Posted on 02/16/24
| News Source: WBAL TV
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 16, 2024 - A week after a federal jury found Marilyn Mosby guilty on one count of mortgage fraud, the judge presiding in the case denied a defense motion for judgment of acquittal.
The timeline of the case goes back more than two years, starting in early January 2022 with a four-count federal indictment charging the former Baltimore City state's attorney with perjury and mortgage fraud.
Last week, a jury found Mosby guilty of one of two counts of mortgage fraud pertaining to Mosby lying to a lender about the source of some of the closing funds during the purchase of a Florida condo in 2021, all in order to lock in a loan at a lower interest rate.
The defense first filed a motion for judgment of acquittal more than three weeks ago. After seven rounds of legal brief filings, the judge took up the motion Friday, hearing oral arguments from both sides.
The defense argued that federal prosecutors got the venue wrong by charging the case in Maryland. Citing case law from 1938, the defense argued the government failed to prove Mosby was actually in Maryland on the days she prepared and submitted the so-called "gift letter" that described the source of some of the closing funds.
Prosecutors called the 1938 law a relic, archaic, old and outdated. The government pointed to evidence presented during the trial that they said showed Mosby's credit card and bank transactions -- plus her own testimony -- put her in Maryland during the days in question.
The judge agreed, saying the government's evidence is sufficient to show Mosby was in Maryland on the dates in question. She delivered her decision from the bench.
Outside court, Mosby's lawyers declined to share their reaction to the ruling.
"We're going to be consistent and not say anything," lead federal public defense attorney James Wyda told 11 News. "Thanks. Have a good, safe weekend."
She also said: "This is a very important issue," and she ordered the transcripts and arguments be preserved. Additionally, the judge ordered Mosby to turn over her passport, as she was supposed to do two years ago, ahead of her sentencing hearing in May.
In November 2023, a jury found her guilty of two counts of perjury.