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| Former Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh sentenced to 3 years prison in ‘Healthy Holly’ case | Former Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh sentenced to 3 years prison in ‘Healthy Holly’ case |
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| BALTIMORE — In her three years as mayor, Catherine Pugh was on a mission to burnish the image of her adoptive hometown, a city battered by rioting, a soaring murder rate, and a history of corruption at City Hall and in the police department. | BALTIMORE — In her three years as mayor, Catherine Pugh was on a mission to burnish the image of her adoptive hometown, a city battered by rioting, a soaring murder rate, and a history of corruption at City Hall and in the police department. |
| Yet, as she was sentenced to 3 years in prison on Thursday after pleading guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy, Pugh became a symbol of the dysfunction that has long permeated Maryland’s largest city and sown distrust among its beleaguered residents. | Yet, as she was sentenced to 3 years in prison on Thursday after pleading guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy, Pugh became a symbol of the dysfunction that has long permeated Maryland’s largest city and sown distrust among its beleaguered residents. |
| Pugh used her series of self-published “Healthy Holly” children’s books to orchestrate a scheme in which she generated more than $800,000 in income while failing to deliver tens of thousands of copies of the books to public schools. | Pugh used her series of self-published “Healthy Holly” children’s books to orchestrate a scheme in which she generated more than $800,000 in income while failing to deliver tens of thousands of copies of the books to public schools. |
| The fraudulent sales to entities with business before city and state government helped fund Pugh’s political campaigns and allowed her to buy and renovate a second home in Baltimore, prosecutors have said. | The fraudulent sales to entities with business before city and state government helped fund Pugh’s political campaigns and allowed her to buy and renovate a second home in Baltimore, prosecutors have said. |
| “I accept total responsibility,” Pugh, 69, said in an unusual presentencing video that her attorneys submitted to U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow, excerpts of which were broadcast Wednesday by the Baltimore Sun. | “I accept total responsibility,” Pugh, 69, said in an unusual presentencing video that her attorneys submitted to U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow, excerpts of which were broadcast Wednesday by the Baltimore Sun. |
| Her voice halting as soft piano music plays in the background, Pugh in the video is seated alone against a black backdrop, apparently speaking extemporaneously as she apologizes for the harm she caused to residents, friends, partners and “the city’s image.” | Her voice halting as soft piano music plays in the background, Pugh in the video is seated alone against a black backdrop, apparently speaking extemporaneously as she apologizes for the harm she caused to residents, friends, partners and “the city’s image.” |
| “I am sorry,” Pugh says. “I don’t know any other words that could be stronger. I am so sorry. I’m really sorry.” | “I am sorry,” Pugh says. “I don’t know any other words that could be stronger. I am so sorry. I’m really sorry.” |
| Pugh’s attorneys, in a memorandum to Chasanow, recommended a sentence of 366 days, describing the former mayor as “remorseful” over ruining “a reputation that took a lifetime to build.” | Pugh’s attorneys, in a memorandum to Chasanow, recommended a sentence of 366 days, describing the former mayor as “remorseful” over ruining “a reputation that took a lifetime to build.” |
| “She is now too ashamed to spend any time in the community that she loves,” the attorneys wrote. | “She is now too ashamed to spend any time in the community that she loves,” the attorneys wrote. |
| Catherine E. Pugh indictment | Catherine E. Pugh indictment |
| Prosecutors, in their memorandum to the judge, contended that a prison term of 57 months is needed to hold Pugh “accountable for her years of continuous criminal activity” and to “restore the public’s trust in government.” | Prosecutors, in their memorandum to the judge, contended that a prison term of 57 months is needed to hold Pugh “accountable for her years of continuous criminal activity” and to “restore the public’s trust in government.” |
| Pugh’s “brazen lies to the public” and the duration of her scheme — seven years — is evidence that “she pursued financial and political gain without a second thought about how it was harming the public’s trust,” prosecutors wrote. | Pugh’s “brazen lies to the public” and the duration of her scheme — seven years — is evidence that “she pursued financial and political gain without a second thought about how it was harming the public’s trust,” prosecutors wrote. |
| “It was not rash behavior,” they added. “Rather, it was a recurring pattern of well-executed steps that built on each other, becoming more audacious and complex leading up to the mayoral election.” | “It was not rash behavior,” they added. “Rather, it was a recurring pattern of well-executed steps that built on each other, becoming more audacious and complex leading up to the mayoral election.” |
| Pugh’s sentencing took place as the city enters another period of political uncertainty. | Pugh’s sentencing took place as the city enters another period of political uncertainty. |
| Her successor, Bernard C. “Jack” Young, the former City Council president who became mayor when Pugh resigned last May, is hoping to hold the seat. Young is vying against five opponents in the April 28 Democratic primary. The field includes Council President Brandon Scott and former mayor Sheila Dixon, who is attempting a second comeback after resigning amid scandal a decade ago. | Her successor, Bernard C. “Jack” Young, the former City Council president who became mayor when Pugh resigned last May, is hoping to hold the seat. Young is vying against five opponents in the April 28 Democratic primary. The field includes Council President Brandon Scott and former mayor Sheila Dixon, who is attempting a second comeback after resigning amid scandal a decade ago. |
| As Pugh’s sentencing date approached, dozens of her friends and relatives pleaded for leniency in letters to the judge. Those petitioning the judge included former Baltimore mayor Kurt Schmoke and Kweisi Mfume, who is seeking the Maryland congressional seat that has been vacant since the death last fall of Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.). | As Pugh’s sentencing date approached, dozens of her friends and relatives pleaded for leniency in letters to the judge. Those petitioning the judge included former Baltimore mayor Kurt Schmoke and Kweisi Mfume, who is seeking the Maryland congressional seat that has been vacant since the death last fall of Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.). |
| “Her errors in judgment,” wrote Schmoke, now the University of Baltimore’s president, “are a source of disappointment to her and to all of us who call her friend. I know that she looks forward to a time to once again contribute to society.” | “Her errors in judgment,” wrote Schmoke, now the University of Baltimore’s president, “are a source of disappointment to her and to all of us who call her friend. I know that she looks forward to a time to once again contribute to society.” |
| Pugh was involved in Baltimore politics and government for more than 30 years, working for then-Mayor William Donald Schaefer during the 1970s and then winning election to the City Council in 1999. In 2005, then-Gov. Robert Ehrlich (R) appointed her to a vacant House of Delegates seat. | Pugh was involved in Baltimore politics and government for more than 30 years, working for then-Mayor William Donald Schaefer during the 1970s and then winning election to the City Council in 1999. In 2005, then-Gov. Robert Ehrlich (R) appointed her to a vacant House of Delegates seat. |
| Pugh served in the State Senate from 2007 until her 2016 election as mayor. At one point in Annapolis, then-Senate President Thomas V. “Mike” Miller appointed her Senate majority leader. | Pugh served in the State Senate from 2007 until her 2016 election as mayor. At one point in Annapolis, then-Senate President Thomas V. “Mike” Miller appointed her Senate majority leader. |
| Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh resigns amid book scandal | Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh resigns amid book scandal |
| During the rioting that followed Freddie Gray’s death of an injury he suffered while in police custody in 2015, Pugh, along with Cummings, spent hours trying to calm raucous crowds at the west Baltimore intersection that was at the center of the unrest. | During the rioting that followed Freddie Gray’s death of an injury he suffered while in police custody in 2015, Pugh, along with Cummings, spent hours trying to calm raucous crowds at the west Baltimore intersection that was at the center of the unrest. |
| Later that year, Pugh announced her campaign for mayor. She defeated Dixon to claim the office. | Later that year, Pugh announced her campaign for mayor. She defeated Dixon to claim the office. |
| As part of her appeal to voters, Pugh pledged to restore rectitude to City Hall, declaring that Baltimore “needs a leader who will serve with honesty, integrity and transparency. That’s who I am, and this is the job for me.” | As part of her appeal to voters, Pugh pledged to restore rectitude to City Hall, declaring that Baltimore “needs a leader who will serve with honesty, integrity and transparency. That’s who I am, and this is the job for me.” |
| Pugh, a stylish dresser and onetime marketing executive, tried as mayor to focus attention on new development projects in Baltimore, but those efforts often were eclipsed by violence that drove the city’s homicide toll above 300 by the end of her first year in office. | Pugh, a stylish dresser and onetime marketing executive, tried as mayor to focus attention on new development projects in Baltimore, but those efforts often were eclipsed by violence that drove the city’s homicide toll above 300 by the end of her first year in office. |
| Despite the continuing carnage, Pugh retained support in the city’s business community and appeared headed for reelection when the “Healthy Holly” scandal erupted a year ago. | Despite the continuing carnage, Pugh retained support in the city’s business community and appeared headed for reelection when the “Healthy Holly” scandal erupted a year ago. |
| Her fall began when the Baltimore Sun reported that the University of Maryland Medical System, on whose board of directors she sat, had granted her a no-bid $500,000 contract for 100,000 copies of her book. | Her fall began when the Baltimore Sun reported that the University of Maryland Medical System, on whose board of directors she sat, had granted her a no-bid $500,000 contract for 100,000 copies of her book. |
| Six weeks later, after the FBI raided her homes and as the scandal widened, Pugh resigned. In a statement read to reporters at the time by her attorney, the outgoing mayor apologized for the “harm I have caused to the image of Baltimore.” | Six weeks later, after the FBI raided her homes and as the scandal widened, Pugh resigned. In a statement read to reporters at the time by her attorney, the outgoing mayor apologized for the “harm I have caused to the image of Baltimore.” |
| After the hearing, Pugh emerged from the courthouse, addressing a bank of television cameras. She delcared her love for Baltimore and made a vow: “It is not the last you will see of Catherine Pugh.” | |
| ‘No way’: Pugh book deals raise eyebrows in the book-publishing world | ‘No way’: Pugh book deals raise eyebrows in the book-publishing world |
| Baltimore mayor apologizes for deal to sell self-published children’s books | Baltimore mayor apologizes for deal to sell self-published children’s books |
| Critical Carlos reads ‘Healthy Holly’ | Critical Carlos reads ‘Healthy Holly’ |
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