Detroit Mayor; Before Going to Jail Hints at Comeback
Only hours after he agreed to resign as mayor of Detroit, Kwame Kilpatrick expressed regret for the scandal that forced him to resign and serve time in jail as part of a plea deal, while leaving room open for a possible comeback in the future.
He walked ‘into a City Hall conference room Thursday to thunderous applause and thanked his family, backers and staff members for sticking by him during his rocky 6 1/2-year tenure.’
“I truly know who I am. I truly know where I come from. In Detroit I know who I am. And I know because of that, there’s another day for me,” he said in a 20-minute speech on live television. “I want to tell you, Detroit, that you done set me up for a comeback.”
Although he may hint as a comeback all he wants, the reality is that his plea deal means he cannot run for elected office for a period of five years. Additionally, he has lost his license to practice law and he has to serve four months in jail. Lastly, he has to pay the city $1 million in restitution.
Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to two counts of obstruction of justice. ‘
The scandal stems from a whistleblower lawsuit filed by two former police officers who accused Kilpatrick of retaliating against them for trying to investigate misconduct by the mayor and his security detail. Questioned under oath in 2004 and 2007, Kilpatrick repeatedly denied having an affair with his chief of staff, Christine Beatty.’
Later, however, the Detroit Free Press published text messages between the two, which made crystal clear that their relationship was not purely professional. Kilpatrick and Beatty were, as a result, charged.
‘In addition to perjury, Kilpatrick was accused of misleading City Council when he secured its approval of an $8.4 million settlement with three former police officers. Prosecutors said he settled to keep the text messages from becoming public.’
What is most fascinating about the scandal is that it all boils down to one thing; he had sex with a woman not his own. He cheated on his wife. That is what the case really is all about.
And that is quite sad. He was a thug, sure, but in the end, this was a highly private issue. It is not the public’s right to know with whom their elected officials are sleeping, and whether or not they are faithful to their spouse. That is private, and should remain private.
I still say that situations like this are different. Having an affair with people under you is an issue. It can lead to sexual harassment or possibly blackmail. It shows an extremely lack of professionalism.
If he just picked up some woman at a bar, I wouldn’t care at all.