Stephen Janis and Luke Broadwater, The Examiner
2008-06-25 07:00:00.0
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BALTIMORE -

State prosecutors on Tuesday focused their investigation of Mayor Sheila Dixon on allegations that she misused gift cards intended for needy families, according to a City Hall source.

Investigators are trying to determine whether Dixon solicited the gift cards and then used them for her own benefit, the source said. 

Meanwhile, city leaders defended the mayor amid revelations that state investigators are now probing her relationship with a prominent city developer.

Dixon voted against some of the developer’s projects and never tried to influence others in government to support his deals, her supporters said.

Dixon conceded Monday to having a “personal relationship” with developer Ronald Lipscomb, owner of Doracon Contracting Inc., and receiving gifts from him during the six months they dated.

State prosecutors say she did not disclose those gifts on the proper city forms.

“In late 2003 and early 2004, I had a personal relationship with Ron Lipscomb,” Dixon said in a statement. “We were both separated from our respective spouses at the time, we traveled together and exchanged gifts on special occasions. Our brief relationship was personal, and it did not influence my decisions related to matters of city government.”

The relationship was disclosed in an affidavit filed in Baltimore County District Court by investigators seeking a warrant to search Doracon, an East Baltimore company involved in several high-profile city construction projects.

The prosecutors said they were investigating a $2,000 gift certificate from a furrier that Dixon allegedly accepted from Lipscomb as well as several out-of-town trips they took together while she was City Council president.

 City Councilman Bernard “Jack” Young said Mayor Martin O’Malley, now governor, controlled the Board of Estimates with three of five votes, while Dixon was City Council president.

“You know who controls the Board of Estimates,” said Young, D-12th District. “The mayor has the power.”

Young also took issue with allegations that Dixon had undue influence on selecting Doracon as a subcontractor.

“These deals were approved on their own merit,” he said.

Both Mary Pat Clarke and Rochelle “Rikki” Spector, longtime members of the City Council, said Dixon never tried to influence votes in favor of Lipscomb.

“It never happened,” Clarke said. “Yes, the City Council president can lobby for votes, but not for that company and not in terms of my vote.”

Spector called Dixon “an outstanding mayor” during whose tenure Baltimore’s homicide rate has dropped dramatically.

Supporters also pointed to Dixon’s votes against granting tax exemptions to several city projects involving Doracon, including Rash Field and redevelopment of Pier Five.

University of Baltimore law professor Byron Warnken said the affidavit makes a decent misdemeanor case for misconduct in office and felony perjury, if investigators can prove she lied on a financial disclosure form. 

“You don’t need too much impropriety before you reach the level of that broad, expansive misconduct in office count,” he said. “They really aren’t sexy crimes. Everybody gets excited when you talk about an affair, but it doesn’t necessarily make a criminal case.” 

City ethics codes require the disclosure of any gifts of more than $50 to public officials from people who do or are seeking business with the city.

Dixon’s attorney, Dale Kelberman, said that because Lipscomb was a subcontractor on projects, Dixon didn’t need to disclose the gifts. Only gifts given from general contractors must be disclosed, he said.

“There’s no reason to disclose gifts received,” Kelberman said of Lipscomb’s presents. “She was not required to.”

Lipscomb’s attorney, Gerald Martin, said his client got contracts because his company did good work — not because he was dating the City Council president.

“He gets jobs because he does good work, not because he can get favors,” Martin said. “He’s a good guy. He’s a man of substance. They’re barking up the wrong tree.”

sjanis@baltimoreexaminer.com

lbroadwater@baltimoreexaminer.com