A Northrop Grumman engineer gave an Anne Arundel County prosecutor a check Friday to pay for signs supporting a slots parlor at Arundel Mills mall that were stolen during last fall's campaign, a move that his lawyer said was not an admission of guilt.
David Scott Corrigan, 50, of Glen Burnie was charged Oct. 23 with property destruction and theft of $1,000 to $10,000. Police said that when arrested, Corrigan had 70 of the signs in the bed of his pickup in addition to one they said they saw him remove by the headquarters of the pro-slots campaign in Severna Park.
The check for $8,740 was "kind of a measure of good faith" and not an admission that Corrigan took down the signs, Corrigan's attorney, James Nichols, said outside the courtroom.
Both sides asked the judge to postpone the trial, which had been scheduled for Friday in District Court in Annapolis. Attorneys were not able to resolve the case with a plea agreement, and Assistant State's Attorney Michelle Smith said one of her witnesses did not come to court.
Later in the day, the court set a new trial date of April 18.
"At this point, we are just trying to move past all of this," Nichols said. A conviction could cost his client security clearances he needs for work, Nichols said.
Corrigan previously had told court officials that he makes $160,000 a year as a project manager at Northrop. He has been described by his lawyers as a religious man who does not support gambling and volunteers in the construction of homes for Habitat for Humanity.
Anne Arundel voters approved a ballot question in November to bring what would be the largest slots parlor in Maryland to the county. In recent days, opponents have filed a legal challenge, and the Baltimore-based developer, the Cordish Cos., broke ground for the slots facility at Arundel Mills mall.