In April and June of 2014 Robert Eugene Deal of Queenstown, a licensed home improvement contractor, entered into two home improvement contracts with a family in Stevensville, Maryland. The homeowner paid Mr. Deal in excess of $28,000 as down payments for the completion of the two projects. After several months, neither contract was near completion and only a limited amount of supplies were on the construction site.
The State’s Attorney’s Office was contacted by the homeowner and an investigation was conducted, including a review of Mr. Deal’s financial records, both personal and business. The State’s Attorney’s Office was able to determine that Mr. Deal had used a large portion of the down payment for these two projects for his personal expenses and did not have sufficient funds in his banking accounts to complete the two projects. In May of 2015 the State’s Attorney’s Office criminal charged Deal with theft, failing to perform a contract and several other related offenses.
On August 5, 2015 Mr. Deal’s criminal trial was scheduled in the District Court; however, Mr. Deal failed to appear for the court trial. The State’s Attorney’s Office immediately moved this case to the Circuit Court and an arrest warrant was issued for Mr. Deal. On August 17, 2015 Mr. Deal was apprehended during a traffic stop by a Maryland State Trooper and was subsequently transported to the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s Office for processing. He was described by police as being irate about his arrest and during the processing Mr. Deal threatened bodily harm against the State’s Attorney, Mr. Lance Richardson. Mr. Deal was transported to the Queen Anne’s County Detention Center on the Circuit Court warrant related to the home improvement charges. The State’s Attorney’s Office filed additional charges against Mr. Deal on August 18, 2015 for Threatening a State Official (State’s Attorney).
On December 17, 2015 Mr. Deal was convicted in the Circuit Court of threatening the State’s Attorney by a Queen Anne’s County jury. Sentencing in that case was scheduled for January 14, 2016.
On January 14, 2016 Mr. Deal appeared in the Circuit Court and entered an Alford Plea to one count of Failure to Perform a Contract in connection with the two contracts he failed to perform for the Stevensville homeowner. The Circuit Court Judge rendered a guilty finding and Mr. Deal was then sentenced for both cases. Deal was sentenced to 10 days in the Queen Anne’s County Detention Center for threatening the State’s Attorney, he was also given a 6 month jail sentence, which the court suspended, for failure to perform the home improvement contract. Mr. Deal was also placed on 36 months of probation.
These cases were prosecuted by Deputy State’s Attorney Michael Cuches.