The leader of a nonprofit that mentors and awards scholarships to Prince George’s County school children was arrested earlier this year for allegedly driving under the influence and other related charges, court records show. The nonprofit, Joan’s House, has been slated to receive millions in county grants and other public funds, according to budget documents.
Romel Williams, president of the nonprofit — which runs several programs in conjunction with Council member Ed Burroughs’ office — was arrested in March after a Prince George’s County Police officer responded to a Suitland home where a Honda Accord had collided with the garage and a vehicle in the driveway, according to charging documents.
The officer wrote in his report that he found Williams in the driver’s seat of the vehicle with airbags deployed and “smelled a very strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on the defendant’s breath.”
“I spoke to the defendant who was looking aimlessly straight with glassy and watery eyes,” the officer wrote. “When I walked up to the car, the driver seemed unaware of his surroundings.”
The officer wrote that he saw a “nearly empty personal sized bottle of an alcoholic beverage by the name of ‘Buzzball Cocktails’” in the center console. When the officer asked Williams to step out of the vehicle, Williams fumbled “with his slippers and could not find the 2nd pair,” he wrote.
Williams refused medical attention and was transported to a district police station for field sobriety tests, according to the police report. When asked at the station if he’d had any alcoholic beverages in the past 12 hours, Williams said, “12,” according to the report.
Williams and his attorney, Andrew Alpert, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Williams has not pleaded guilty to any charges, court records show. Alpert has filed motions demanding a speedy trial and requesting more information about the evidence prosecutors have in their possession.
The address and phone number listed for Williams in court records matches the address and number from tax filings for his nonprofit.
A trial in the case was postponed last month, according to court records. Prosecutors are seeking harsher penalties because Williams has a prior DWI on his record, from August 2023, records show.
In that case, Williams completed treatment and ignition interlock programs and was released early from probation, according to court records.
The case was closed in October 2025, and Williams was arrested five months later on his current DUI charge. Months later, in June, the council allocated millions of dollars for Williams’ nonprofit to run a youth jobs program and a Student Leadership Academy championed by Burroughs.
Burroughs, a close ally of Williams, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the charges.
When asked for comment, County Executive Aisha Braveboy’s office did not address the criminal charges against Williams but expressed support for Joan’s House programming.
Williams and Burroughs met at an out-of-state convention, Burroughs told The Banner earlier this year. Williams was the recipient of a community college scholarship through a program Burroughs established, according to a Washington Post story about the program.
Shortly after he founded Joan’s House in 2023, Williams’ nonprofit began receiving allocations for hundreds of thousands of dollars in “project charges,” a reimbursement program run through the bicounty park and planning commission, which has since sued the council over its efforts to redirect more money from its budget.
The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission’s lawsuit scrutinizes Joan’s House, questioning whether it is appropriate for the organization to receive funds designated for recreation programs, when much of the work it does may not meet that definition.
The commission paid out approximately $143,000 of the requested reimbursements since fiscal year 2023, commission records show.
Joan’s House also received a $2 million allocation for fiscal year 2025 through a county program that redistributes MGM National Harbor casino revenue to be used for improvements or programs in nearby neighborhoods, according to budget documents.
That spending program, known as local impact grants, does not list Joan’s House by name as a recipient in the current fiscal year, but it does list two programs that have been run by the nonprofit: the youth leadership academy and an apprenticeship program.
The nonprofit also has received hundreds of thousands of dollars through other county grant programs, according to budget documents.
In court records, Williams lists his job title as “president” and his salary as $150,000. It’s unclear whether Joan’s House has funding sources outside of the allocations from the county.
Banner Reporter Jack Hogan contributed to this report.
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