State Sen. Dalya Attar; her brother, Joseph, a real estate developer; and Kalman Finkelstein, a Baltimore Police officer, pleaded not guilty Monday morning in federal court to the extortion and conspiracy charges against them.

Prosecutors allege that in 2020 they secretly recorded Dalya Attar’s former political consultant in bed with a married man and then conspired to blackmail the consultant to keep her sidelined in future elections. Four unnamed co-conspirators are also listed in the indictment as having helped carry out the alleged extortion scheme.

Flanked by attorneys, the trio lodged their pleas in a brief hearing that marked the first time they were all in court together since being indicted last month. Other than “not guilty” and answering “yes” to whether they understood the charges against them, they had nothing to say, either in court or after.

While silence is usually the norm for parties to a criminal case, the details in this one — sexual blackmail, political maneuvering and mystery about who all is involved — have only amplified it.

Neither Finkelstein or Joseph Attar have said a word publicly. Dalya Attar issued two statements immediately after the charges via a Facebook page that serves the Orthodox Jewish community, only for that page to delete those posts shortly after.

The commitment to quiet went a step further after Monday’s hearing. Attorneys for all three declined to comment, though A. Jeff Ifrah, one of Dalya Attar’s attorneys, wished the media a happy Thanksgiving on his way out of the courthouse.

Rather than leave with their attorneys, Dalya and Joseph Attar stayed for hours inside the federal courthouse, where cameras and recording are not allowed. When approached to see if they had a comment, Joseph Attar shook his head. Dalya Attar did not look up from her phone.

Prosecutors said they expect it would take two to three weeks to present their evidence to a jury, should the case make it to trial. Ifrah previously said he thought the case could be resolved without a trial.

A Democrat and former prosecutor who represents a Northwest Baltimore district, Dalya Attar was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2018. In 2025, Baltimore City Democratic Committee members appointed her to a state Senate vacancy. Del. Malcolm Ruff announced in August that he would challenge Attar.

Correction: A caption has been updated to correct the spelling of Kalman Finkelstein's name.