Disbarred attorney convicted of aggravated stalking

It took a Minden jury four hours to return a guilty felony verdict against a disbarred attorney accused of aggravated stalking.The verdict against Michael Charles Meisler, 61, was announced on Friday moments before 5 p.m. District Judge Michael Gibbons set a March 11 sentencing date at which Meisler will be represented by his stand-by counsel Kris Brown. Meisler faces up to 15 years in prison and a $5,000 fine. He also would be eligible for probation, according to court documents. The victim in the case, a Johnson Lane woman, spent nearly eight hours on the stand Wednesday and Thursday being questioned by prosecutor Tom Gregory and Meisler.Meisler represented himself throughout the trial, though he tried to withdraw just before it’s start on Tuesday. Gibbons rejected his proposal.Meisler did not testify on his own behalf during the trial. If he had, he would have been subject to cross-examination, which might have revealed that he had two prior convictions for stalking and had served prison time. Meisler was disbarred following felony convictions and prison sentences for stalking in Florida.As it was, the jury didn’t hear about Meisler’s previous record, which was deemed too prejudicial.Meisler has been in custody since his Dec. 15, 2011, arrest at the north Carson City Starbucks. He challenged that arrest because the sheriff’s office pinged his cell phone to help locate him.The criminal complaint alleges that between Nov. 15 and Dec. 14, 2011, Meisler sent multiple letters, text messages, newspaper clippings and other writings, and left messages for the woman in her home and taped to the garage.