BALTIMORE (AP) — As former top Baltimore prosecutor Marilyn Mosby prepares to face charges of perjury and mortgage fraud, her entire defense team requested on Thursday that they withdraw from the case.
The motion — filed on behalf of her six private attorneys — came after a series of rulings earlier this week left significant hurdles for them, including the possibility of criminal charges of contempt against her lead attorney, A. Scott Bolden.
Four of the lawyers, who work at Bolden’s law firm, said they could no longer represent Mosby due to conflict, while the remaining two said they don’t have the time and resources to take over the defense on their own.
Mosby recently left office after two high-profile terms as a Baltimore state attorney. She was defeated in a Democratic primary last year after federal prosecutors accused her of lying about experiencing pandemic-related financial hardship in order to withdraw money from her retirement account early. She used the money to buy two vacation homes in Florida.
Mosby faces two charges, one each for perjury and mortgage fraud. Her trial begins March 27 in Baltimore.
At a hearing Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby said Bolden had violated several court rules in recent months. The missteps — including using profanity on the courthouse steps, disclosing confidential responses from jurors and filing a motion without a permit from Maryland law — could warrant criminal contempt penalties, Griggsby said. She gave Bolden a January 31 deadline to argue why he should not be sanctioned.
In their motion to withdraw, the attorneys said they recently discussed the case with the Office of the Federal Public Defender for Maryland, which could move Mosby forward.
According to her suit, in 2020, Mosby filed requests for one-time withdrawals of $40,000 and $50,000, respectively, from Baltimore’s deferred compensation plans. Prosecutors allege that Mosby falsely stated that she had financial difficulties due to the coronavirus, but that she received her salary of nearly $250,000 in 2020.
Her attorneys have argued that COVID-19 impacted both financial markets and Mosby’s personal travel and consulting business. They have accused prosecutors of having racial or political motives for pursuing the case, though Griggsby previously rejected their allegation of vindictive prosecution.
