Former Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans agreed to pay a $35,000 fine to the D.C. Board of Ethics and Government Accountability on Friday. This settles the oldest open D.C. government investigation into the embattled former lawmaker’s ethical conduct on the same day that voters can begin casting a ballot in the Ward 2 primary.

The settlement lays to rest, at least in the eyes of D.C.’s ethics board, a series of instances in which Evans violated the D.C. Council code of conduct. The board is fining the lawmaker $35,000.

Evans’ “conduct violated the Code of Conduct based on his mistaken understanding of Code provisions regarding conflicts of interest,” according to the terms of the settlement, which was acquired by DCist, and goes on to say that Evans “failed to maintain a high level of integrity in connection with the performance of his official duties, and adversely affected the confidence of the public in the integrity of the District government.”

The probe began with the examination of Evans’ relationship with a digital sign company called Digi Media. The investigation first began in 2018, but was suspended later that year after federal investigators began looking into the issue. Evans has not been charged with any crimes, but the FBI raided his Georgetown home last year.

That federal probe appears to be ongoing, according to BEGA Director Rochelle Ford. “There’s still a pending criminal investigation” into Evans, Ford tells DCist.

Mark Touhey, Evans’ lawyer, confirmed. “I have no knowledge that it’s not open, so I have to assume that it is,” he says, adding that there’s been “very little contact for many months.”

BEGA reactivated the investigation into Evans in February of this year, Ford confirmed to DCist at the time. At that point, though, the probe had grown in scope to encompass the findings from a D.C. Council investigation, which determined that he used his public role to benefit private clients in at least 11 instances.

Evans was the Ward 2 councilmember for almost 30 years before resigning in January amid a ballooning ethics scandal. Investigators found that he had violated conflict of interest rules in his capacity as a councilmember and as chair of the Metro Board. It was the investigation by the Metro board that prompted the D.C. Council to hire a law firm to look into his most recent five years of legislating.

Evans stepped down from his post on the Metro board in June 2019, and then from the council in January 2020, facing near certain expulsion from his colleagues.

Evans says in a phone call that the agreement “settles every matter that I had before BEGA—this wraps it all up.” He highlighted the finding that his mistakes were based in a misunderstanding.

When asked about this line in the settlement, Ford, of BEGA, says that, “If he believes that other people believe that it’s credible for someone with his responsibilities, duties, and experience to not understand the rules, fine.”

This isn’t Evans’ first BEGA settlement in recent memory. In March of 2019, the Washington Post revealed that the councilmember had used his government email account to try to gain consulting work for private clients, suggesting that his powerful position on the council could benefit them in some way. BEGA fined Evans $20,000 over two of those emails in August of last year.

This settlement comes as voting began Friday for D.C.’s June primary, where he is running to regain his council seat. His former colleagues on the council have issued a unanimous condemnation of his decision to run, and in light of the latest fine, some of his Ward 2 competitors have called for his withdrawal.

But if Evans does win the race and returns to the D.C. Council, his former colleagues don’t seem ready to welcome him back. In a rare joint statement earlier this year, they condemned his decision to run. This BEGA settlement doesn’t seem to have swayed them.

“This [settlement] isn’t a resolution to the gross ethics violations by Jack Evans,” tweeted Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen. “Should he return to the Council, we’re prepared to continue the investigation into his pattern & practice of ethical violations that we cut short last year to go ahead [and] vote to expel him.”

Previously:
A Handy Guide To All Of The Investigations Into Jack Evans
After Pausing Investigation, Government Ethics Board Is Looking Into Jack Evans’ Conduct Again
Ward 2 Jack Evans Fined $20,000 By Ethics Board
Notes On A Scandal: WTF Is Going On With Ward 2’s Jack Evans

This story has been updated with comments from BEGA Director Rochelle Ford, Evans lawyer Mark Tuohey, and Councilmember Charles Allen.