Attorney in Rolando McClain Lawsuit Threatens to Kill a Man



An attorney who filed a lawsuit alleging that a former University of Alabama football star had a history of "criminal activity" has himself been arrested for threatening to kill a man.

Allan L. Armstrong, along with Birmingham lawyer Darrell Cartwright, represented a UA student who alleged that former Crimson Tide star Rolando McClain struck him with a vehicle in 2008 in Tuscaloosa. McClain and plaintiff Matthew Mangham reached a settlement in April, and attorneys from both sides declined to say if McClain paid Mangham as part of the agreement.

McClain, now a linebacker with the Oakland Raiders, recently was convicted of assault and other criminal charges in a separate case connected to an altercation last November in his hometown of Decatur (from WHNT News). Harvey Steinberg, an attorney for McClain, says his client intends to appeal the convictions.

As for the civil matter, it is filled with irony. The complaint alleged that McClain assaulted Mangham after first striking him with a vehicle.

"Upon information and belief," the complaint states, "Defendant McClain has a history of aggressive and violent behavior, including previous assaults and other criminal activity."



Armstrong, the attorney who wrote those words, has a "history of aggressive and criminal activity" of his own.

On March 5, 2008, a Jefferson County man named Johnny J. "Jeff" Scruggs III, filed a criminal complaint stating that Armstrong had threatened to kill him. Was Scruggs perhaps exaggerating things in the heat of a moment?

Apparently not. The complaint states that Armstrong left the message on Scruggs'  answering machine.

In a divorce complaint filed at about the same time, Scruggs identifies Armstrong as his wife's "paramour" and seeks a restraining order against him because of the death threat.

Scruggs filed a criminal complaint with the Vestavia Hills Munic...

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