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Thursday, March 8, 2018

Former Baltimore County School Superintendent Pleads Guilty To Perjury


RadioOnFire.com - Former Baltimore County schools superintendent S. Dallas Dance pleaded guilty Thursday to four counts of perjury, and will face jail time.
Dance was indicted in January on four counts of perjury for allegedly lying on financial disclosures that were filed under oath. He allegedly claimed no sources of outside income while owning a consulting firm and taking money from several firms, including one that was awarded a no-bid contract with the school system.
State Prosecutor Emmet C. Davitt said his team recommended a sentence of 18 months in jail with the remainder of a five-year sentence suspended, but defense attorneys will be free to argue against that when he's officially sentenced on April 20.
"I think it's just very important that this be exposed," Davitt said. "This was just an egregious breach of trust, and to put it simply, students of Baltimore County Public Schools and their parents just deserve better. They deserve transparency. They trusted this man, and that trust was clearly breached."
Dance, 37, allegedly lied on his financial disclosures in 2012, 2013 and 2015, falsely claiming he had no sources of outside income when he in fact owned a consulting firm and was personally paid by several firms. Dance abruptly resigned last year, one year into a second four-year contract.

“I am extremely disappointed in Dr. Dance. Public officials need to be held to a higher standard of conduct," County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, a Dance ally during his time in office, said in a statement.
Gov. Larry Hogan cited his own legislative proposal to create an independent watchdog to combat malfeasance in public education.
"Local school systems must be held accountable to the students and parents they serve, and be held accountable for the hundreds of millions of taxpayers' dollars they are entrusted with," Hogan said in a statement.
Dance failed to disclose nearly $147,000 in pay he received since 2012 on ethics forms, which were filed under oath. However, the school system's ethics panel lacks subpoena power. He negotiated school system contracts with at least one company he also worked with as a consultant, according to a statement of facts filed by the state prosecutor's office.
The indictment alleged that Dance failed to disclose the payments on school system financial forms, and worked for SUPES Academy, which is a company for which he helped negotiate a no-bid contract with the school system.
Dance had nothing to say outside of court, but prosecutors had plenty to share with the judge during the proceedings. A good bit of the material was taken from Dance's bank records, emails and text messages.
In one instance, referring to Gary Solomon, who ran SUPES Academy, Dance talked frequently to Solomon about his need for additional income due to his divorce.
According to court documents relating to side contracts for his consulting business, Dance said, "I appreciate your help. Keep me as busy as you can."
Dance apparently told the school board that he had given a portion of the money to the Baltimore County Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps to support school programs and activities.
"He did indicate that some money he did admit to receiving went to the Baltimore County Education Foundation Fund, and, again, that was a false document. No money went to the Baltimore County Education Fund at all. It went to him," Davitt said.
Dance had checks from these companies mailed in his own name to his Pikesville home, and received an IRS form 1099 from one company that had his Social Security number and reported a payment to Deliberate Excellence Consulting, which Dance controlled. Dance reported that $13,500 gross income and net profit on his 2012 tax return. Another $500 from a second firm went unreported.
On his financial disclosure form for the year 2015, he falsely claimed his father Roy owned Deliberate Excellence Consulting and that his only income came from the school system and that consultancy.
Interim Superintendent Verletta White, who herself recently faced ethical concerns for unreported consulting income, said school system officials were "saddened" by Dance's admissions.
"Now, we must stay focused on our students, our school system, and the important work of teaching and learning that takes place in classrooms every day. Our 113,000 students, 21,000 employees, and the Baltimore County Public Schools community deserve no less," she said in a statement.

Source WBAL

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