B2 EZ RE THE WASHINGTON POST.THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19 , 2019
ing that Hogan and the board can
award money to exonerees under
current law but have chosen not
to.
Maryland lags far behind oth-
ers in compensating those who
were wrongly imprisoned, ex-
perts say. Nearly three dozen for-
mer felons have been exonerated
in the state over the past 30 years.
But only nine of them have sought
payment — and just three re-
ceived money during that time.
Earlier this month, about 50
lawmakers, including House
Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-
Baltimore County), urged the
Board of Public Works to act on
the exonerees’ petitions. In July,
attorneys for the men sent a joint
letter to the Board of Public
Works asking for $100,000 a year
for each year of incarceration,
totaling $12 million.
State Comptroller Peter Fran-
chot (D) said Wednesday that it
was time to compensate the “ille-
gally incarcerated” men.
“I’m sure we will come up with
something that is fair and com-
passionate and timely,” he said.
“Time is of the essence here.”
Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp (D)
had previously said the board
should act.
Attorneys for the exonerees,COMPENSATION FROM B1 who have been in discussions
with Board of Public Works staff
in recent weeks, said they were
encouraged by Hogan’s an-
nouncement.
“Compensation or remunera-
tion from the state will be a recog-
nition of the pain and suffering
that my clients and other exoner-
ees have endured,” said Neel Lal-
chandani, who represents Ship-
ley and Jerome Johnson.
“I think it’s a n affirmation from
the state of Maryland that the
lives of exonerees matter, and that
the time they lost matters as well.
We welcome this development,
but we now want to get to the
finish line on this.”
Bohannon said he has reached
out to Dewberry’s office to come
up with an agreement that will
allow administrative law judges,
who typically adjudicate claims
involving state agencies, to hold
hearings on the individual cases
and recommend an amount to be
awarded.
The Board of Public Works
would have to approve a memo-
randum of understanding outlin-
ing that process, and vote on the
administrative law judges’ rec-
ommendations for each of the
men.
Thirty-five states have passed
legislation authorizing exonerees
to be compensated for their timeserved. The majority of them, in-
cluding Florida, New Jersey and
California, provide at least
$50,000 for each year of incarcer-
ation, according to the Innocence
Project.
Michelle Feldman, state cam-
paigns director for the Innocence
Project, said 22 of the 35 states
settle claims through a state or
local court system.
Maryland’s statute does not
suggest a dollar figure but autho-
rizes the Board of Public Works to
award a sum “commensurate
with the actual damages sus-
tained as a result of the confine-
ment.”
Lalchandani said he wants the
process to be “simple and fast....
This cannot be a drawn-out proc-
ess. These men have waited long
enough.”
Andrew George, an attorney
for Williams, said he does not
oppose the use of administrative
law judges but hopes the process
moves quickly.
George said Williams, who is
homeless, is “badly in need of
physical and mental health care.”
Last week, he asked the board to
pay $35,000 for temporary hous-
ing for Williams until his petition
is resolved. He said he has not
received a response to the re-
quest.
[email protected]Under pressure, Gov. Hogan
moves to pay five exonerees
BY MARTIN WEILA Maryland political consul-
tant has pleaded guilty to wire
fraud in connection with a
scheme to solicit millions in con-
tributions through “scam” politi-
cal action committees that were
portrayed as supporting candi-
dates and other causes, federal
prosecutors said.
Kelley Rogers, 55, of Annapolis
entered the plea in U.S. District
Court in Alexandria on Tuesday,
according to the U.S. attorney’s
office for the Eastern District of
Virginia.
“Rogers preyed upon his vic-
tims’ political beliefs with the
intent of enriching his compa-
nies, his business partners, and
himself,” U.S. Attorney G. Zachary
Te rwilliger said in a statement.
Prosecutors said court docu-
ments showed Rogers operated
multiple PACs from August 2012
through last year. Among them,
prosecutors said, were the Con-
servative StrikeForce, Conserva-tive Majority Fund and Tea Party
Majority Fund.
In one instance, prosecutors
said, “Rogers, working with an
email vendor, represented
through CSF” i n and around 2013
that contributions would “sup-
port” campaigns for candidates
for attorney general and governor
in Virginia.
Among other things, the pros-
ecutors said, Rogers indicated
that the contributions would be
used for get-out-the-vote efforts
and for attorneys to ensure elec-
tion integrity.
He later said donations would
go to support military veterans,
according to prosecutors.
But prosecutors said Rogers
spent nearly all of the raised
money to benefit himself, his as-
sociates and his PACs. They said
most of the donor money went
toward soliciting more dona-
tions.
Ken Cuccinelli II, a Republican
who ran for Virginia governor in
2013, sued the ConservativeStrikeForce and the Annapolis
political consulting firm Strategic
Campaign Group in 2014, alleg-
ing they raised almost $2.2 mil-
lion to support his gubernatorial
campaign but steered little mon-
ey to him.
The Conservative StrikeForce
agreed in 2015 to pay Cuccinelli
$85,000 to settle the lawsuit. Stra-
tegic Campaign Group, of which
Rogers was a leader, said it would
turn over donor information.
Cuccinelli now serves as acting
director of U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services.
In 2017, federal authorities
searched the offices of Strategic
Campaign Group, The Washing-
ton Post reported at the time.
As part of Tuesday’s plea, pros-
ecutors said that Rogers agreed to
pay $491,299 in restitution to
victims of the fraud scheme, as
well as a forfeiture judgment of
$208,954.
He is scheduled to be sen-
tenced in January.
[email protected]THE REGIONPolitical consultant pleads guilty in
fraud scheme involving ‘scam’ PACs
Walter Lomax, one of five exonerated men
seeking compensation from Maryland,
wrongfully spent nearly 40 years in prison.Exoneree Hubert James Williams is homeless
and “badly in need of physical and mental
health care,” his attorney said.Clarence Shipley Jr., exonerated in 2018,
spent 27 years in prison for a murder he did
not commit.PHOTOS BY BONNIE JO MOUNT/THE WASHINGTON POST
Lamar Johnson was imprisoned for more
than a decade after he was wrongfully
convicted of murder.“Compensation... from the state will be a recognition of the pain and
suffering that my clients and other exonerees have endured.”
Neel Lalchandani, attorney for two exonerated inmates in MarylandMD MHIC # 1176 | VA #27 01039723 | DC #2 242IMPROVING YOUR HOME IMPROVES YOUR LIFEWe know that everything we do has the power to transform
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