The Anne Arundel County state's attorney's office might ask an outside prosecutor to pursue the criminal charges against an Annapolis mayoral candidate accused of grabbing the crotch of a male Naval Academy midshipman during a late-night encounter in a car last week.
Two employees of the county prosecutor's office are Annapolis aldermen who serve with Samuel E. Shropshire, 61, a Democrat accused on Tuesday of fondling a midshipman whom he has known since 2007.
Shropshire was charged with second-degree assault and a fourth-degree sex offense, both misdemeanors, in allegations referred to Annapolis police by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The Ward 7 representative called the accusations a "lie" at a news conference Wednesday.
Assistant State's Attorney Frederick Paone and chief investigator David Cordle are Republican aldermen. Cordle has also declared his mayoral candidacy.
Anne Arundel state's attorney spokeswoman Kristin Fleckenstein said the office was not involved in preparing the charges but will consider turning to a special prosecutor from another jurisdiction to avoid appearances of a conflict.
Shropshire said the allegation is "untrue, it's unfounded and it's unfair," adding that he "did not take part in the actions I am accused of, and I know I will be found innocent."
He declined to say if he would suspend the mayoral campaign he launched earlier this year. His lawyer, prominent defense attorney Gill Cochran, said "all decisions right now are on hold" about the alderman's political future.
According to a police charging document, a 21-year-old man was in a car with Shropshire about 11:15 p.m. on May 14 near Rowe Boulevard and Taylor Avenue, a main intersection near the academy's football stadium. According to the report, Shropshire "reached over and placed his hand on [the man's] crotch and grabbed his genitals." After he "manipulated" them for about "30 seconds," the report said, the man "pushed Shropshire's hand off his genitals and back across the car." Shropshire placed his hand there again, and when the man asked what Shropshire was doing, "Shropshire apologized," the documents said.
The young man was let out of the car, the report said. The Baltimore Sun is not publishing his name due to the nature of the allegations.
The charging documents state that the accuser has known Shropshire since fall 2007.
