Embattled Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has accepted a plea deal requiring him to resign from office immediately, pay $1 million in restitution, surrender his law license and serve four months in jail related to a yearlong political and legal storm that has rocked the nation's 11th-largest city and has become the subject of national scrutiny.
Earlier this year, Kilpatrick and his chief of staff, Christine Beatty, were charged with multiple felonies, including perjury, conspiracy to obstruct justice, obstruction of justice and misconduct related to a police whistleblower case that cost the city $8.4 million.
Perjury charges filed against the second-term mayor stem from sworn testimonies given by Kilpatrick and Beatty last year during proceedings in the whistleblower case, in which they denied allegations of an extramarital affair between the two. (Details of the affair were later uncovered through text message records obtained and published by the Detroit Free Press.)
Today in a televised courtroom appearance, Kilpatrick admitted to giving a flawed testimony.
"I lied under oath ... I did so with the intent to mislead the court and jury, to impede and obstruct the disposition of justice," read the mayor, once considered a rising star in the Democratic Party, from a statement.
Under conditions of his plea deal, Kilpatrick agreed not to pursue public office for five years and will relinquish his state pension to the City of Detroit.
Detroit Free Press columnist Rochelle Riley discusses details of Kilpatrick's plea deal and what it means for City Hall.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. 9(MDAzMjM2NDYzMDEyMzc1Njk5NjAxNzY3OQ001))
