http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/01/AR2009120101925.html?hpid=newswell
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Baltimore mayor convicted of one count of fraud
Dixon was acquitted of felony charges but could be forced to leave office

Associated Press
Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon was convicted Tuesday on a single charge that she took gift cards intended for the city's poor. Although she was acquitted of felony theft charges, her misdemeanor conviction could force her from office.

Jurors deliberated for more than six days after hearing accusations that the Democrat improperly used or kept $630 worth of gift cards. She was accused of soliciting most of the cards from a wealthy developer and buying items at Best Buy, Old Navy and Target.

The jury convicted Dixon on one count of fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary and acquitted her on two counts of felony theft and one count of misconduct in office. Jurors failed to reach a verdict on another count of fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary.

The conviction carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, but prosecutors had not decided whether they will seek jail time. They also had not decided whether to seek a retrial on the undecided charge.

Prosecutors painted a picture of a corrupt official going on personal shopping sprees and described a collection of electronics found during a raid of her home, including an Xbox, a PlayStation 2 and a video camera.

Dixon's attorneys blamed the case on developer Ronald Lipscomb, a married man whom they said lavished her with gifts, including gift cards sent anonymously, as he pursued her romantically. Dixon thought gift cards delivered anonymously by another developer also came from Lipscomb, the defense argued.

"It's a sad day," state prosecutor Robert Rohrbaugh said outside the courthouse after the verdict. "Any time a sitting mayor is convicted, it's a sad day for the city of Baltimore."

"The message is that there's nobody above the law," he said.

Dixon said afterward that the "city will continue to run, and citizens can feel confident that the city won't miss a step." Some supporters applauded as she left the courthouse.

One of her attorneys, Arnold M. Weiner, said that he was disappointed with the verdict and that the lawyers planned to file post-trial motions.

The deliberations continued "beyond the point that we believe to be appropriate," he said.

Dixon's defense team called four witnesses, including the mayor's pastor and a florist who testified about an anonymous $285 bouquet sent by Lipscomb. Her attorneys said she thought that some of the gift cards were intended as personal gifts and that others, found in her home, were forgotten leftovers from a charity event.

Under state law, Dixon would be suspended at sentencing if the conviction is related to her official duties. She would be removed permanently if she loses all her appeals. City Council President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is in line to be elevated to the mayor's office in such an event, and remaining council members would pick a new president.

Dixon, 55, has been under the cloud of the City Hall corruption probe for nearly four years, since she was City Council president. She was indicted in January.

Still, she remains popular in Maryland's largest city of about 630,000 residents.

Dixon became Baltimore's first African American woman mayor when she succeeded Martin O'Malley in January 2007 after he was elected governor. She easily won a four-year term in November 2007.

© 2009 The Washington Post Company