Reading the pleadings in the matters of the bit players in the Harry Thomas Jr. corruption case, I wondered why prosecutors brought the hammer down on Marshall Banks and James Garvin. Thomas pleaded guilty to diverting more that $300,000 in public funds meant for children’s athletic programs into his pockets. Nasty in many ways. Thomas agreed to accept a felony and is likely to spend a few years in jail.
Banks and Garvin played tangential roles in the Thomas scam, according to court documents. Banks, 71, is a retired professor from Howard University. He is founder and president of the Langston 21st Century Foundation. Jimmy Garvin, 55, is a general manager at the Langston Golf Course, in Northeast, D.C.
Prosecutors said Thomas approached the two in 2007 and asked them to apply for grants through the Langston foundation to promote youth sports programs. Thomas said some of the funds could stay with Langston, and some would come through to Team Thomas, his personal company that was designed to develop sporting activities for kids.
Did Banks and Garvin know that Thomas was pocketing some of the dough and using it to buy cars and motorcycles? Not sure. But what we know from public documents is that Thomas laundered public funds through Langston, and the feds convinced Banks and Garvin to cooperate in their investigation of Thomas.
Why, then, smack them with a felony? Why not a misdemeanor? I know comparisons in criminal matters don’t always apply, but I wonder why Marion Barry got off with misdemeanors in both the 1990 Vista crack cocaine prosecution and his repeated failure to pay taxes?
Garvin and Banks seem to me to be upstanding members of the community. They didn’t line their pockets with cash. They merely complied with Harry Thomas’ request, and believed they were on the up and up. So why hit them with felonies?
Here’s Machen’s answer:
“Today’s guilty plea underscores the importance of standing up and speaking out against public officials who are on the take,” he said, in a statement on the Banks case.
In other words, by forcing felonies on Banks and Garvin, Machen is sending a clear message to D.C.’s political, bureaucrat and nonprofit classes that he will come after them for abiding or abetting corruption.
Might Machen have had episodes like that involving Ward 1 Councilman Jim Graham in mind? Graham congratulated himself for turning down a bribe in the taxi bribery case that nailed his chief of staff, Ted Loza. Graham was never charged with any wrongdoing. But why didn’t he report it? Hmmmmm.
Might Machen want to look into how D.C. chose the winner in the lottery contract competition? As the inspector general pointed out in a lengthy report, the process reeked. Politicians and bureaucrats abused rules, skirted processes, and steered contracts. With hundreds of millions of dollars at stake, you can’t tell me people didn’t get paid off.
Clearly, the council cannot police itself. The IG has no clout. The attorney general has limited resources.
In the lottery matter, Machen might need to do more than send a message.
Harry Jaffe’s column appears on Tuesday and Friday. He can be contacted at [email protected].
