BALTIMORE _ Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh has asked for a sentence of one year and one day in prison in relation to her guilty plea in the "Healthy Holly" book scandal that led to her fall from grace and resignation from office last year, with her attorneys arguing she has already suffered greatly.
"Ms. Pugh has become a tragic figure _ an inspiring person dedicated to helping her community who is now a disgraced, unemployed felon, and who has lost everything that she had," her attorneys wrote in a sentencing memorandum Friday that included some redacted sections. "We submit that, under the unique circumstances of this case, Ms. Pugh's immediate acceptance of responsibility, her age and (redacted) and her entire life's dedication to public service, the Court should impose a sentence of incarceration for one year and one day."
Prosecutors asked Thursday for Pugh, 69, to be imprisoned for nearly five years. They outlined her long-running efforts to conceal her business dealings, including lying to FBI agents when they raided her home.
Defense attorneys argued that the public would not benefit from Pugh serving a long sentence and noted she has no prior criminal record.
"Such a sentence, coupled with the loss of her entire career, the public dishonor, and serious economic loss that she has and will continue to suffer, would result in a significant punishment for Ms. Pugh's actions," they wrote.
The former Democratic mayor pleaded guilty in November to conspiracy and tax evasion after selling her self-published "Healthy Holly" children's books to several companies that do business with the city, and to the University of Maryland Medical System, where she sat on the board.
Pugh's book-selling scheme first began unraveling in March, when The Baltimore Sun exposed the lucrative deals. She later resigned from office after the FBI raided her homes and City Hall office.
A U.S. District Court judge is scheduled to sentence Pugh on Feb. 27.
"The chronology of events since 2011, comprising Pugh's seven-year scheme to defraud, multiple years of tax evasion, election fraud, and attempted cover-ups, including brazen lies to the public, clearly establishes the deliberateness with which she pursued financial and political gain without a second thought about how it was harming the public's trust," Assistant U.S. Attorneys Martin J. Clarke and Leo J. Wise wrote in their own sentencing memo.
"It was not rash behavior," they wrote. "Rather, it was a recurring pattern of well-executed steps that built on each other, becoming more audacious and complex leading up to the mayoral election."
Pugh's attorneys acknowledged that the federal sentencing guidelines for the crimes to which she pleaded guilty recommend a longer sentence, of between 46 and 57 months, but argue "a substantial variance is warranted here."
Her attorneys say the "collateral consequences" Pugh has lived with since her business dealings were exposed are severe enough to ensure she will not commit further crimes.
They redacted nearly three pages in their memo that a title says cover the psychological impact of the case on Pugh. Also redacted are exhibits containing medical reports. And the memo references a federal report that details the inadequate training of prison staff related to aging inmates and those who need mental health care.
Her brother, Ardell Crump, wrote in a letter filed with the memo that Pugh "has not eaten or slept properly since these tribulations have unfolded," and the impact is "hindering her emotional and physical well-being."
Pugh's attorneys submitted other letters of support for the former mayor from relatives and friends, including some community leaders such as Morgan State University President David Wilson and former U.S. Rep. Kweisi Mfume, who recently won the Democratic nomination in the race to replace the late U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings.
Mfume wrote that while he is not familiar with all aspects of the case, he knows Pugh well and considers her a friend.
"In looking at all that you must ponder and consider, I don't know personally if justice is better served by sending her to jail at age 70, or by mandating instead that she spend several years under court-ordered supervision" doing volunteer work, Mfume wrote to the judge.
Wilson wrote that it is "indeed, unfortunate that Mayor Pugh had a momentary lapse of bad judgment." He urged the judge to give Pugh a lenient sentence that would allow her to use "her impressive skills in service to the community of Baltimore."
In making their argument, her attorneys argued Pugh did not begin selling "Healthy Holly" books with malicious intent. They say her business was born out of a "sincere motive by Ms. Pugh to help fight childhood obesity and was not a purported swindle of money driven by greed." The books feature an African American family, including a girl named Holly, eating healthy foods and exercising.
"Indeed, in hindsight, it is apparent that had Ms. Pugh received proper professional guidance and advice, the sale and distribution of Healthy Holly books could easily have been accomplished in a perfectly appropriate manner," they wrote.
Prosecutors noted that only some of the books Pugh sold to organizations with business before the city, supposedly for her to donate to Baltimore school children, were delivered to students. According to prosecutors, Pugh's "personal inventory" of Healthy Holly books never exceeded 8,216 copies. She gave another 34,846 copies away. But through a "three-dimensional" scheme, they say, she was able to resell 132,116 copies for a total of $859,960.
"From the very start, Pugh quickly realized that there was no need to print more than a negligible number of books for herself because the scheme to defraud worked," prosecutors argued.
"No one ever questioned her integrity or the source of the books," they wrote. "After all, she was a former City Councilwoman, state delegate, state senator and rising political star. No one would ever suspect that a person of her stature was selling stolen books, much less books that had been donated to schoolchildren."
In their 46-page memo, Pugh's attorneys outlined her rise from a "modest townhouse in Philadelphia" to winning her "dream job" in Baltimore City Hall. They include photos of Pugh with her six siblings and a shot of Pugh in her high school graduation garb.
Her attorneys also point to the work she did that benefited the people of Baltimore, including helping to start the Baltimore Marathon and founding the Baltimore Design School.
They also reference her "multi-faceted" career in business, radio and publishing. Included in the sentencing memorandum is a copy of a poem she wrote titled "Politician."
The first two lines read: "It was different for me ... for I had come to serve ... Filled with courage and a lot of nerve ..."
