Progressive activist Jake Burdett boasts he’s a troublemaker.

The 27-year-old Elkridge man has supported liberal causes with protest tactics that have disrupted news conferences, irked elected leaders and led to brushes with the law.

In 2019, he pleaded guilty to illegal wiretapping after livestreaming a meeting at Maryland Rep. Andy Harris’ office. In 2023, a GOP lawmaker from Louisiana defended grabbing and pushing Burdett at an event on Capitol Hill. That same year, Burdett got booted from a news conference where Howard County Executive Calvin Ball released a housing plan for the jurisdiction.

Now Burdett faces new charges tied to an incident at a Baltimore County law firm where he used to work as a clerk. The charges came as Burdett was seeking a position on the quasi-governmental Columbia Association’s Board of Directors. He withdrew his name as a candidate Monday after a question was raised about where he lived.

Baltimore County authorities charged Burdett on March 11 with two felony counts of theft under $25,000 and a misdemeanor count of illegally accessing a computer. A representative for the unnamed Pikesville law firm told police he deleted 24 electronic forms and stole two client files that involved three green card applicants.

Burdett did not respond to questions about the case Monday. He confirmed via email that he withdrew his application to be a candidate for the Columbia Association election.

Court records show that Burdett is represented by Westminster attorney William Bradley Bauhof, who did not respond immediately to a request for comment Monday.

According to charging documents, the law firm fired Burdett on Feb. 22 via text message for insubordination. Burdett, a University of Baltimore law student who had been a clerk there for about two years, was instructed to place files on a desk before leaving the office, charging documents state.

“I’m sure your sociopathic narcissism will find a way to handle this,” Burdett replied via text, according to the charging documents.

Charging documents state that, within 10 minutes of his firing, Burdett wiped two client profiles from an electronic system the law firm used to complete immigration forms.

The firm was able to retrieve a backup of the forms and confirm that they were deleted by an account tied to Burdett’s email address at the law firm, according to charging documents.

However, the physical files Burdett was instructed to leave behind were not recovered. Those files contained sensitive information including Social Security numbers, original sealed medical exams, passports, marriage and naturalization certificates as well as divorce decrees, charging documents state.

One client’s documents came from Pakistan, making them “nearly impossible” to replace, law firm officials told authorities. Without them, they estimate, his case will be set back roughly six months.

The law firm has since refunded one client $2,000 and anticipates that it will need to refund more money to a second client, according to charging documents.

The case has been transferred to Baltimore County Circuit Court. A trial has not yet been scheduled, according to court records.

Burdett is still enrolled at the University of Baltimore School of Law.

A law school representative, Christine Stutz, declined to comment on the case, citing student privacy laws.

In recent weeks, Burdett took steps to gain a seat on the quasi-governmental homeowners association that runs Columbia. He appeared as a candidate for the Dorsey’s Search seat on the Columbia Association board as recently as Monday morning.

Later Monday, Burdett provided an email to The Banner showing that he asked to cancel his application after a staff nember for the Dorsey’s Search village asked him for further documentation of his permanent residence.

The Columbia Association is a massive homeowners group that in many ways functions like a city government. Each village has a representative on the board, and each board member has varying responsibilities. The Dorsey’s Search member, for example, is responsible for hiring the village manager.

Two candidates remain listed for the Dorsey’s Search seat, according to the Columbia Associations website.

A Columbia Association spokesperson declined to comment on the matter. While candidates are elected to the association’s board, the elections are run solely by village boards.

The Dorsey’s Search village confirmed via email Monday afternoon that its election committee had accepted Burdett’s withdrawal.

Before he dropped out of the election, some Dorsey’s Search residents began to organize around finding other candidates to run against him.

Burdett’s name is well known within Howard County. He is involved with several progressive county groups, including the Howard County Rent Stabilization Coalition and the Progressive Democrats of Howard County and is the co-chair of Our Revolution Howard County, a local chapter of Our Revolution Maryland.

This story has been updated to clarify that not every village representative on the Columbia Association board has the same responsibilities.