Latest news with #StephanieThacker
The Independent
2 days ago
- The Independent
Court overturns ex-state attorney's mortgage fraud conviction but upholds perjury convictions
A federal appeals court on Friday overturned a mortgage fraud conviction of former Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who gained a national profile for charging police officers in a Black man's death. But the court upheld two perjury convictions relating to real estate she purchased. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a 2-1 decision that jury instruction in the mortgage fraud case was 'erroneously overbroad" concerning the proper court venue. The case was tried in Maryland relating to property she bought in Florida. 'As a result of our decision to vacate the mortgage fraud conviction, the forfeiture order related to Appellant's Longboat Key Condo, which was obtained as the fruit of the alleged mortgage fraud, is also vacated,' Judge Stephanie Thacker wrote. Judge Paul Niemeyer dissented in part. While the majority ruling contended that the government failed to introduce evidence sufficient to show that the crime was committed in Maryland and that the district court's venue instruction was erroneous, Niemeyer wrote he would have rejected both arguments and affirmed the district court's judgment. The court upheld two perjury convictions, saying it found 'no error in the district court's adjudication of Appellant's perjury convictions.' The court rejected arguments by Mosby that the admitted evidence misled jurors. 'In sum, the district court did not err in permitting the Government to introduce evidence as to how Appellant utilized the funds she withdrew from her retirement accounts,' the court said. 'That evidence was probative as to whether Appellant suffered 'adverse financial consequences.' And the probative value of that evidence was not substantially outweighed by a risk of undue prejudice or jury confusion.' Mosby, 45, was spared jail time at her sentencing last year. Her sentence included 12 months of home confinement, which she concluded last month. She also was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and three years of supervised release. Mosby was convicted of lying about her finances to make early withdrawals from retirement funds during the COVID-19 pandemic and fraudulently claiming that her own $5,000 was a gift from her then-husband as she closed on a Florida condominium. Mosby, who was Baltimore's state's attorney from 2015 to 2023, has maintained her innocence. Mosby gained national attention when she charged officers in the 2015 death of Freddie Gray, which led to riots and protests in the city. After three officers were acquitted, Mosby's office dropped charges against the other three officers. She ultimately served two terms as state's attorney before she was indicted and lost reelection. In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, Mosby withdrew $90,000 from Baltimore city's deferred compensation plan and used it to make down payments on vacation homes in Kissimmee and Longboat Key, Florida. Prosecutors argued that Mosby improperly accessed the funds under provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act by falsely claiming that the pandemic had harmed her travel-oriented side business. Mosby's lawyers argued that the retirement funds came from her own income and that no one was defrauded because she paid an early-withdrawal penalty and all federal taxes on the money. The government said that money remained the property of the city until she was legally eligible, and her perjury harmed everyone who followed the rules during the coronavirus pandemic. The mortgage fraud conviction overturned by the appeals court on Friday stemmed from a $5,000 'gift letter' she submitted when taking a loan to buy the Longboat Key property. Prosecutors said the letter falsely stated that Mosby's husband was giving her a $5,000 gift for the closing when it actually was her own money. Mosby applied for a presidential pardon last year. In a letter to then-President Joe Biden, the Congressional Black Caucus expressed support for her cause. Biden did not grant a pardon.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Appeals Court vacates Mosby's mortgage fraud conviction, upholds perjury charges
A federal appeals court on Friday vacated former Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby's mortgage fraud conviction, while upholding two separate perjury convictions, according to newly filed court records. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruled 2-1 that Mosby's mortgage fraud case had been improperly tried in Maryland. Judges Stephanie Thacker and G. Steven Agee ruled in favor of the former prosecutor. Judge Paul Niemeyer wrote a separate opinion, concurring in part and dissenting in part of the majority decision. The court said the jury received 'erroneous instruction' about the proper venue for the case, and as a result, it reversed the conviction and the federal government's seizure of her Florida condominium. 'We agree with Appellant that the district court's jury charge with respect to venue in her mortgage fraud trial was erroneous,' Thacker wrote in the filing. 'On that ground, we vacate Appellant's mortgage fraud conviction without reaching her remaining arguments. And because the district court's forfeiture order hinges on the mortgage fraud conviction, it is likewise vacated.' An attorney for Mosby was not listed in court records, and she could not be reached for comment. In upholding Mosby's two perjury convictions, the panel sided with the trial judge's determination that evidence concerning her retirement fund withdrawals was both relevant and admissible. 'We discern no error in the district court's adjudication of Appellant's perjury convictions,' the court wrote. Mosby, 45, completed a year-long sentence of home detention on June 20, according to a judge's order. The ruling came after she filed motions earlier in the week seeking the return of her passport and a waiver of a $1,447.23 location monitoring fee — conditions that had restricted her ability to travel. Mosby, who served as Baltimore's State's Attorney from 2015 to 2023, was convicted of two counts of perjury and one count of mortgage fraud — all federal offenses — after leaving office. She was sentenced to home detention in May 2024 and began serving her sentence the following month. The perjury charges stemmed from Mosby's use of the federal CARES Act, which allowed individuals facing financial hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic to withdraw retirement funds without penalties. Prosecutors argued that she falsely claimed hardship to access tens of thousands of dollars from her retirement account, despite earning more in 2020 than she had in the previous year. In a separate trial in 2024, a jury found Mosby guilty of using those retirement funds as down payments on two luxury vacation properties in Florida valued at more than $1 million combined. Mosby was confined to her Fells Point home and common areas of her apartment complex while on home detention but was still permitted to travel for work, childcare responsibilities, medical appointments and meetings with her legal team. Mosby had to get permission to travel to all other events, such as a barbecue held in her honor that she attended last summer in Clarksville. Mosby first rose to national prominence in 2015 when she charged six Baltimore police officers in connection with the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old Black man who died in police custody. The case drew national attention amid widespread protests and unrest. After three trials ended without convictions, Mosby dropped charges against the remaining officers. Have a news tip? Contact Todd Karpovich at tkarpovich@ or on X as @ToddKarpovich.
