Office of Tax and Revenue: Press Release

Former District Employee Pleads Guilty to Failing to Pay District of Columbia Taxes

WASHINGTON, DC - Former Office of Tax and Revenue employee Derrick T. Cromartie was sentenced today in District of Columbia Superior Court for failing to timely pay District of Columbia individual income taxes. Cromartie was sentenced to 80 hours of community service, 30 days of jail time suspended, and one year of supervised probation. Additionally, he was ordered to pay all taxes, penalties, and interest due.

This case, prosecuted by the Office of the Corporation Counsel, was originally uncovered by the Office of Tax and Revenue through its stepped up efforts in detecting criminal tax fraud. Over the past year, the Office of Tax and Revenue has enhanced efforts to address internal and external fraud. This has lead to the establishment a Code of Conduct for all Office of Tax and Revenue employees and a training program designed to teach all employees about ethical conduct and protecting taxpayer information.

Herbert Huff, Director of Operations for the Office of Tax and Revenue, stated, "We are committed to providing world-class customer service to the citizens of the District of Columbia, but we are equally committed to the goal of ensuring that tax scofflaws do not take advantage of the honest taxpaying citizens of the District. We encourage all citizens, but especially all District of Columbia employees, to timely file and pay their taxes."

Cromartie was initially charged with failing to pay his individual income taxes for three years, but through plea negotiations, Cromartie plead guilty to failing to pay for two years. He will, however, be responsible for paying taxes, penalties, and interest on all years. Presiding Judge Sheryl Long of the Tax Division stressed that she had three goals in sentencing Cromartie: one, recover for the District of Columbia the monies Cromartie owed in back taxes; two, make Cromartie a contributing, taxpaying member of society; and three, send a strong message to all District citizens that failing to meet their tax obligations will not be tolerated.