Bankruptcy judge declines to hold Chris Pettit in contempt again, but ex-attorney isn’t in the clear

Christopher “Chris” Pettit, the ex-San Antonio attorney accused of absconding with millions of dollars of clients’ money, has again avoided being held in contempt of court in his bankruptcy case — for now. At an emergency hearing Thursday, Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Craig Gargotta declined to grant the Chapter 11 trustee’s request to hold Pettit in contempt for violating a court order prohibiting him from transferring or disposing of any of his personal property. But the judge ordered Pettit — who has been living in an $8 million mansion at Disney World while working as a $15.75-an-hour cook on the resort’s grounds — to appear in the San Antonio court next week to show why he shouldn’t be sanctioned for violating the court’s order.

“Mr. Pettit, I know you work. I know you’re in Florida. Can’t do much about that,” Gargotta told Pettit, who appeared by video. “You need to be here on Sept. 8.” Trustee Eric Terry requested the emergency hearing after one of his lawyers, Patrick Huffstickler, got a phone call from Rob Vogt of Vogt Auction Galleries. Vogt told him that someone had come by the business to inquire about selling personal property at a house on Champions Run in a gated community in Stone Oak, Huffstickler said Thursday. Vogt visited the house and identified property he would be willing to sell. While in the house, he noticed a Post-It Note with Pettit’s name but didn’t think anything of it. After leaving, Huffstickler said, Vogt felt like something was “off” about his visit. He subsequently remembered reading about Pettit’s bankruptcy in the newspaper. So he called Huffstickler. “I advised him there’s been no order to allow the sale of any personal property” that’s part of the bankruptcy estate, Huffstickler said. The trustee said he believes Vogt met with a family member of the nanny who cares for Pettit’s 10-year-old son. Pettit testified that he didn’t authorize anyone to meet with auction house representatives.