Kilpatrick-Beatty criminal trial

Last updated
Kwame Kilpatrick Kwame Kilpatrick.jpg
Kwame Kilpatrick

On March 24, 2008, Wayne County, Michigan Prosecutor Kym Worthy announced a 12-count criminal indictment against Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his former Chief of Staff and paramour Christine Beatty. Kilpatrick was charged with eight felonies and Beatty with seven. Charges for both included perjury, misconduct in office and obstruction of justice. Worthy also suggested that others in the Kilpatrick administration could also be charged. [1]

Contents

On December 1, 2008, Beatty admitted lying under oath and was sentenced to 120 days in jail. She began serving the sentence on January 5, 2009. [2]

Text-messaging scandal

The charges stem from a political-sex scandal emerging from a sexual relationship between Detroit Mayor Kilpatrick and his chief of staff Christine Beatty. The revelation of this extra-marital affair was confirmed in text messages exchanged between Kilpatrick and Beatty. The text messages appear to contradict testimony that Kilpatrick and Beatty gave at a trial in 2007 in regards to whether they had an affair and had fired an officer for investigating the mayor's behavior. The City of Detroit settled the lawsuit for $8.4 million based on the recommendation of Kilpatrick and the City of Detroit law department. [1]

The news led to Beatty resigning in February 2008 and political leaders and citizens calling for Kilpatrick to resign. [1]

Criminal charges

Kilpatrick was charged with a separate eighth count

To help offset the cost of Kilpatrick's criminal defense team, a fund was set up to raise money. According to Kilpatrick legal team spokesman Christopher Garrett, the fund's membership committee included former mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown; Detroit native and television personality Judge Greg Mathis; Malik Zulu Shabazz, the leader of the New Black Panthers in Detroit; and S. Martin Taylor, a former DTE executive and a University of Michigan regent. [4] However, within 24 hours Greg Mathis had contacted the media to state that the reports of his support for Kilpatrick were not true. Mathis stated: "I was contacted Wednesday afternoon [March 26, 2008] by Mayor Kilpatrick. He asked if I could serve on his legal defense committee. I informed him I support due process, but I could not support him. This [false statement of Mathis' support] is the same type of deceit that has plunged our city into a deep crisis... Not only do I not support him, but I recommend he resign so the city can heal and move forward." [5]

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 ASHENFELTER, DAVID; JOE SWICKARD (2008-03-24). "Kilpatrick, Beatty face felony charges. The 12-count criminal information charges perjury, conspiracy, misconduct in office and obstruction of justice". detnews.com. Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
  2. http://www.freep.com/article/20081201/NEWS01/312020002/1001/news [ bare URL ]
  3. "Details of Charges File Against Kilpatrick and Christine Beatty". wxyz.com. 2008-03-24. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  4. Snell, Robert; Christine MacDonald; Darren A. Nichols (2008-03-27). "Mayor Kilpatrick to get legal defense funding". detnews.com. The Detroit News. Retrieved 2008-03-27.
  5. ELRICK, M.L. (2008-03-27). "Mathis calls for mayor's resignation, refutes reports of support". freep.com. Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on 2008-04-03. Retrieved 2008-03-27.

Related Research Articles

Perjury is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kwame Kilpatrick</span> American former politician from Michigan

Kwame Malik Kilpatrick is an American former politician and convicted felon who served as the 72nd mayor of Detroit from 2002 to 2008. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented the 9th district in the Michigan House of Representatives from 1997 to 2002. Kilpatrick resigned as mayor in September 2008 after being convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice. He was sentenced to four months in jail and was released on probation after serving 99 days.

The Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO) (1984–2003) was an American company led by founder and owner Victor Conte. In 2003, journalists Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada investigated the company's role in a drug sports scandal later referred to as the BALCO Affair. BALCO marketed tetrahydrogestrinone, a then-undetected, performance-enhancing steroid developed by chemist Patrick Arnold. Conte, BALCO vice president James Valente, weight trainer Greg Anderson and coach Remi Korchemny had supplied a number of high-profile sports stars from the United States and Europe with "the Clear" and human growth hormone for several years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick</span> American politician from Michigan

Carolyn Jean Cheeks Kilpatrick is a former American politician who was U.S. Representative for Michigan's 13th congressional district from 1997 to 2011. She is a member of the Democratic Party. In August 2010 she lost the Democratic primary election to Hansen Clarke, who replaced her in January 2011 after winning the 2010 general election. Kilpatrick is also the mother of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Cox (American politician)</span> American politician and lawyer

Michael Anthony Cox is an American attorney and politician who served as Michigan's 52nd Attorney General from 2003 to 2011. He was the first Republican to hold that office since Frank Millard in 1955. Cox took office in 2003 and won re-election in 2006. Jennifer Granholm, who went on to become the Governor of Michigan, preceded him in office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Impeachment of Bill Clinton</span> 1998 presidential impeachment proceedings against Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States, was impeached by the United States House of Representatives of the 105th United States Congress on December 19, 1998, for "high crimes and misdemeanors". The House adopted two articles of impeachment against Clinton, with the specific charges against Clinton being lying under oath and obstruction of justice. Two other articles had been considered but were rejected by the House vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Safavian</span> Former US Government official

David Hossein Safavian is an American former lawyer who worked as a congressional aide, lobbyist, and later as a political appointee in the George W. Bush administration. A Republican, he served as Chief of Staff of the United States General Services Administration (GSA). He is a figure in the Jack Abramoff lobbying and corruption scandal, having worked with the lobbyist on the Mississippi Band of Choctaw account. After serving with Abramoff as a lobbyist, in 1997 Safavian co-founded lobbying firm Janus-Merritt Strategies with Republican activist Grover Norquist.

Ella M. Bully-Cummings was the chief of police of the City of Detroit from 2003 to 2008.

A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and U.S. Attorney probe of trading in the shares of ImClone Systems resulted in a widely publicized criminal case, which resulted in prison terms for businesswoman and television personality Martha Stewart, ImClone CEO Samuel D. Waksal and Stewart's broker at Merrill Lynch, Peter Bacanovic.

<i>The First 48</i> American TV series

The First 48 is an American documentary/news magazine television series on A&E filmed in various cities in the United States, offering an insider's look at the real-life world of homicide investigators. While the series often follows the investigations to their end, it usually focuses on their first 48 hours, hence the title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Sapiano</span>

Edward Sapiano was a Canadian defence lawyer, based in Toronto, Ontario, notable for his role in many high-profile criminal cases. He initiated Canada's largest criminal investigation of police, resulting in the arrest and prosecution of several Toronto police officers and was also involved in the so-called Toronto 18 terrorism trial. Edward Sapiano is also noted for demanding immediate DNA testing of his client shortly following the 1996 arrest of the suspected "North York serial rapist", leading to his client Jeremy Foster's full vindication, despite a false confession to the crime. In his quest to get illegal guns off the street, Sapiano also created the only lawyer-operated gun amnesty program available in North America, Piece Options. He is also known for starting a database of rulings and judgements to track alleged misconduct among Toronto-area officers which was then retrievable for cross-examinations in other cases by other lawyers. Edward Sapiano, after putting his practice on hold for two and a half years due to kidney failure, returned to court in 2017 for the Andrea White murder trial. Edward died on March 21, 2020 from complications of kidney disease and was cited to be the first lawyer in Canada to practise while undergoing 10 hours of daily dialysis. He was regularly featured by media outlets, including The Globe and Mail, CBC, and the New York Times commenting on criminal law issues.

Christine Rowland Beatty served as the Chief of Staff from 2002 to 2008 to Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kilpatrick and Beatty text-messaging scandal</span> Scandal

The Kilpatrick and Beatty text-messaging scandal was a political sex scandal in the United States emerging from a whistleblower lawsuit involving former Detroit Police chief Gary Brown, Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his former chief of staff and paramour Christine Beatty.

Judge Ronald Giles is a Judge of Michigan's 36th District Court in Detroit, Michigan.

Kandia Milton is a Detroit politician, who served briefly as acting mayor of Detroit. He served previously as the mayor's chief of staff.

Jim Schaefer is an American journalist based in Detroit, Michigan, where he works as an investigative journalist for the Detroit Free Press.

Sabri Benkahla is an American Muslim theologian and lecturer of Islamic Studies. He was convicted on February 5, 2007, of two counts before a grand jury. The first count was for obstruction of justice and the second for making a false statement to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). This conviction qualified for sentencing enhancement pursuant to 3A1.4, Application Note 2. The sentence he received was 10 years.

Perjury is the name of an offence under the Criminal Code. The offence of false evidence under the Penal Code is equivalent.

Edmund Jew is an American former politician and businessman, who was convicted of extortion, bribery, and perjury in 2008.