DELAWARE - The Delaware Supreme Court has handed down a ruling in the appeals case of former State Auditor Kathy McGuiness.
On Tuesday, February 13th, Supreme Court Justice Abigail LeGrow released the Court’s Majority opinion on McGuiness’ appeals case, affirming a previous conviction of misdemeanor conflict of interest but also remanding, or sending back, another misdemeanor conviction.
HISTORY
McGuiness began her term as Delaware State Auditor in 2019. In 2020, three state employees contacted the Delaware Department of Justice alleging McGuinness had engaged in misconduct over office spending, political activity while working, and the misuse of no-bid contracts.
Later in 2020, two more whistleblowers raised concerns that McGuiness’s daughter and daughter’s friend were on the state payroll while living at an out of state college, according to the Supreme Court opinion released Tuesday.
In May of 2021, the Department of Justice began their investigation into the allegations against McGuiness that would ultimately see her convicted of two misdemeanor charges of official misconduct and conflict of interest in 2022. McGuinness was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and complete 500 hours of community service. She resigned the day of her conviction.
In May of 2023, McGuiness appealed her conviction of the misdemeanors to the Delaware Supreme Court. Not long after, in August 2023, McGuinness filed a separate lawsuit alleging Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings had violated her constitutional rights and DOJ staff had slandered her.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Though reversing McGuiness’s conviction of official misconduct on grounds of legal “insufficiency,” the Supreme Court Majority Opinion rejects McGuiness’s claim her convictions were unfair and unconstitutional.
“The defendant raises a mélange of issues on appeal, including that the State failed to present sufficient evidence of the charged crimes and violated the defendant’s due process rights by suppressing exculpatory evidence,” Justice Legrow writes in her Opinion. “We reject those arguments because they distort the trial court’s holdings or misapply the law.”
The Court goes on to uphold the conviction of conflict of interest in hiring her daughter.
The Court’s decision to remand the official misconduct conviction, however, now opens the possibility of yet another Superior Court showdown focused on that charge should the Attorney General’s Office choose to pursue it. Whether or not they decide to remains to be seen.
“We took on this case, and created the Division of Civil Rights & Public Trust, because of one basic principle: nobody should be above the law or beneath justice,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings in a statement Tuesday. “Today’s ruling vindicates that principle. After more than two years of endless litigation and theatrical rhetoric, the bottom line is that a jury, a Superior Court judge, and now the Delaware Supreme Court have all concluded that the ex-Auditor’s actions were criminal. I am grateful for the Court’s judgment; I am proud of our trial and appeals teams’ work; and above all else, I am inspired by the courage of the whistleblowers who came forward to seek justice.”
