#NotGuilty🔥 Mark Ridley😂 #Shortvideo
Channel: A Better Black America TV
Date: 2023-03-11

On December 14, 2017, about an hour after Ridley-Thomas emailed Flynn saying the high-ranking public official was “ready to go,” Flynn expedited the relative’s enrollment at the university, instructing that the admission should be given the “highest priority,” according to the indictment. Flynn also agreed, despite the school’s multimillion-dollar budget deficit, to tap the Social Work School’s endowed funds to award a scholarship. At Flynn’s direction, MRT Relative 1 received a full scholarship worth $26,000 for the 2018 spring and summer terms.

          The day after learning that the high-ranking public official was “ready to go,” Flynn also endeavored to quickly secure the paid professorship, even though MRT Relative 1’s dual student-faculty status would violate university policy. On December 15, 2017, Flynn allegedly sent an “urgent” email to a university official, urging the official to get the offer letter “out before the holidays” to MRT Relative 1 “in the interests of showing MRT [defendant Ridley-Thomas] that we can deliver.” The university thereafter offered MRT Relative 1 the paid teaching position with a salary of $50,000.

          When MRT Relative 1 received an email on February 13, 2018 indicating that the usual hiring process had been waived for his paid professorship, MRT Relative 1 forwarded the email to Ridley-Thomas, who then emailed Flynn the same day to discuss the “Probation Reform motion.” Days later, when Flynn emailed Ridley-Thomas to request a profitable amendment to the Telehealth-DMH contract, Ridley-Thomas responded to Flynn: “Your wish is my command.”

          In addition to obtaining university admission, a full scholarship and the paid faculty position, Ridley-Thomas also sought to help his relative become the director of a nonprofit. In December 2017, Ridley-Thomas donated $100,000 in campaign funds to a fiscal sponsor (Fiscal Sponsor A) supporting the nonprofit MRT Relative 1 was planning to head (Nonprofit A). Concerned about the optics of a politician donating campaign funds to benefit the politician’s relative, Fiscal Sponsor A refunded the $100,000.

          MRT Relative 1 then abandoned efforts to head Nonprofit A, founded a new nonprofit (Nonprofit B) with a new fiscal sponsor (Fiscal Sponsor B), and began raising money for Nonprofit B in order to take a salary, obtain healthcare benefits and hire staff. According to the indictment, while soliciting official action from Ridley-Thomas during a meeting on April 26, 2018, Flynn agreed to funnel $100,000 from the Mark Ridley-Thomas Committee for a Better L.A. through the university and Social Work School to Fiscal Sponsor B for the benefit of Nonprofit B and, in turn, MRT Relative 1. Around this time, Flynn allegedly told a university official that the school would get the Telehealth contract but that she had to do a “favor” to get it.

          After the Ridley-Thomas campaign funds were transferred through the university to Fiscal Sponsor B, Ridley-Thomas voted on July 31, 2018 in favor of the amendment to the school’s Telehealth agreement that would sustain the program for an additional year and was consistent with the terms Flynn previously requested of Ridley-Thomas.

          Both Ridley-Thomas and Flynn are charged with one count of conspiracy, and each defendant is charged with one count of bribery. The indictment also charges both defendants with two counts of “honest services” mail fraud and 15 counts of “honest services” wire fraud.

          An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

          The conspiracy count alleged in the indictment carries a statutory maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. Each bribery count carries a maximum possible sentence of 10 years. Each of the mail fraud and wire fraud charges carry a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years.

          The FBI is investigating this matter.

          Assistant United States Attorneys Ruth C. Pinkel and Lindsey Greer Dotson of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section are prosecuting this case.
Contact
Thom Mrozek
Director of Media Relations
United States Attorney’s Office
Central District of California (Los Angeles)