Inspector General finds no evidence Olszewski administration paid improper benefits

Emily Opilo

The Baltimore Banner

December 18, 2024

Baltimore County’s Inspector General has found no evidence that County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr.’s administration awarded improper benefits to a retired county firefighter, nor that he granted a trucking contract based upon his friendship with an employee of the company, according to the results of an investigation.

The 27-page report, released Wednesday, undercuts accusations of cronyism that swirled around Olszewski this year as he mounted a campaign for Congress. Olszewski won the race despite calls from the Maryland GOP for him to withdraw.

Olszewski said the inspector general’s report “leaves no doubt in its affirmation of my integrity in how I operate and lead.”

“I believe that an open and accountable Baltimore County is vital to the long-term success of our communities,” he said in a statement. “With this matter now definitively resolved, I will continue working tirelessly for the betterment of our communities, just as I continue to uphold the trust that the public has placed in me.”

In her report, Inspector General Kelly Madigan found that a much-scrutinized retirement payment made to retired firefighter Philip Tirabassi was “proper.” Although the agreement the county made with Tirabassi contained unlawful language, Tirabassi was never paid for any time worked outside the county, the inspector general found.

The dispute dates back to 2020, when Tirabassi sought to transfer retirement credits from an earlier job as a Baltimore firefighter to increase his Baltimore County pension benefit. He had served in the city for 2.8 years, records show. County officials repeatedly denied his request, saying the deadline had long passed for the transfer.

At some point, a county attorney approved what Olszewski said was an “unauthorized agreement” allowing the credits to transfer. The county tried to back out of it, and Tirabassi threatened to sue. The county ultimately paid Tirabassi $83,675 to settle after attorneys for the retirement system told officials that letting Tirabassi keep the credits would jeopardize the system’s tax status. County officials said they thought settling the matter privately would be cheaper.

Madigan further found no evidence that the settlement was “willfully hidden” from the Baltimore County Council, despite the use of the pseudonym “Philip Dough” when it was presented to the body.

“At the time, the county attorney and the Director of OBF [Office of Budget and Finance] were both relatively new in their positions and the notification to County Council of the resolution of claims and lawsuits was a new requirement,” Madigan said. “Considering these factors as well as the fact that the overriding concern within the administration at the time was maintaining the confidentiality of the settlement with Tirabassi out of fear of a class action lawsuit, it is understandable why they thought a pseudonym would be appropriate.”

Additionally, Madigan found no evidence of impropriety in the awarding of a contract to a trucking company to purchase $4 million worth of dump trucks in 2023 and 2024. The trucks were procured in connection with a competitively bid contract, Madigan said, noting that the county received a 25% discount. Philip Tirabassi’s brother, John, works for the company that supplied the trucks, and was a high school classmate of Olszewski’s.

“The office found no evidence that the county executive’s friendship with J. Tirabassi resulted in any improper benefits being given to Tirabassi or J. Tirabassi by the County,” Madigan wrote. “Specifically, there is no support to the allegations that this friendship somehow influenced the Tirabassi settlement or the procurement of the 16 Peterbilt trucks.”

Madigan concluded that the county inappropriately withheld documents related to the settlement agreement with Tirabassi, concurring with decisions made by a Baltimore County Circuit Court and the state’s Public Information Act ombudsman. However, the documents were eventually disclosed in the course of litigation, she said, making it unnecessary for her to weigh in.

Former county administrative officer Fred Homan, who filed that lawsuit and spent over three and a half years unspooling the Tirabassi case to local media, scoffed at Madigan’s exoneration of Olszewski. Based on his reading of state pension laws, he said he still believes the county did not have the authority to settle with Tirabassi and unlawfully financed the deal from a general liability funding pool. The inspector general, he continued, never reached out to ask about his thoughts.

”It’s been a three-and-a-half-year cover up,” Homan said. “The county executive saying he’s vindicated, it’s wrong.”

Madigan’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Democratic County Councilman Julian Jones, who now supports turning over the records to Homan after voting the fight the request, said the investigation closed a chapter as Olszewski heads to Congress.

“I’m happy that the report has been issued,” Jones said in a statement. “Hopefully we can put this issue behind us.”

Baltimore Banner reporters Rona Kobell and Danny Nguyen contributed to this article.