Columbia assistant public defender arrested

A man usually seen in court arguing for crime suspects who can’t afford their own lawyer now faces two charges of obtaining goods under false pretenses.

Stephen Francis Krzyston, 29, an assistant public defender with the Richland County Public Defender’s office, was accused of falsely claiming to be, on separate occasions, a member of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department and the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s office in efforts to get free healthclub memberships.

According to a release from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, on July 1, 2013, and on October 14, 2014, Krzyston made the false claims in filing out membership applications at Gold’s Gym on Forest Drive each time “to obtain a year’s membership valued at $300.”

“Identity theft is a serious crime,” Sheriff Leon Lott said in a news release.

Krzyston, a 2012 graduate of the Charleston School of Law, was the public defender for Lorenzo Young, one of the two men convicted of murder in the July 2013 slaying in Columbia of Kelly Hunnewell, a mother of four who was working an overnight shift in a bakery alone.

Fifth Circuit public defender Doug Strickler said Friday that Krzyston has been placed on administrative leave. Strickler declined further comment. Efforts to reach Krzyston on Friday were unsuccessful.

This story was originally published January 23, 2015 at 6:03 PM.