A Cleburne criminal-defense attorney has won an emergency stay against U.S. District Judge John McBryde of Fort Worth, after alleging that the jurist is interfering with the attorney/client privilege by appointing another lawyer to speak with his client.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted the stay Feb. 27, the day after Ricardo De Los Santos filed a petition seeking both the stay and an emergency writ of mandamus, which remains pending.