The Baltimore City Board of Ethics announced on Thursday that it has cleared Mayor-designate Sheila Dixon of violating the ethics code in connection with city contracts awarded to a company that employed her sister, Janice.
Dixon was accused of advocating for Union Technologies before the Board of Estimates, the body that oversees all city contracts, of which she is a member. The investigation was initiated after a series of articles in The Baltimore Sun.
In a brief statement released Thursday, the ethics board said there is “no cause for issuing a complaint” against Dixon.
The board said the ruling applies to her participation in voting on city contracts for both Utech and Comcast. Utechprovided subcontracting services to Comcast. The two-sentence statement said the board could not elaborate on the decision due to the “sensitive nature of the matter.”
Dixon said in a written statement that she welcomed the decision.
“I?m pleased that the Baltimore City Ethics Board, after reviewing the allegations, has appropriately concluded that there were no ethics violations on my part. I have always sought to put the interests of the citizens of Baltimore first, and I am gratified that the ethics board has recognized that there is no cause for even issuing a complaint,” she said.
Maryland State Prosecutor Robert Rohrbaugh on Dec. 19 indicted Mildred Boyer, the president of Utech, for allegedly creating nearly $200,000 worth of fraudulent invoices in 2003.
The indictment alleges that Boyer sold fake invoices, which purportedly showed that the company had provided services to the city, to a factor ? a company that purchases invoices for cash and then collects from the customer. Boyd?s arraignment has been rescheduled for Jan. 22 in Baltimore City Circuit Court.
The state prosecutor?s office declined to comment on the ethics board decision.
Dixon said the decision will allow her to focus her attention on the city. “I will continue to focus my energy on the job of continuing to move Baltimore forward,” she said.
Dixon officially becomes mayor Tuesday, when Gov.-elect Martin O?Malley is sworn in. A spokesman for Dixon?s office said she would be sworn in Wednesday.
