Prosecution Attempt 'Despicable,' Barry Says

D.C. Council member Marion Barry held a news conference yesterday to assail the federal prosecutors who tried unsuccessfully to have him jailed for not filing his 2007 tax returns on time, accusing them of harassment, intimidation and harboring a personal "vendetta" against him.

"This is a victory for the people of the District of Columbia and myself and a defeat -- a defeat, a defeat, a defeat -- for the U.S. attorney's office," he said, labeling the prosecution attempt "despicable." Barry (D-Ward 8) said he plans to send U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. a letter calling for an investigation into prosecutors' conduct.

Barry's statements followed a federal judge's ruling Friday that the former D.C. mayor had violated the terms of his probation -- also for tax offenses -- and extended Barry's probation term for two more years. The judge's decision came after prosecutors abandoned their bid to have Barry jailed for allegedly engaging in the same criminal conduct that landed him in trouble in 2006, when he was sentenced to three years of probation after admitting he owed back taxes on $500,000 earned between 1999 and 2004.

Barry praised the judge's ruling and said he has fired his longtime accountant, whom he declined to name. The 72-year-old Barry is recovering from a kidney transplant and has said he did not file the tax returns because of poor health. But Barry said he is doing much better now.

"I haven't felt this good in 10 years," he told reporters, adding that he was planning to become a national advocate for kidney health issues.