Prosecutors to call on Gov. Hogan in embezzlement case against his former chief of staff
BALTIMORE -- Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan will be called as a witness in the embezzlement case against Roy McGrath, his former Chief of Staff, according to court documents.
Prosecutors allege McGrath forged a document to make it appear that the governor had signed off on a severance payment of more than $230,000 to leave his job as CEO of Maryland Environmental Services and take the chief of staff position. He is also accused of submitting timesheets that said he was working when he was really on vacation.
McGrath was charged with four counts of wire fraud, two counts of embezzlement in October and was charged with falsification of records in June.
In the proposed "Joint Voir Dire" -- a court document with proposed questions for the examination of potential jurors -- McGrath's attorney suggested two questions pertaining to Gov. Hogan's potential involvement in the trial:
- Governor Larry Hogan will be called as a witness by the Government in this case. Does the fact that the Governor of the State of Maryland will be a witness for the Government affect your ability to be fair and impartial?
- Would you give more or less weight to the testimony of Mr. Hogan merely because he is the Governor of the State of Maryland?
Federal prosecutors objected to those questions, the filing says.
The trial is set to begin Oct. 24 at the U.S. District Court in Baltimore.
McGrath also faces state charges alleging he illegally recorded private conversations with state officials. In Maryland, it's illegal for someone to record a private conversation without first getting permission from everyone who's part of that conversation.
If convicted on the federal charges, McGrath faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for each of four counts of wire fraud and a maximum of 10 years for each of two counts of embezzlement, and a maximum of 20 years for the charge of falsifying a document, the Department of Justice said.
He faces five-year sentences on theft charges and for each violation of the Maryland Wiretap Statute in the state case.
