Marilyn Mosby blames mortgage company, says lies on forms "not intentional" during testy cross examination
BALTIMORE -- Marilyn Mosby was back on the witness stand Thursday for prosecution cross-examination that turned testy at times.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Zelinsky presented the former Baltimore City State's Attorney with mortgage documents she signed, under penalty of perjury, where she failed to include a federal tax lien and promised she would not rent out her vacation homes in Florida, which she did anyway.
They also allege she lied about a $5,000 gift she gave to her husband at the time, Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby, to help her close.
Mosby repeatedly blamed her mortgage company for inaccuracies on the forms.
"I did not do anything intentional or commit any kind of perjurous act," she testified. "…I believed I read it carefully. I did not notice the mistake in my address or the box for my primary residence was checked."
Mosby said My Easy Mortgage filled out the forms from her credit report "That was their mistake, not mine," she said.
Prosecutors asked her if she read the forms and signed them. Mosby said she had but did not knowingly lie.
Here is one listing the penalties for falsifying information.
Judge Lydia K. Griggsby became irritated at the pace of the trial, telling lawyers it was "unacceptable."
The trial was scheduled to be over this week and now looks like it may stretch into next week.
The defense filed a new motion asking that prosecutors be barred from delving into Mosby's perjury conviction in a related case last November.
Mosby's defense is that she was a "novice" when it came to buying property and relied on those close to her who let her down.
That included Nick Mosby, who testified he was responsible for the tax debt and tried to hide it from her fearing she would leave him.
"I did trust that he was taking care of it. He showed me some sort of documentation he was in an installment agreement with the IRS," Marilyn Mosby testified Wednesday.
Mosby—flanked by supporters—said nothing leaving court after completing her testimony, which she told the jury was "extremely hard for me and my daughters."
Her attorney Jim Wyda's final question:
"Nick Mosby promised to take care of the taxes. …He didn't do it, and he lied to you repeatedly. Is that correct?"
Mosby answered "yes" and the defense rested its case.
One Mosby supporter who declined to share her name left court during the lunch break and told WJZ, "She needs an acquittal. This should have been a civil case if at all, not prosecuted through the federal court system."
The judge has yet to rule on a defense motion to acquit, which they renewed Thursday afternoon.
The prosecution will now present a rebuttal case to Nick Mosby's testimony before closing arguments.
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