These words, written by Catherine Pugh several years ago, for a yet-to-be published book entitled Leaving Home, have new meaning as the former Baltimore mayor makes the long journey from her Ashburton home to Alabama to begin a three-year sentence in federal prison on June 26.
And on June 19, an Anne Arundel County, Md. judge sentenced her to six months in prison (to be served concurrently with the three year sentence) for failure to disclose money she received from her Healthy Holly children’s book on her State Financial Disclosure Form while she was a state Senator.
A former college instructor and public relations/media expert, Pugh served on the Baltimore City Council (1999-2004), was appointed to a seat in the Maryland House of Delegates (2005), elected to the state Senate (2010) and became the 50th mayor of Baltimore in December 2016.
“Catherine, like most of us, has made mistakes,” wrote her friend, W. Paul Coates (founder of Black Classic Press, former Black Panther and father of author Ta-Nehisi Coates) in a December 2019 AFRO op-ed.
However, for now Catherine Elizabeth Pugh is leaving home.
