Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich has released his Maryland State Bar Association application, while Baltimore Mayor Martin O?Malley on Thursday refused to do so.
Since Wednesday?s revelation that O?Malley was acquitted of drunken driven almost two decades ago, members of the news media have repeatedly asked the mayor whether he will release his bar application, in which he would have been required to reveal the charge.
O?Malley campaign spokesman Rick Abbruzzese said the mayor preferred to focus on more substantive issues.
“Gov. [Robert] Ehrlich said this is irrelevant and we agree with Gov. Ehrlich,” Abbruzzese said.
O?Malley has said that he does not recall whether he disclosed a 1987 drunken driving charge in Montgomery County on his application to the bar. The charge was first reported by The (Baltimore) Sun.
The Maryland State Bar Association demands that all lawyers reveal their prior criminal proceedings on such applications, except for applicants who have had their criminal records expunged.
Abbruzzese said he didn?t know if O?Malley had attempted to have his record expunged.
Ehrlich released his bar application to The Examiner on Thursday. On the application, Ehrlich said he had never been a party to any criminal proceeding.
Ehrlich?s spokeswoman Shareese DeLeaver said Ehrlich released his bar application to the media for a straightforward reason.
“Simply put, he was asked,” she said.
