Former Mayor Convicted Of Corruption Charges
He’s Convicted of Racketeering, Fraud, Extortion,
And Is Ordered to Prison Pending His Sentencing

 

By CALVIN S. SCRIBNER
Special to the Chronicle

 

DETROIT—A former mayor, who has already served jail time, as well as a prison sentence for other convictions, was convicted on Monday on a raft of federal charges, including racketeering, fraud and extortion.
Monday’s conviction capped a historic five-month public corruption trial against former Mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick and two co-defendants.
One of those co-defendants was the former mayor’s father.
Former Kwame M. Kilpatrick was found guilty of 24 of the 30 charges against him, including the most serious charges of racketeering and extortion, each of which carry maximum sentences of 20 years.
At an afternoon bond hearing, Mr. Kilpatrick and Bobby W. Ferguson, a city contractor, appeared stunned after being ordered to prison pending sentencing.
Federal District Judge Nancy G. Edmunds cited the possible risk of fleeing and danger to the community.
No sentencing date was set.
Lawyers for Mr. Kilpatrick, 40, said they were considering an appeal and a reduction of the ex-mayor’s presentencing time.
The verdicts brought to a close a trial in which prosecutors laid out a complex case against Mr. Kilpatrick and his co-defendants.
The former mayor’s co-defendants were his father, Bernard Kilpatrick, and Mr. Ferguson.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that the former mayor and his co-defendants had used the mayor’s office to enrich themselves for years through shakedowns, kickbacks and bid-rigging schemes.
Mr. Ferguson, the ex-mayor’s friend and construction contractor, was found guilty of nine of 11 counts, including racketeering.
Bernard Kilpatrick was found guilty of filing a false tax return, a crime punishable by up to three years in prison.
The jury did not reach a verdict on racketeering in the case against the former mayor’s father.
The indictment contained 45 charges.
As verdicts were read, former Mayor Kilpatrick was, by turns, dismayed and stoic, shaking his head and muttering, and glancing at his lawyer.
Most of the jurors looked away from the defendants.
All but one member of the jury panel returned to the courtroom after the verdict to speak with reporters about their two-week deliberations, described as respectful but sometimes contentious.
“There was no one piece of evidence that sealed the deal,” said one juror, who, like the members, declined to be quoted by name.
“We weighed all the evidence, as a whole,” one of them said.
Another juror said she had voted for Mr. Kilpatrick twice in elections.
“I was disappointed having done that,” she said. “Sitting on this trial for the last six months, I really, really saw a lot that turned my stomach.”
In an indictment filed in 2010, the defendants were charged with operating a criminal enterprise out of the mayor’s office.
In a case that featured about 80 witnesses, the prosecution accused the former mayor of promulgating fear among contractors to steer $84 million in work to Mr. Ferguson, who would share proceeds with him.
Prosecutors also said he illegally used nonprofit funds and state grants for personal expenses.
In his closing argument, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Bullott had said the defendants’ enrichment formula was simple: “No deal without me.”
James C. Thomas, Mr. Kilpatrick’s lawyer, had argued that the federal case was founded on weak circumstantial evidence and lying witnesses.
U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade, of the Eastern Judicial District of Michigan, said the case was about the future.
“This verdict has sent a powerful message that corruption will not be tolerated in this community,” she said in a news conference.
“Candidates should seek office to make a difference, not to make money for themselves,” the federal prosecutor stated.
“It is time for all of us to move forward with a renewed commitment to transparency and high ethical standards in our city government,” Mayor Dave Bing said in a prepared statement.
A resident of Detroit, Joan Manchester, 56, said she was happy the trial was over.
“Maybe we can go on and do something good in this city, now,” she commented during a meal in a nearby restaurant.
“That was a mess, right there,” she continued, “but you can’t just take office and do what you want.”
The convictions culminate a long fall for Mr. Kilpatrick, who had been elected mayor at 31, the youngest person to hold that position.
He had been viewed by many as a future star in the Democratic Party, but his tenure, from 2002 to 2008, was marked by scandal and queries into possible misuse of city finances.
In 2008, text messages were discovered by The Detroit Free Press that revealed an affair with his chief of staff.
Mr. Kilpatrick resigned after being charged with perjury and obstruction of justice.
After his conviction, he spent some time in jail, and then was convicted on and served prison time for violations of parole charges.
“I’m relieved that the basic premise that public service is an honorable profession that needs to be held to the highest standards has been affirmed,” said Sheila Cockrel, who served on Detroit’s City Council from 1994 until 2009.
“But there’s a sense of sadness that this once bright son of Detroit, used all that talent to run a criminal enterprise.”
“It’s just a tragedy,” she added, “a Detroit tragedy.”