By Brendan Kirby, Press-RegisterPress-Register
MOBILE, Alabama — Grappling for two years with allegations of will fakery, longtime prominent Mobile area lawyer Richard Horne has withdrawn from his cases in the last few months, blaming memory loss. His memory problem is “profound,” he wrote to a federal judge, and “has reached the point where the representation of clients will be compromised and possibly ineffective.” Horne — whose notable clients over the years have ranged from suspected killers to wayward mayors to the strip club Sammy’s — also told the judge that he had contacted the Alabama State Bar seeking advice on how to close his practice. But such actions have done little to deter David Stroecker, a Mobile insurance agent who has pressed a State Bar complaint against the 66-year-old Horne over a will that Mobile County Probate Court jurors determined was forged. “I’m going to do it. I’m going to keep going,” said Stroecker, who is the stepfather of two women who contested the will. “He made it personal. I didn’t make it personal.” He said that he wants to make sure that Horne cannot practice law in Alabama again. Tony McLain, the bar’s general counsel, said he could not comment on the complaint because such matters are closed unless the bar decides to tak