Former Prince George’s County Council member Jamel “Mel” Franklin has been charged in a felony theft scheme in which authorities say he embezzled at least $130,000 of his campaign funds to pay for personal expenses, including rent, loans and cosmetic procedures for himself and a close friend.
The scheme included falsifying information on reports filed with the State Board of Elections, located in Anne Arundel County, where the charges were filed Thursday. The Office of the Maryland State Prosecutor said the charges include 20 counts of felony theft scheme, embezzlement and perjury.
Franklin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The charges come less than a week after Franklin abruptly resigned his seat as an at-large member of the council, a body he served on for nearly 14 years, including as chair from 2013 to 2015. During his time in office, Franklin wrote more than 100 pieces of legislation that were adopted or enacted into law, in a range of areas including development and public safety.
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He had a reputation as an advocate of fiscal prudence.
Derrick Leon Davis, a former council member who served two years as vice chair under Franklin, said in an interview after Thursday’s charges that he was at a “loss for words.”
“I am heartbroken,” Davis said.
Council Chairwoman Jolene Ivey (D-District 5) declined to comment, and several other members of the current council could not be reached for comment. Council member Wanika Fisher (D-District 2) told The Washington Post that she hadn’t read the full charging documents against Franklin but said what she knows of the charges shows that “nobody is above the law, especially elected officials who are given public trust.”
A practicing attorney, Franklin joined the all-Democratic council in December 2010, representing District 9 for two full terms until December 2018, when he became an at-large member.
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After he resigned last week, council administrator Jennifer A. Jenkins said in a statement that Franklin’s legislative work “significantly shaped” the county and that his wisdom had been “invaluable in guiding the council over many years.”
But his tenure was also marred by controversy, including a 2017 conviction for driving under the influence in a crash that wrecked a government vehicle and injured two people. In a distracted-driving incident in 2012, Franklin damaged another government vehicle, public records show. Two months before that, he had damaged the same SUV in a crash that he didn’t report to police.
In a statement Thursday, Larry Stafford, executive director of Progressive Maryland, said his organization had raised concerns about Franklin’s “ethics” over the years “due to past transgressions.”
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“Unfortunately, I am not surprised, though I am frustrated to see this happening once again in our county,” Stafford said. “Voters in Prince George’s County will need to seriously evaluate the candidates in the upcoming special election based on their integrity and record of prioritizing the needs of everyday people over their own interests and those of lobbyists and big corporations.”
According to charging documents filed in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court, the Office of the Maryland State Prosecutor’s investigation into Franklin focused on a “Friends of Mel Franklin” campaign committee that the lawmaker established in 2009 to raise funds for his bid for the District 9 council seat.
Franklin opened a bank account with his campaign treasurer, who resigned in December 2009. Authorities said in court documents that Franklin’s new treasurer was not “added as a signatory” to the bank account and that Franklin had sole access to the account.
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Capitol One Bank closed the account in October 2020 because of a negative balance, and two months later, Franklin allegedly opened another account with a new bank, Truist, under the same name, “Friends of Mel Franklin.” Again, prosecutors allege, he was the sole signatory.
Franklin then created a personal PayPal account and an account for his political committee, according to the charging papers. Authorities allege Franklin acted as the treasurer of his own committee, while also being listed as the chairperson. The council member had “no authority to utilize the money in the Friends of Mel Franklin bank accounts for his personal use or benefit,” prosecutors wrote in court documents.
Authorities allege that from 2020 through at least October 2023, Franklin took $124,450 from the Friends of Mel Franklin campaign account by writing checks or electronically transferring the funds to his personal bank account. The money, according to charging papers, was used to pay for personal loans, credit card debt, his rent, personal subscriptions and cosmetic procedures.
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At the same time, according to prosecutors, Franklin transferred an additional $8,718 of campaign funds to “third parties” to pay for his personal expenses, including moving money to a “close friend.” Those campaign funds were used to pay for upkeep of his personal vehicle, a deposit for an international trip in 2024, an overnight hotel stay at the Westin Hotel National Harbor and an executive suite at the Gaylord National.
Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy (D) said she found out about the charges against Franklin at the same time as the public. Though Franklin is a resident of Prince George’s, cases involving campaign finance laws are handled by the Office of the State Prosecutor.
“While Mr. Franklin, like every other individual facing charges, has the presumption of innocence,” Braveboy said during an unrelated news conference Thursday, “to have these types of charges leveled against one of our elected officials here in Prince George’s County is just very disappointing.”
