I noticed when I was trying to get reinstated... people notice you. You try to disappear into the furniture but you are seen and commented on.
It took a long time for me to get reinstated and I often wondered what kind of effect this had on the brothers and sisters in the congregation. I KNEW one of the elders on my JC was viewed as a dick-head. I couldn't help but wonder if this had a negative effect on others who might have thought I was being treated harshly. Which I was.
Now that it's all over and I am awake and out... I often wish I had exploited that situation better - responding to an elder's invitation to the back room with a comment within earshot of others, "So you can just tell me again that you're not going to reinstate me. No thanks! My relationship with Jehovah is fine. I'll be fine."
OP, your friend is in a position to help others in a variety of ways by undermining the "stars" in the congregation.