Former Alabama state senator, who has been charged with sexual extortion again, surrenders his law license

A second woman has filed a lawsuit against a well-known former attorney and former senator from East Alabama, alleging that he sexually assaulted and abused her.

Saraland attorney Travis Johns filed suit this week in the Calhoun County Circuit against 78-year-old attorney Doug Ghee on behalf of the 27-year-old alleged victim.

The complaint states that she would gain advantages in the pending custody and child support proceedings if she complied with his demands.

Also named as defendants are Ghee's law firm, Ghee Draper and Alexander, and partners Wendy Ghee Draper, Jennifer Ghee Downey, Laura Ghee Alexander, David C. Alexander and Lindsey Ghee McDaniel.

According to a document provided to AL.com by the Alabama Bar's disciplinary officer, Ghee surrendered his law license earlier this week “in accordance with Alabama's disciplinary procedure rules.” The license surrender took effect immediately.

Ghee began his career as a lawyer in 1975 and served in the Alabama Legislature from 1990 to 1998.

Efforts to reach Ghee, his partners and his lawyer for comment were unsuccessful.

In August, a 28-year-old woman filed the first lawsuit against Ghee, who represented her in a criminal case, alleging that he sexually assaulted her while she was handcuffed in the attorney-client visiting room at the Calhoun County Jail.

In that first case, the lawsuit says, Ghee told the woman that he was friends with the judge and assistant district attorney in charge of her case and could therefore get her a better offer than the one her current attorney had presented her with.

The offer was conditioned on the woman hiring Ghee for $2,500 and agreeing to be “his sex slave” after her release from prison, the lawsuit says.

In the latest lawsuit, the 27-year-old woman said she became embroiled in a divorce and DHR investigation in 2022 after her child ingested a CBD gummy bear.

The woman and her parents met with Ghee for the first time on October 18, 2022 and paid him a fee of $1,800.

The next day, Ghee called her back to his office, where she learned that her husband had filed for divorce.

She paid Ghee an additional “flat fee” of $3,500 to hire Ghee and the firm to handle the divorce proceedings.

At their first private meeting, the lawsuit says, Ghee asked her if she was “good at keeping secrets.”

As the meeting continued, she told Ghee that she was not comfortable going to court yet because she was afraid that she would fail a drug test due to her use of legal Delta-8/CBD products.

Again, the lawsuit says, Ghee asked her if she was good at keeping secrets.

The woman said that when she got up to leave at the end of the meeting, Ghee blocked the door and sexually assaulted her.

Specifically, the lawsuit states, he grabbed her face and began kissing her, groped her and put his hand down her pants.

According to the lawsuit, he told her: “Look, if you want to prevail in court and get what you want, you have to do what I say.”

He further said that he could speak to the judge unofficially and get her what she wanted.

“At this point, Doug realized he had succeeded in turning his client into a controllable victim and he began to further exploit her,” the alleged victim's attorney wrote in the lawsuit.

From October 2022 to February 2023, the two met at least eight times in his office or at unknown homes. The meetings always took place after 4:30 p.m., and his office closed for the day at 5:00 p.m.

The lawsuit alleges that Ghee abused his power at the firm to send all remaining employees home and lock the doors, to take medication she thought was Viagra during visits, and to force her to have sex with him.

No charges have been filed against Ghee, but in late July, Calhoun County Sheriff Matthew Wade confirmed that an investigation was underway into an alleged incident at the Calhoun County Jail involving an attorney and a female inmate.

Wade said he could not identify the attorney's name, but added that the investigation by the sheriff's office and the Alabama Attorney General's office is still ongoing.

The sheriff said the case had expanded and now involved “a large amount of digital evidence and multiple individuals.”

“This takes time,” Wade said. “As sheriff, I stand for justice and righteousness.”

“We will find out the truth and I will fight for those who cannot,” he said.

Following the alleged incidents, Seventh Judicial Court Chief Judge Shannon Page issued an administrative order prohibiting Ghee from assigning cases to defend indigent individuals.

The Alabama Bar received several complaints, which resulted in the revocation of Ghee's law license.