CROOKED MARYLAND LAWMAKERS: Delegate Richard Impallaria entered a guilty plea to stealing taxpayer funds to pay for his beach cottage; no jail, just three years probation

CROOKED MARYLAND LAWMAKERS: Delegate Richard Impallaria entered a guilty plea to stealing taxpayer funds to pay for his beach cottage; no jail, just three years probation

ANNAPOLIS, MD  – The annals of the Culture of Corruption added another chapter on Friday, the Thirteenth of January when Maryland State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III announced that former Maryland State Delegate Richard K. Impallaria pleaded guilty to misconduct in office for misusing state funds.  

Anne Arundel Circuit Court Judge Stacy McCormick, Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, accepted the plea and scheduled a sentencing hearing for June 21, 2023.

According to the Statement of Facts read in court in support of the plea, Delegate Impallaria served as a duly elected member of the Maryland House of Delegates of the Maryland General Assembly from 2002 through January 10, 2023, representing portions of Baltimore and Harford Counties in the 7th legislative district.

As a member of the General Assembly, Del. Impallaria was allocated funds for a district office located within his district, to be used primarily for legislative business. Beginning in 2012, Del. Impallaria facilitated rental payments from the General Assembly to his personal landlord using state funds for his “district office”, which was actually a building next door to his longtime personal cottage outside of his district. The building in question was used not for legislative business but to store Del. Impallaria’s personal items. Both the “district office” and Del. Impallaria’s personal cottage shared the same owners, one of whom was Del. Impallaria’s Legislative Aide.

The General Assembly paid, on average, double the amount of rent for Impallaria’s “district office” than any other tenant in the community. The same month the General Assembly began paying rent on Del. Impallaria’s “district office,” and after ten years of making monthly rent payments, Del. Impallaria stopped paying rent on his neighboring personal cottage that he continued to occupy.  Rent ledgers maintained by the landlords for the properties indicated that the monthly payments received from the General Assembly were divided and split between Del. Impallaria’s “district office” and the rental of his personal neighboring cottage.

Between July 2012 through and including May 31, 2022, the State of Maryland paid $92,800 in rent for Del. Impallaria’s “district office”.  During that same time period, Del. Impallaria paid $0.00 in rent for his neighboring cottage. The monthly rental payments for Impallaria’s personal cottage collected from the General Assembly during that time were $44,100.

“The public needs to trust that elected officials are good stewards of the State’s resources” stated State Prosecutor Howard. “Our office will continue to work toward ensuring that those individuals who abuse their positions of trust are held accountable.”

Mr. Howard thanked Assistant State Prosecutor Abigail Ticse, Deputy State Prosecutor Sarah R. David, and former Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Lindsay Bird, for their work on this case. He also commended the investigative efforts of Special Agents Daniel Bralove and John Sieracki at the Office of the State Prosecutor and acknowledged the Maryland State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their investigative assistance.

Member of House of Delegates since January 8, 2003. Deputy Minority Whip, 2015-. Member, Economic Matters Committee, 2003- (property & casualty insurance subcommittee, 2003-15; public utilities subcommittee, 2003-10, 2015-; unemployment insurance subcommittee, 2003-06; alcoholic beverages subcommittee, 2007-; workers’ compensation subcommittee, 2011-; consumer protection & commercial law subcommittee, 2012-15); Joint Committee on Unemployment Insurance Oversight, 2015-. House Chair, Harford County Delegation, 2011-. Member, Maryland Rural Caucus, 2003-; Maryland Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus, 2003-; Maryland Veterans Caucus, 2005-.

Member, Task Force on the Availability and Affordability of Property Insurance in Coastal Areas, 2007-08.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, November 1, 1962. Attended Joppatowne High School, Joppa, Maryland. Owner and operator, My Body Shop, an automobile body shop in Middle River. Former chair, Citizens for Property Rights; Essex-Middle River Community in Action. Member, Essex-Middle River Businessmen’s Association; National Rifle Association; Northern Baltimore County Republican Club. Member, Corpus Christi Council no. 6188, Edgewood, Knights of Columbus. Former president, Joppatowne Chapter, Jaycees Men’s Club. Member, Holy Spirit Church, Joppatowne, Maryland. Married; four children

Dickie’s Beach Cottage Bingo