Dion Guthrie removed from Harford County Council after accepting responsibility for theft from union
BALTIMORE - Dion Guthrie has been removed from the Harford County Council after he pleaded no contest to stealing more than $23,000 from the electrical workers union he led for more than 50 years.
Guthrie, a Democrat, pleaded no contest to one count of felony theft between $1,500 and $25,000. He paid nearly $23,500 in restitution, according to The Baltimore Banner.
No contest means he did not admit his guilt but acknowledged there was enough evidence to secure a conviction.
"I'm taking responsibility," Guthrie said in court, the Banner reports. "It's on me."
Maryland's constitution requires elected officials who plead no contest to felony charges to be removed from office.
The judge sentenced 86-year-old Guthrie to probation before judgment.
Guthrie served as business manager and president of IBEW's Local 1501 for nearly 52 years until his retirement in December 2021, according to the Banner.
Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger told the Banner that the charges were related to funds taken from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
The council shared the following statement:
"In regard to the status of Mr. Guthrie's position on the Harford County Council, the State Constitution, in Article XV, Section 2, provides that "Any elected official of the State, or of a county or a municipal corporation who during the elected official's term of office enters a guilty plea or a plea of nolo contendere to any crime which is a felony, or which is a misdemeanor related to the elected official's public duties and responsibilities and involves moral turpitude for which the penalty may be incarceration in any penal institution, shall be removed from the elective office by operation of law and the office shall be deemed vacant." (emphasis added). Therefore, due to Mr. Guthrie entering a plea of nolo contendere, by operation of law, he is removed from elected office and his Harford County Council seat is deemed vacant as of today.
Pursuant to Section 209 of the Harford County Charter, when there is a vacancy in office, within 60 calendar days of the vacancy, a majority of the remaining Council Members must appoint an individual to fill the vacancy from a list of at least 3 names submitted from the Democratic Central Committee. The 60-calendar days commences on November 15, 2024."