Brenda Richardson, a key staffer in Councilmember Marion Barry‘s constituent services office, has hired prominent D.C. attorney A. Scott Bolden. Richardson, who is listed on Barry’s Web site as his Deputy Chief of Staff for Community Engagement, was identified in a recent Washington City Paper story as a key player in Barry’s efforts to control various nonprofit groups that received funding through D.C. Council earmarks.

When contacted on Friday evening, Richardson referred questions to Barry spokesperson Natalie Williams. This morning, Richardson wrote Washington City Paper:

“If you have any further question, please contact my lawyer, Scott Bolden at Reed Smith…”

When reached this morning, Bolden was in no mood for “further questions.”

Bolden wrote in an e-mail:

“Jason, not sure how much clearer I can be…[neither] me nor my client will be speaking with you or anyone from the City Paper. Please refrain from contacting me or my client, Ms. Richardson in the future. Any additional attempts on your part to contact us will be deemed in my view as an attempt to harass her and/or I—-not an attempt to interview one of us. Thanks.”

This is not the first time Bolden has stepped in to represent a member of the Barry camp. Bolden represented Barry’s son after he incurred charges for assaulting a police officer. Bolden lost by a huge margin to Phil Mendelson in the 2006 Democratic primary for an at-large council seat; he ended up in a dispute over a BlackBerry bill.