Harford County Councilman Dion Guthrie contests removal after theft plea

A former Harford County councilman is claiming that he should not have been removed from office after he pleaded no contest to theft for stealing almost $23,500 from the union that he led for more than 50 years.

Dion Guthrie, a Democrat who represented the Joppatowne area, accepted responsibility last week in Baltimore County Circuit Court but maintained that he did not embezzle money from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1501. He served as the president and business manager of the union, which is based in Cockeysville and represents some contractors who work at NASA as well as employees at AmTote International, a racing and gaming technology company.

Circuit Judge Dennis M. Robinson Jr. later struck the finding of guilt and offered Guthrie, 86, of Joppa, probation before judgment.

Guthrie's attorney, Domenic Iamele, said his client might file a lawsuit. They point to language in the Maryland Constitution that states that if a finding of guilt is reversed or overturned , an elected official "shall be reinstated."

"His case has not been reversed or overturned," Iamele said. "But he takes the position that the grant of the probation before judgment is not a conviction."

Meanwhile, Harford County Council Attorney Meaghan Alegi and Council President Pat Vincenti disagree with Guthrie's contention that he should not have been removed from office.

The Maryland Constitution also states that elected officials who plead guilty or no contest to a felony or certain misdemeanors "shall be removed from the elective office by operation of law and the office shall be deemed vacant."

"Regardless of sympathies, this is a matter of a state constitutional requirement," Alegi said in a statement. "The County Council has no discretion."

Vincenti, a Republican, said the threat of a lawsuit has "no basis."

Alegi has followed the "letter of the law," he said, and acted with the "utmost professionalism."

"As Council President, I am deeply disheartened by the actions of Mr. Guthrie," Vincenti said in a statement. "I will continue hold this Council and its members to the highest moral and ethical standards in order to best serve the citizens of Harford County."

Two other council members, Aaron Penman and Jessica Boyle-Tsottles, both Republicans, have also publicly voiced their support for Guthrie's removal from office.

"I call on Dion Guthrie to accept the provisions of the Maryland State Constitution and respectfully assist with the transition," Penman said in a statement .

Though he's not an attorney, Councilman Jacob Bennett, a Democrat, said when he read the language, "it's pretty clear to me."

The Harford County Democratic Central Committee will provide council members with a list of at least three names from which they can appoint someone to fill the vacancy. The deadline to do so is Jan. 13, 2025.

Lawmakers proposed amending the Maryland Constitution in 2012 to change when elected officials charged with certain crimes are suspended or removed from office.

During a hearing before the House Environmental Matters Committee on Feb. 15, 2012, Del. Cathy Vitale, a Republican from Anne Arundel County, asked, "Probation before judgment. What happens? That's a striking of the guilty plea."

"The way the amendment is structured, on the moment of guilty plea, it is an automatic removal," replied Dan Friedman, assistant attorney general and counsel to the Maryland General Assembly. "So my advice wouldn't be to plead guilty."

"Well," Vitale responded, "the good news is I'm not under indictment."

Vitale later asked about the language regarding if a finding of guilt is reversed or overturned.

Friedman said the way the amendment is drafted, "it puts pleas in a separate sentence below that are automatic removals."

Today, Vitale is a judge on Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. Meanwhile, Friedman is now a judge on the Appellate Court of Maryland.

Voters overwhelmingly adopted the constitutional amendment — 88% to 12%.

Former Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler said it's important to note that Guthrie did not admit to committing a crime.

Probation before judgment, he said, is also not a conviction.

"There is a gray area that exists here. And I think he's got a colorable claim," Gansler said. "But it would be an uphill climb, given the legislative history and the plain language of the statute."

From a justice standpoint, Guthrie, he said, "certainly has some arguments on his side."