Former Baltimore County school superintendent Dallas Dance was released from jail Monday after serving four months of his sixth-month sentence.
Shortly after his release from a Virginia jail, Dance tweeted a contrite apology for his actions and said he was looking forward to a new chapter in his life.
Dance was convicted in Baltimore County of four counts of perjury last winter.
“Over the past year, much growth and reflection has occurred, and before I step into this new chapter, I wish to deeply and sincerely apologize to any persons whom my past actions may have impacted,” Dance wrote shortly after 6 a.m.
The Henrico County Sheriff Department confirmed he was released Monday before 9 a.m.
Dance, who tweeted often as superintendent, became increasingly philosophical in his tweets after leaving his job.
“We all fall down, but what sets us apart are the greater works we do upon getting up,” he wrote to his more than 38,000 Twitter followers. “In life, whether we are winning or losing, we have to shake off the past and keep moving forward focusing on the task ahead.”
In the series of four lengthy tweets, Dance said he had awoken Monday “ready to begin a new chapter in the book of life.”
But first, he said, “It is important and it is my wish to reflect very briefly on the prior chapter in my life before steadfastly and humbly moving forward.”
Dance pleaded guilty in March to perjury for failing to disclose to the public and school board that he had earned $147,000 in consulting jobs he had while he was superintendent. He went to prison April 27.
Judge Kathleen G. Cox agreed to allow Dance to serve his sentence in Henrico County, near Richmond. Dance moved back to the Richmond area, where his son and parents live, shortly after he left his superintendent job last summer.
He asked the people he impacted to “recognize that humility, grace, and acceptance of responsibility are key ingredients to living your best life.”
