Fake attorney pleads guilty to Naperville theft

Michael Gardner was never an attorney but for three years a Naperville couple believed he was, cutting him check after check to represent them in court.

On Friday, the 55-year-old Woodridge man pleaded guilty to felony theft by deception for taking nearly $10,000 from the couple, who run a small business, and one of their employees.

DuPage County Judge Kathryn Creswell sentenced Gardner to 90 days of jail work-release, 30 months of probation, and restitution of $9,600.

Gardner’s attorney said his client is “very remorseful.”

“This was a situation that got out of hand,” defense attorney Rick Kayne said. “He started out trying to help these people and got in over his head.”

Gardner came under investigation after he failed to appear in court for one of his “clients” and a warrant issued for her arrest.

A subsequent investigation revealed Gardner had represented three victims in everything from business disputes and lawsuits to commercial property acquisitions and an order of protection.

Assistant State’s Attorney Diane Michalak said Gardner even billed one victim for traveling to Massachusets to file a supposed class-action lawsuit.

When confronted by Naperville police, “He admitted he was not a lawyer and that he did, in fact, represent himself as a lawyer,” Michalak said.

Gardner also acknowledged to the Daily Herald last year that he went too far.

“I realized I had overstepped my boundaries,” he said in an interview. “Things went beyond what I was capable of doing. I should have just up and said I wasn’t an attorney.”

Gardner declined to comment Friday, but he has said his legal background was limited to a year of law school.

He has described himself as a consultant with experience in banking, manufacturing, contracts, licensing and negotiations. At first, he said, he believed he could resolve his victims’ problems without actually working in the court system as an attorney.

Victims Pamela and Isaias Valois said Gardner came recommended to them by an acquaintance, and he seemed to know what he was doing. After he resolved one business-related problem outside of court, they put him on a $500 monthly retainer and recommended him to their employee.

Pamela Valois said Gardner made matters worse by shopping and dining in their store, River Hill Food Mart in Naperville, for free several days a week. She and her husband also routinely sent him home with fresh meals for his family, she said.

Valois said she since has hired a real attorney to sort out the mess Gardner left behind.

“He deserves some jail time for what he did,” she said Friday. “That’s good news. I’m pleased with it.”

Gardner is currently employed and working to make restitution, his attorney said. He reports to jail June 18.