his words, and Leavitt asked Caramagno what was wrong with him.

"Mr. Jakuchunas is facing a life sentence, so if you came to court intoxicated, you've got a problem," Leavitt told Caramagno.

Caramagno told the judge that his car had been rear-ended by another car on Sahara Avenue, causing him to suffer a head injury. But Leavitt said she became suspicious when details of Caramagno's accident account varied. Leavitt summoned him and prosecutors into her chambers. During this meeting, the judge said, Caramagno told her the woman who accompanied him into court was his ex-girlfriend.

When Leavitt questioned the woman, she said she had met Caramagno about 20 minutes earlier at the nearby Courthouse Café and had never dated Caramagno.

Leavitt ordered Caramagno to take a Breathalyzer test in open court, and his blood alcohol level came back at 0.075 percent. The legal limit in Nevada is 0.08.

Caramagno originally denied being drunk, but his father and sister called the State Bar of Nevada to say he did have a problem. Caramagno later acknowledged as much and he entered into an agreement with the State Bar of Nevada to go into rehabilitation. He was placed on disability and entered a 30-day in-patient rehabilitation program. He later spent 60 days at the home of a friend he met in rehab.

A column on the matter penned by State Bar President Rew Goodenow said the Bar took the matter seriously. Veteran defense attorney Bill Terry was assigned to handle Caramagno's criminal cases, and Attorney Maria Milano took some of Caramagno's civil cases.

"When he (Terry) received Mr. Caramagno's files from the State Bar, he realized the majority of the files were incomplete or nonexistent," Goodenow wrote. "Some of the files did not have basic information, such as client telephone numbers or addresses."

Approximately 30 other lawyers subsequently came forward at Terry's request to help litigate the cases. In Jakuchunas' case, local attorney Marc Saggese ended up negotiating a plea deal that called for probation.

Caramagno admits that his preparation was harmed by his substance abuse, although he maintained last week that outside of his appearance in Leavitt's courtroom, he worked in the best interests of his clients.

"I was writing checks my body couldn't pay," Caramagno said. "You don't realize you are in trouble until you are out of it."

Caramagno said he's working to maintain his sobriety with a self-help group for lawyers struggling with substance abuse.

"What I've learned through this experience is you have to be humble in life," Caramagno said. "You can't live inside your own head and have serenity. When you are under the influence, your judgment is impaired, you are delusional, and you can't even control your actions. I actually feel most embarrassed for my family given the coverage it got."

Caramagno also said he intends to show people that despite his public fall, he is committed to regaining his credibility and the trust of both the public and the legal community.

He first has to petition the Nevada Supreme Court to get his license to practice law back, and then he said he plans to try and regain his credibility one case at a time.

He said he goes to his computer every day and watches the video of himself drunk in court.

"It is not funny," Caramagno said. "What I did was irresponsible. I also know it's early for me. But the one thing about it is I feel like I'm building momentum. One day at a time."