Former Washington, DC PL Director Indicted on Defrauding City

Staff -- Library Journal, 2/9/1998

Hardy Franklin, the former director of the Washington, D.C. Public Library (DCPL), has been indicted on two charges that he defrauded the city of more than $20,000 in what has been referred to as a "double reimbursement scheme." Franklin Attorney Lawrence Barcella charged in a statement that the District of Columbia's US Attorney's Office had "unnecessarily rushed to charge a 40-year public servant with an impeccable record." Barcella went on to say that once Franklin is cleared "by his cardiologist," he will "vigorously contest these charges." Prosecuters contend that Franklin, a former president of the American Library Association (ALA), pocketed some of the reimbursement money he received from ALA that was meant to be paid back to the city, from which he had taken financial advances for trips. If convicted on both counts, Franklin could face up to 15 years in jail and a fine of as much as $255,000.