Leopold running for elected office

Former Arundel county executive resigned over abuse of his office

Former Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold, who resigned after being convicted of abuse of office in 2013, filed Friday to run for a seat in the House of Delegates.

The 74-year-old Pasadena Republican, who served 30 days in jail and another period of house arrest, said Friday that he has paid his dues and still has the passion to help others solve problems. “After talking to thousands of people over the last two years, most want me to continue to help them,” Leopold said.

He is running for an open seat in the two-delegate District 31B. House Minority Leader Nic Kipke is running for re-election, but freshman Del. Megan Simonaire has announced that she will not run for a second term.

Leopold and Kipke will be joined in the June Republican primary by Brian Chisholm of Severna Park. So far, only one Democrat has filed to run in the district, Harry E. Freeman of Pasadena. The filing deadline is Tuesday.

Leopold, who has spent most of his career in elected office — in Maryland and, before that, Hawaii — hasn’t campaigned since his resignation, which came three days after he was convicted of ordering police officers in his protection detail to do campaign work for him.

In one instance cited by officials, he made a county employee empty a catheter bag he used after having back surgery.

He explained the behavior as misjudgments made during a period of time in which he was suffering pain from surgeries. “I took my knocks and I have moved on,” he said. “I feel I have a responsibility to be ethically impeccable.”

He was sentenced to 400 hours of community service, a $100,000 fine and two years of jail time, with all but 60 days suspended. Leopold spent 30 days in county jail and 30 days on house arrest. The judge also banned Leopold from running for public office during the five years that followed his sentencing, but that punishment was overturned by a higher court in 2014.

Former County Councilman Jamie Benoit, a Democrat from Crownsville, said whether Leopold’s past indiscretions hurt him is up to the voters.

“Someone’s conduct ... is up to the judgment of the voters,” he said. “In our system he did his time, he is eligible and he is running.”