BALTIMORE — The city’s mayor was convicted Tuesday on a single charge she took gift cards intended for the city’s poor.
Although Sheila Dixon was acquitted of felony theft charges, her misdemeanor conviction could force her from office.
Jurors deliberated more than six days after hearing accusations the Democrat improperly used or kept $630 worth of gift cards. She was accused of soliciting most of the cards from a wealthy developer and buying electronics at Best Buy, clothes at Old Navy and knickknacks at Target.
The jury convicted her on one count of fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary and acquitted her on two counts of felony theft and one count of misconduct in office. Jurors failed to reach a verdict on another count of fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary.
The conviction carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, but prosecutors haven’t decided whether to seek jail time. They also haven’t decided whether to seek a retrial on the undecided charge.
Dixon’s lawyers blamed the case on developer Ronald Lips comb, a married man who they said lavished her with gifts, including gift cards sent anonymously, as he pursued her romantically.
Under state law, Dixon, 55, would be suspended at sentencing if the conviction is related to her official duties. She would be removed permanently if she lost all her appeals.
