Detroit mayor resigns in plea deal
Blake Knoblock
Issue date: 9/11/08 Section: Beyond
Kwame Kilpatrick, mayor of Detroit, resigned his position on Sept. 4 and will step down as mayor of America's 11th largest city on Sept. 18.
The one-sentence resignation letter marks the end of a seven-year career mixed with both public affection and political deceit.
Loved for his empathetic demeanor and once seen as the leader of a renaissance, Kilpatrick persuaded big businesses to invest in Detroit. At the same time, he swore under oath he was not having an affair with his chief of staff, although suggestive messages between the two were subsequently discovered. Kilpatrick also tangled with the law after allegedly violating probation and assaulting an investigator, and an arrest in August. His reputation was further tainted by unproven allegations of a wild house party involving drugs and strippers.
His resignation culminates a seven-month legal escapade said to have generated enormously negative publicity for an already-suffering city and state.
Kilpatrick accepted a plea deal and will spend four months in prison. Additionally, he will pay $1 million in restitution over a five-year probationary period.
The one-sentence resignation letter marks the end of a seven-year career mixed with both public affection and political deceit.
Loved for his empathetic demeanor and once seen as the leader of a renaissance, Kilpatrick persuaded big businesses to invest in Detroit. At the same time, he swore under oath he was not having an affair with his chief of staff, although suggestive messages between the two were subsequently discovered. Kilpatrick also tangled with the law after allegedly violating probation and assaulting an investigator, and an arrest in August. His reputation was further tainted by unproven allegations of a wild house party involving drugs and strippers.
His resignation culminates a seven-month legal escapade said to have generated enormously negative publicity for an already-suffering city and state.
Kilpatrick accepted a plea deal and will spend four months in prison. Additionally, he will pay $1 million in restitution over a five-year probationary period.
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