Attorney arraigned Friday on theft charge

Brownsville attorney Phillip J. Stein appeared in a state district court on Friday where he was formally arraigned on a theft charge.

Stein is accused of misappropriating $60,000 from a client, authorities said.

State District Judge Leonel Alejandro arraigned Stein on the charge and set a $20,000 cash bond. He was released from jail Friday night after posting bail.

Stein was arrested earlier in the week on a warrant for failing to appear in court on the theft charge.

The Cameron County District Attorney's Office began investigating Stein in May when a former client filed a complaint, said DA spokesman Jason Moody.

The client claimed that in October 2007 he hired Stein to handle the purchase of a home in the Harlingen area, but the attorney misappropriated $60,000, Moody said.

"We reviewed the information and submitted the case to a grand jury on June 11, 2008," the spokesman said. "It was presented before Judge Leonel Alejandro of the state's 357th District Court."