Battleground Baltimore: Understanding the Marilyn Mosby Indictment

Battleground Baltimore: Understanding the Marilyn Mosby Indictment

Marilyn Mosby, Baltimore City State's Attorney was indicted by the federal government yesterday. Mosby was indicted on two counts perjury as well as two counts for providing false information regarding a mortgage application. According to the indictment Mosby asked to be able to take money out of her retirement. This was permitted under the 2020 CARES Act if a person has "experienced adverse financial results" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Indictment states that Mosby had a salary of almost $250,000 in 2020, and that she had received a $10,000 increase since 2019, indicating that she wasn't in financial hardship during the...

Marilyn Mosby, Baltimore City State's Attorney was indicted by the federal government yesterday. Mosby was indicted on two counts perjury as well as two counts for providing false information regarding a mortgage application. According to the indictment Mosby asked to be able to take money out of her retirement. This was permitted under the 2020 CARES Act if a person has "experienced adverse financial results" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Indictment states that Mosby had a salary of almost $250,000 in 2020, and that she had received a $10,000 increase since 2019, indicating that she wasn't in financial hardship during the pandemic's early days. Mosby's request for $36,000 was granted and $45,000 was added to her December 2020 retirement. Mosby used the money indictment claims to make down payments for two Florida vacation homes with mortgages of $490,000.500 and $428,000.400. According to the indictment, Mosby did not disclose that she owed $45,000 in back taxes to the federal government when she applied. Mosby also claimed she was the primary residence of one of the homes for at least one calendar year. This allowed her to get a lower rate on her mortgage. She claimed she would be the principal resident of one Florida home, but she had already arranged a rental management agreement to let the place out. Mosby made $150,000 in profit when he sold one of the Florida homes in November 2021. The indictment states that Mosby claimed economic hardship, which her finances did not support, and that she used COVID-19-related relief to buy two Florida vacation homes, each valued at almost half-a million dollars. One of these properties was later sold for $150,000 profit. Considering her role as an elected official in Baltimore City, neither one of them would have been her primary residence. The indictment against Nick Mosby, the husband of Mosby and Baltimore City Council President, has not been filed. This means that while the Mosbys continue to solicit legal defense fund money, wealthy Baltimoreans will continue to govern as usual. Residents should trust that such donations won't have any influence on their official decision-making. It was revealed last year that both the Mosbys were under federal investigation over a variety of tax issues. Although there is not much information about the nature of this investigation, it echoes the years of corruption in Baltimore, in which the federal government investigated and convicted former Mayor Catherine Pugh, former Baltimore State Delegate Cheryl Glenn, former Baltimore Police Chief Daryl DeSousa, and a number Baltimore Police Department detectives in a criminal conspiracy. The Mosbys quickly mounted a public defense in response to the news about the investigation. They held press conferences and Black establishment leaders from both local and national, asking for public support and asking people to donate to their legal defence fund. The Mosbys didn't address potential conflicts of interests that this type of fundraising could create. The Mosbys will continue to govern as normal, even though they are soliciting money for legal defense funds from wealthy Baltimoreans. Residents should trust that these donations will not have any influence on their official decisions. This is in addition to the conflict of interests that exists by virtue of the positions of the married couple within the larger apparatus for public governance. Nick Mosby, the president of the city council, approves Marilyn Mosby's budget. The Mosbys and their supporters among the city's elites continue to argue that the Mosbys have been under attack for their progressive approach towards governance. This is in keeping with Marilyn Mosby's national reputation as a "progressive prosecutor", who in 2015 had boldly indicted...