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Gray, Evans receive top scores from GLAA

Group hails former mayor’s record

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GLAA ratings, gay news, Washington Blade
GLAA rating, gay news, Washington Blade

Ward 7 City Council candidate Vincent Gray received the highest possible rating on LGBT issues from GLAA. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Ward 7 City Council candidate and former D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray and longtime Council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) received ratings of +10 from the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance, the highest possible rating given by the non-partisan group.

GLAA released its ratings on Wednesday for all candidates running for seats on the City Council in the June 14 Democratic, Republican and Statehood Green Party primaries. It rates candidates on a scale of -10, the lowest possible score, to +10, the highest rating based on candidates’ responses to a detailed questionnaire and on their records, if known, on LGBT-related issues.

In the Ward 7 Council race, incumbent Council member Yvette Alexander received a +5.5 rating. Two other Democrats challenging Alexander, Delmar Chesley and Grant Thompson, received an automatic rating of “0,” according to GLAA, because they failed to return the questionnaire and have no known record on LGBT issues.

In a statement accompanying the ratings, GLAA said Gray’s +10 rating was due to his extensive record of support on LGBT issues during his tenure as a past Ward 7 Council member, Council Chair and mayor. Among other things, the group said Gray’s record includes groundbreaking initiatives in support of the transgender community and his leadership helping to pass the city’s marriage equality law in 2009.

In the Ward 2 race, Evans, a longtime LGBT rights supporter, is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.

In the hotly contested race for the at-large Council seat, incumbent Vincent Orange (D) received a +4 rating compared to Democratic challenger Robert White, who received a +8.5 rating, the highest score among the at-large candidates.

GLAA assigned a 7.5 rating to Statehood-Green Party candidate G. Lee Aikin, who’s running for the at-large seat in the Statehood-Green Party’s separate primary on June 14

Gay former Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner David Garber, who’s running in the Democratic primary for the at-large seat, received a +6.5 rating.

In its statement, GLAA said Garber “agreed with GLAA on all issues and showed good substance in his questionnaire, but has a limited record on LGBT issues.”

GLAA said White, who received an 8.5 rating, also agreed with GLAA on all issues, offered “impressive substance in his questionnaire” and has a supportive record as an LGBT community ally in his role as a former staffer for Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton and D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine.

Republican at-large candidate Carolina Celnik received a “0” rating also for not returning the questionnaire and not having a known record on LGBT issues, GLAA said.

In the Ward 4 Council race, GLAA gave Democratic challenger Leon T. Andrews Jr. a +6 rating, one point higher than incumbent Democrat Brandon Todd, who received a +5. Democratic challengers Calvin Gurley and Ron Austin received ratings of +3.5 and “0” respectively. Austin did not return the questionnaire.

In the Ward 8 Council race, Democratic incumbent LaRuby May received a 7.5 rating. Democratic challenger Trayon White, who finished less than two points behind May in a special election for the seat last year, received a +4 rating. Democratic challenger Aaron Homes received a +2 rating and Democrats Maurice Dickens and Bonita Goode received “0” ratings for not submitting the questionnaire and not having known records on LGBT issues.

May “agreed with GLAA on all issues, showed significant substance in her questionnaire, and has been a reliable ally on the Council,” GLAA said in its statement. According to the statement, White also agreed with GLAA on issues outlined in the questionnaire “but offered little substance and has a limited record on LGBT issues.”

A detailed ratings breakdown for each of the candidates along with copies of their questionnaire responses can be obtained here.

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Maryland

Former College Park Mayor Patrick Wojahn disbarred

One-time official serving 30-year prison sentence for child pornography possession, distribution

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Patrick Wojahn (Mugshot courtesy of the Prince George's County Police Department)

Patrick Wojahn, the former mayor of College Park who resigned after law enforcement executed a search and seizure warrant and discovered a “very large quantity” of child sexual abuse material on his cellphone, has agreed to be disbarred in Maryland.

Wojahn, 49, a Democrat who served as mayor from 2015 to 2023, later pleaded guilty in Prince George’s County Circuit Court to 140 counts of possession and distribution of child pornography and was sentenced to 30 years in prison — plus five years of probation.

In an order on Friday, Maryland Chief Justice Matthew J. Fader granted a joint petition for disbarment by consent and noted that Wojahn agreed that his actions constituted professional misconduct.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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District of Columbia

Sentencing for Ruby Corado postponed for second time

Former Casa Ruby director pleaded guilty to wire fraud

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Ruby Corado’s sentencing is now scheduled for April 29. (Washington Blade file photo by Ernesto Valle)

The sentencing in D.C. federal court for Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of the now-defunct LGBTQ community services organization Casa Ruby on a charge of wire fraud, has been postponed for the second time, from March 28 to April 29.

A spokesperson for U.S. District Court Judge Trevor N. McFadden, who is presiding over the case, said it was the judge who postponed the sentencing due to a scheduling conflict. The earlier postponement, from Jan. 10 to March 28, came at the request of Corado’s attorney and was not opposed by prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for D.C.

Corado pleaded guilty on July 17, 2024, to a single charge of wire fraud as part of a plea bargain deal offered by prosecutors. The charge to which she pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for D.C. says she allegedly diverted at least $150,000 “in taxpayer backed emergency COVID relief funds to private offshore bank accounts for her personal use,” according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Under the federal wire fraud law, for which Corado is being prosecuted, she could be subjected to a possible maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and restitution requiring her to repay the funds she allegedly stole.

Court observers, however, have said that due to Corado’s decision to waive her right to a trial and plead guilty to the lesser charge, prosecutors will likely ask the judge to hand down a lesser sentence than the maximum sentence.

An earlier criminal complaint filed against Corado, which has been replaced by the single charge to which she has pleaded guilty, came at the time the FBI arrested her on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Md., shortly after she returned to the U.S. from El Salvador.

At the request of her attorney and against the wishes of prosecutors, another judge at that time agreed to release Corado into custody of her niece in Rockville, Md., under a home detention order. The release order came seven days after Corado had been held in jail at the time of her March 5 arrest.

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Virginia

Pride Liberation Project announces additional Va. school board protests

Student-led group challenging Trump-Vance administration’s anti-LGBTQ policies

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LGBTQ students demonstrate at Luther Jackson Middle School in Falls Church, Va., in June 2023. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Following their recent protests at school board meetings in Virginia to challenge the Trump-Vance administration’s anti-LGBTQ policies, a student-led rights group on Wednesday outlined plans to continue their actions.

The Pride Liberation Project released a statement in early March announcing their “March Month of Action” after their first round of protests. The Pride Liberation Project on Wednesday issued another press release that provided additional details.

“Queer students will rally at local school board meetings across Virginia, as they call for education leaders to reject the Trump-Musk’s administration escalating attacks against queer people.” said Conifer Selintung on behalf of the Pride Liberation Project. “Since taking office, the Trump-Musk administration has ignored the real issues facing our schools — like declining reading scores and the mental health crisis — and tried to bully queer students into the closet. Alongside other hateful attacks, they’ve attacked nondiscrimination protections, banned gender-affirming care, and whitewashed history.”

The Pride Liberation Project press release also included a statement from Moth, an LGBTQ student at McLean High School.

“I want to be able to go to school as myself, just like any other student,” said Moth. “To do that, I need my school board to stand up to bullies.”

The Pride Liberation Project has also released a schedule of rallies it plans to hold this month.

The first rally took place at the Prince William County School Board meeting in Manassas on Wednesday. A second event took place at the Roanoke County School Board meeting on Thursday.

Additional rallies are scheduled to take place in Rockingham and York Counties on March 24, Loudoun County on March 25, and Fairfax County on March 27.

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