A federal appeals court overturned the mortgage fraud conviction of former Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby but upheld two perjury convictions relating to her case.
The Philadelphia Tribune reports the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals issued a 2-1 decision that determined the jury instruction for the mortgage fraud case was “erroneously overbroad” – Mosby’s case was tried in Maryland but the property in question was in Florida. However, the court found “no error in the district court’s adjudication” in the perjury convictions.
“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,” wrote Judge Stephanie Thacker in the ruling.
Mosby was convicted last year of lying about her finances when she withdrew $90,000 from Baltimore city’s deferred compensation plan to make down payments on two vacation homes in Florida. She was also convicted for stating $5,000 of her own money was a gift from her then-husband when she was closing on the purchase of a Florida property. She was sentenced to 12 months of home confinement, 100 hours of community service and three years of supervised release. Mosby applied for a presidential pardon to then-President Joe Biden, with the Congressional Black Caucus expressing support for her cause, but her request was denied.
Mosby, who was Baltimore’s state’s attorney from 2015 to 2023, 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.
Photo courtesy of Marilyn Mosby’s Facebook page
