Controversial adviser to Baltimore mayor to leave 1 year after announcing exit

Marvin James is leaving City Hall. For real this time.

More than a year has passed since Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott’s closest adviser announced that he would be departing the administration. A $3,600 taxpayer-funded farewell party that was later scrutinized by the city’s inspector general celebrated his impending exit.

Except James never left.

While he did step back from the mayor’s chief of staff role, James remained on the City Hall payroll among Scott’s stable of advisors. That, too, attracted scrutiny. Television station Fox45 recently followed James and reported that he was seldom seen in the office.

This week, James will become a partner at Martin-Lauer and Associates, the Locust Point-based campaign and consulting outfit that advises Scott and numerous other city politicians.

The move is a natural next step for James, who got his start in campaign work and continued to assist on campaigns during his time at City Hall. James said that the move, which will make him firm founder Colleen Martin-Lauer’s first equity partner since she entered the business more than 30 years ago, has been in the works for months. He gave notice to the mayor in April.

James’s final day at City Hall is Wednesday.

Asked why it took him more than a year to depart, James said Scott asked him to remain on staff as the administration transitioned to a new chief of staff. That transition wound up happening twice. Calvin Young, the mayor’s former campaign treasurer and longtime friend, held the position for eight months before he was moved to a deputy mayor post. John David “JD” Merrill later took the job, making him Scott’s fifth chief of staff since taking office.

In addition to getting his replacements settled, James said he worked on preparation for the General Assembly session and helped to shepherd new director hires through the City Council confirmation process. He participated in negotiations with several unions over new contracts, which occupied much of 2025, he said.

James collected a salary of $198,000 as he remained a “special adviser” to the mayor. He made more than $231,000 as chief of staff.

In recent weeks, Fox45’s reporting has suggested that James has not been at work. The outlet reported that James was only at City Hall twice during a 10-day span when it observed him.

Scott’s office said in a statement that James worked “around the clock” offering “guidance, advice and insight on nearly every major decision and action taken by the mayor’s office.”

“He first provided the Mayor with his intent to resign his position this year in April,” Scott’s office said in a statement, months before the Fox45 story.

In an interview with The Banner, James said it was “comical” to suggest a city employee must be in City Hall to be working.

“There are many entry points to City Hall,” he said. “There are many agencies that exist throughout the city and to which I have oversight and responsibility of.”

James declined to answer a question about his use of his city vehicle. Fox45 reported it followed James in his city vehicle to a salon in Columbia. The outlet also tracked him to the campaign headquarters of Washington, D.C., mayoral candidate Kenyan McDuffie in the district, although not in his city vehicle.

“I have always made it my stance to not respond to manufactured chaos,” James said of the report. ”I know the work that I am required to do. I am fully aware of what my agreements are with the city. That’s a personnel thing that I will continue to keep between me and the administration."

Asked if James had made any inappropriate trips in his vehicle, Scott’s office suggested James was “inappropriately stalked.”

The recent reporting is not the first time James has found himself the target of criticism during his tenure with the city, which began shortly after Scott took office in 2020. In 2023, Baltimore Brew reported that James failed to report income on his annual ethics filing from several campaigns that he worked on while he was serving as Scott’s liaison to the faith community. James amended his filing as a result.

James has continued to work on campaigns from his City Hall posts, which requires careful footing. Baltimore ethics law requires city employees to disclose additional income as well as gifts. James told The Banner he advised several campaigns during the current election cycle, but declined to specify whose he worked for.

Martin-Lauer worked for Maryland State Dels. Caylin Young, Marlon Amprey and Elizabeth Embry this cycle, as well as delegate candidate Ryan Turner and Sheriff-elect Sabrina Tapp-Harper.

James said he was not paid for any of his work this cycle, and he expects to disclose no additional income.

Martin-Lauer praised James in a statement as the “heart, soul and political mind behind countless campaigns across Baltimore and across Maryland for years.”

“I am incredibly excited for this next chapter in the history of Martin-Lauer and Associates, which will mark a turning point as we prepare for the future,” she said.

Scott has praised James in the past for his ability to navigate both the campaign world and city government.

“He understands what needs to happen on the campaign end, but also how the office needs to be focused on delivering,” Scott told The Banner in March 2025 when James first announced his departure.

When James announced he was stepping down from the chief of staff role in March 2025 with plans to leave City Hall several months later, the mayor’s office hosted a farewell party for him. In February, Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming found that at least $3,600 in city funds were spent on the event. That included $217 for a cake purchased using a city procurement card, which city policy does not allow.

When James departs Wednesday, he said he will not have a farewell party.