Both sides presented opening statements Monday in the federal perjury case against former Baltimore State’s Attorney, Marilyn Mosby. She is accused of lying to utilize a financial loophole to access funds from her city retirement account. Mosby withdrew a total of $90,000 to purchase two properties in Florida. Prior to those transactions, she registered a traveling and consulting company called Mahogany Elite LLC in 2019.
What is the prosecution’s case?
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean Delaney and Aaron Zelinsky are prosecuting Mosby. Delaney said that Mosby saw an opportunity in the CARES Act and put her ‘selfish interests’ above her role as a public servant. He said she didn’t qualify for the withdrawals because her business wasn’t operating.
“How can a business close if it was never operable?” he asked jurors. “How can your business suffer adverse financial consequences, if it never made a single cent? She took advantage of a law intended to help those struggling,” he said.
What is the defense’s case?
Lucius Outlaw III, an associate professor of law at Howard University’s School of Law along with two federal public defenders, James Wyda and Maggie Grace, are defending Mosby. In their opening, Grace said that Mosby was not motivated by greed. She went on a trip in 2019 that was transformative, said Grace. When she returned, she wanted professional women of color to have similar experiences, so she set out to create retreats that would serve as oases, away from demanding careers. Grace added that Mosby was also trying to secure her future, which was uncertain as she was up for reelection. She reasonably believed she had adverse consequences because the pandemic devastated her travel agency aspirations.
Key Testimony and pieces of evidence
Julia Floyd, head of payroll for the City of Baltimore, testified first. Floyd said that Mosby was not one of the 210 employees furloughed in 2020. The prosecution presented Mosby’s W2’s, and pay stubs which showed that she got every cent of her roughly $248,000 salary.
David Randall, the executive director of the city’s retirement system, testified next. He said that 739 city employees withdrew funds through the CARES Act during 2020. The prosecution introduced an email blast which Randall wrote, that spelled out qualifications under the Act.
On cross examination, defense attorney Outlaw showed that there was an addendum to the CARES Act. Randall confirmed the addendum which said that business incurred losses qualified for withdrawals under the CARES Act. Outlaw pointed out that the relaxed rules didn’t specify how long a business had to be operational, the amount of revenue loss or if the business even needed to have hired employees.
The final witness spent several hours testifying about Mosby’s accounts. Jenna Bender, a forensic accountant with the FBI, said she examined Mosby’s bank statements, credit cards, taxes and travel itinerary. The prosecution played recorded phone calls between Mosby and Nationwide, the administrator of the retirement account. In one of the calls, Mosby can be heard insisting on a disbursement before the end of the year. The defense tried blocking those calls from being entered into evidence.
Other factors
In the gallery, defense attorney J. Wyndal Gordon, former House Delegate Bilal Ali and others in the legal community showed up to support Mosby. They told reporters that they foresee an acquittal because the crux of the case lies in defining what counts as an ‘adverse financial consequence.’
“There's no definition as to what constitutes that,” said Gordon during a lunch recess. “Whether it's a $50 loss or a $500,000 loss. Even though you may make more money, one year than you did the last year, when you make more money, you spend more so you could have some issues.”
What happens next?
The prosecution is expected to rest its case Tuesday. The defense could begin calling witnesses later in the day. Mosby is expected to testify in her own defense. So far, the former prosecutor has kept mum. However, she could be overheard in the hallway speaking with supporters. “God got me, this is ridiculous.”
