Former mayoral candidate Sulaimon Brown pleaded not guilty Tuesday and has requested a trial in D.C. court on his charge of driving with out a valid license. A failure to obey charging that stemmed from his arrest in September was dropped, according to the Associated Press.
Brown is a key figure in the investigation into Mayor Vincent Gray’s 2010 campaign. Brown says members of Gray’s mayoral campaign gave him cash-stuffed envelopes and money orders so he would stay in the race and keep up his verbal assault on then-Mayor Adrian Fenty.
Brown says that during his arrest, he was suspicious about whether the men were officers because they had pulled him over in an unmarked car. Another officer arrived on the scene and said: “I am an official. Don’t you see these stripes?” when Brown questioned him. Then, according to Brown, he said, “Oh, you’re the guy who tried to get the mayor arrested. We definitely have to arrest you now.”
District police issued a statement saying Brown had refused to comply with an order to exit his car and “immediately rolled up all of his vehicle windows, locked all four doors, grabbed his cell phone and made a phone call.” When a fourth officer arrived on the scene, he “identified himself as an official, displaying his badge and MPD issued identification. The sergeant then directed Mr. Brown as well to step out of the vehicle. Mr. Brown refused …”
Brown’s next court date is Nov. 14.
