Its limited purview includes state election-law violations and bribery involving public officials. Rohrbaugh was appointed to a six-year term in 2004 by Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
During his tenure, investigations of possible misconduct involving the Baltimore liquor board and a multimillion-dollar state technology contract ended without indictment.
"He hasn't put away any high-profile bad guys ," said Matthew A. Crenson, professor emeritus of political science at the Johns Hopkins University. "I think this time there was an effort to get a high-profile conviction, and it's not clear they're going to be able to get it."
But Irwin, the defense attorney, said Rohrbaugh has "taken an office that was doing the dregs, dribs and drabs and made it a high-profile, aggressive prosecutor's office," noting its recovery of more than $5 million that had been stolen from the Baltimore school system.
Rohrbaugh exposed Gilbert Sapperstein, a former boiler company owner who pleaded guilty in 2005 to bribing a schools employee in a scheme to steal millions via fraudulent work invoices.
Last year, Rohrbaugh forced developer Edward St. John, chief executive of St. John Properties Inc., to pay $55,000 in civil fines. Rohrbaugh's office documented that St. John had encouraged his vice presidents to make political donations for which they were reimbursed.
Still, before the Dixon investigation, the most notable case handled by the state prosecutor's office was that of former state Sen. Larry Young. In 1999, a jury acquitted Young of bribery and tax evasion. The trial was handled by Rohrbaugh's predecessor, Stephen Montanarelli.
The Dixon investigation has led to some convictions. The Baltimore Sun reported in 2006 that Dixon voted on contracts that benefited her sister's employer, Utech. The paper also found that the City Council paid $500,000 to Dixon's campaign chairman, Dale G. Clark, for computer work without a contract. Clark and Mildred Boyer, Utech's founder, pleaded guilty to tax charges and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.
