Legal Commentary

Has Baltimore's Mayor Been Unfairly Targeted For Investigation?

By TChris

It seems clear that the quality of life is improving for Baltimore residents, and that Mayor Sheila Dixon shares responsibility for that happy development.

Baltimore's murder rate is down 37% so far this year, compared with the same period in 2007. Many credit Ms. Dixon, who brought in a new police commissioner and directed the force to shift focus to the most-violent repeat offenders and away from petty crimes. The mayor has launched a program to combat homelessness, imposed a smoking ban and formulated a plan to use a land bank to acquire vacant properties and return them to use.

It's less clear whether Dixon violated any laws as a member of the city council before she became mayor. A federal investigation ended without an indictment, and the City's Board of Ethics cleared her of misconduct allegations. That hasn't stopped Republican state prosecutor Robert Rohrbaugh from continuing an investigation he started in 2006. Is this another example of Republicans targeting Democrats for political purposes? [more ...]

The problems facing Ms. Dixon originate from the time she was on the council. Ms. Dixon voted on contracts for a shell corporation that at the time employed her sister. Her then-chief of staff instructed her former campaign manager to bill the city in $5,000 increments for computer-consulting work he did, allowing the expenditures to forego formal approval. The chief of staff was later reprimanded.

That conflict of interest allegation went before the Board of Ethics, which cleared Dixon. In addition:

A public-court filing details Ms. Dixon's personal relationship with a contractor for a project that was approved by the City Council when she headed the body. ... Court filings allege that Ms. Dixon was present at a 2004 City Council meeting to review a tax break for a project involving [Ronald] Lipscomb. ...

In an affidavit first made public in the Baltimore Sun newspaper, an investigator for the state prosecutor alleged that Ms. Dixon didn't report gifts from Mr. Lipscomb on her financial-disclosure forms.

At the time, Dixon and Liscomb were in a romantic relationship. Dixon says their exchange of gifts was in that context.

Dale Kelberman, Ms. Dixon's lawyer, said Mr. Lipscomb was working as a subcontractor in the city project under scrutiny, and Ms. Dixon was therefore not required under ethics codes to report the gifts he gave to her. Further, he argues, they only exchanged gifts as part of their relationship.

Dixon may have used poor judgment, but it's up to Baltimore's voters to decide whether that offsets her successful management of a troubled city. Some Baltimore residents wonder whether "the city's first black female mayor is being unfairly targeted" by a Republican hit-man. In light of other recent investigations and prosecutions of Democrats for political purposes, that question is worth asking.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on August 09, 2008 (boomark / email).