Krystal Oriadha, chair of the Prince George’s County Council, announced last week that lawmakers had named a new auditor.
In a statement to The Banner last Friday, Oriadha said the council “has appointed Marcel Emerson to lead the Office of Audits and Investigations,” a decision she said “strengthens the County’s commitment to effective oversight, transparency, and accountability.”
The appointment would have come at a notable time for the Office of Audits and Investigations.
Following a request from County Executive Aisha Braveboy, the office is investigating how an organization run by Oriadha’s close friend and godmother of her child, and its Beverly Hills, California-based fiscal sponsor, spent millions in council funding.
But the council quietly removed Emerson’s appointment from its meeting agenda earlier this week, and its 2026 legislative session concluded Tuesday without any mention of the auditor position.
Now, the council appears to have abandoned the appointment, at least for this year.
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At a press conference Wednesday, Oriadha declined to explain why the council didn’t follow through with its decision to appoint Emerson.
Nor did she say whether Emerson is still in consideration for the job.
“No one’s not in consideration for the role,” Oriadha said.
The chair said an appointment letter she wrote was “prematurely” added to the council’s agenda for Monday.
“There’s other steps that may be taken before the council makes a formal announcement,” she said.
She did not address her previous comments stating that the council had made its appointment.
Emerson, a financial controller for a New York City-based acquisition holding company and former account manager for Prince George’s Community College, did not respond to requests for comment.
At least one council member had raised concerns about Emerson’s appointment.
In a letter to council Administrator David Murray last Friday, council member Jolene Ivey, who initially voted to support Emerson during a closed session, called for the council to take further steps to vet him.
“I want to be transparent that my vote was based largely on reassurances I received that the candidate had no affiliation of any kind with any member of this Council,” she wrote in the letter.
Ivey wrote that she later came across a Facebook post alleging that Emerson was working for a nonprofit associated with a County Council member, whom she did not identify in the letter.
If the allegation were true, Ivey wrote, it would call into question whether the council had a full and accurate picture ahead of its closed-session vote.
“I do not typically rely on social media for Council news, though I will note that I am increasingly receiving Council updates through these platforms rather than directly from your office,” she wrote to Murray.
When approached for comment Wednesday, the council administrator said he had received the letter and was looking into the concerns raised.
In an interview Wednesday, Ivey said the Facebook post she saw alleged that Emerson had a working relationship with council member Edward Burroughs, who is closely tied to the Suitland-based nonprofit Joan’s House.
“I raised a concern that I’d heard, and admittedly through social media — not always reliable, but sometimes right on point,” she said.
Burroughs said in a statement that “this is completely and utterly false.”
The council has one more meeting scheduled this year. It will reconvene in early December for the swearing-in of new members elected on Nov. 3.
Ivey said it’s unlikely the council will take up its auditor appointment that day.
“At this point, it’s not going to happen,” she said. “We’re out of session.”
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