Attorney General Schwalb Secures $259,294 Judgment Against Former DC Assistant Principal Who Fraudulently Worked a Second Full-Time Job in Rhode Island

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced that the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has secured a $259,294 judgment against Michael Redmond, a former assistant principal at Stephen E. Kramer Middle School in Ward 8, for defrauding the District by taking a full-time, in-person job in Rhode Island while he was supposed to be working remotely for the DC Public Schools (DCPS). The court determined that Redmond "engaged in conduct that showed a willful disregard for the truth and a willingness to engage in defrauding the District of Columbia," knowingly collecting more than $45,000 of his DCPS salary for work he did not complete. The court imposed treble damages and civil penalties for violating the District's False Claims Act.

"Michael Redmond brazenly defrauded the District, collecting a paycheck from DCPS for work he wasn't doing while simultaneously working at and being paid by a school in Rhode Island," said Attorney General Brian Schwalb. "As the District's independent Attorney General, I will continue to fight to protect taxpayer dollars and ensure that fraudsters are held accountable."

From 2019 through November 30, 2020, Redmond was the full-time DCPS Assistant Principal at Kramer Middle School. He was required to work from 8:45 AM until 3:15 PM Monday through Friday. In March 2020, DCPS schools closed and students and staff moved to virtual instruction to slow the spread of COVID-19. When Kramer returned to partial in-person work during the 2020 - 2021 school year, Redmond requested a COVID-19 accommodation and continued working remotely, citing an "immune deficiency," and claiming that his partner was immunocompromised.

In July 2020, while still purporting to maintain full-time employment with DCPS at Kramer, Redmond began working as principal at E Cubed Academy (E3) in Providence, Rhode Island. Redmond's job in Rhode Island required him to work in-person from 8:30 AM until 3:15 PM, Monday through Friday, hours that he was already supposed to be working for DCPS. For five months, Redmond reported to E3 in Providence in person while he claimed to be working virtually for Kramer in DC during the same hours. He continued to submit DCPS timesheets and improperly collected $45,828 of his DCPS salary.

In November 2020, DCPS learned of Redmond's improper dual employment and placed him on administrative leave. He resigned his position in DC, and in December 2021, he entered into a settlement with DC's Office of Government Ethics (OGE), agreeing to pay $10,000 in fines for violating multiple DC personnel rules that prohibit outside employment that interferes with official duties and improper use of government time and resources. The District also notified Redmond of his obligation to return the portion of his DCPS salary he fraudulently collected while he was working in person in Rhode Island. Redmond failed to pay the $10,000 and did not return any of his fraudulently collected DCPS salary.

In June 2023, OAG sued Redmond for violating the False Claims Act (FCA), breaching the settlement agreement with OGE, and unjust enrichment. Under the FCA, it is illegal to knowingly make false claims for payment to the District, or to conceal, avoid, or decrease an obligation to pay the District. Those who break the law can be held liable for three times any amount that is owed (treble damages) as well as civil penalties for each violation of the law.

In late August 2025, the DC Superior Court entered a judgment in favor of the District, finding that "[i]nstead fulfilling his responsibilities of educating the District's youth, [Redmond] engaged

in a pattern of deceit designed to cheat the public coffers." The court determined that Redmond "engaged in conduct that showed a willful disregard for the truth and a willingness to engage in defrauding the District of Columbia," knowingly caused submissions of ten timesheets requesting payment for work he did not complete, and "showed blatant disregard for his responsibilities" to pay the fine for his acknowledged ethics violations.

The court imposed treble damages and penalties under the FCA, ordering Redmond to pay a total of $259,294 to the District.

The judgment is available here.

The District's complaint is available here.

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorneys General Anthony P. Celo, Betsy McMullen, and Alycia K. Hogenmiller, and was supervised by Kimberly M. Johnson, Charles J. Coughlin, and Kerslyn D. Featherstone.

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