Sunday, November 1, 2009

King Kwame Just Does Not Get It! Hell is wrong with him?!

















October 29, 2009
Kilpatrick got cash, loans from business leaders
By JIM SCHAEFER AND M.L. ELRICKFREE PRESS STAFF WRITERSSeveral of Detroit’s highest-powered businessmen have been supporting disgraced former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his family with cash and loans since his felony plea in the text message scandal.
The revelations came today in Wayne County Circuit Court, where prosecutors sought to prove Kilpatrick in violation of his probation for not being forthright about his ability to pay $1 million in restitution to the city. Among them:
• Businessman and Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel (Matty) Moroun gave $50,000 in cash to Kilpatrick’s wife and kids, prosecutors said. Kilpatrick said the gift came while he was in jail.
• In February, Kilpatrick got a $240,000 loan from racing magnate Roger Penske, Compuware CEO Peter Karmanos, chemical magnate Jim Nicholson and Rock Financial founder Dan Gilbert. Kilpatrick has yet to pay back the loan.
Related story: Penske, Karmanos, Gilbert comment on Kilpatrick loan.
Kilpatrick took the stand under orders from Judge David Groner, who questioned him about his personal finances. Prosecutors also pelted Kilpatrick with queries about bank accounts belonging to him and his wife, Carlita. One defense seems to be that the money was in her name, not his.
He said he has been truthful throughout in disclosing what he is asked. At one point, though, he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when asked about his tax returns. He also said he did not know whether his wife had a job in the past year.
The hearing is set to resume Nov. 17.
Hearing leaves unanswered questionsKwame Kilpatrick’s court hearing adjourned today with unanswered questions:
Have any other rich and powerful people supported the mayor and his family with gifts and cash?
Who is the mysterious person prosecutors will put on the witness stand?
What will Kilpatrick say next?
Watch Kilpatrick hearing

No answers are likely to come until Nov. 17, when the hearing resumes. Prosecutors spent much of Thursday accusing Kilpatrick of misleading the court in his financial statements to date. .
Even Wayne Circuit Judge David Groner said in court he wasn’t aware that prosecutors had planned to have a witness take the stand Thursday and help them prove Kilpatrick has deceived the court about his financial situation. The hearing was adjourned before the witness, whom prosecutors did not identify, could take the stand.
After nearly four hours in which Kilpatrick’s personal finances were laid bare, Groner called a halt just moments after Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Athina Siringas disclosed that Ambassador Bridge owner and trucking magnate Manuel (Matty) Maroun gave $50,000 in cash to the Kilpatrick family after the then-mayor’s conviction last year.
That bombshell followed another: That Detroit-based businessmen Peter Karmanos, Dan Gilbert, Roger Penske and James Nicholson combined to give Kilpatrick a $240,000 loan – terms not disclosed – after Kilpatrick’s jail release in February.
Kilpatrick, who wore a muted charcoal jacket, black slacks, black-and-white tie and white shirt with French cuffs, kept his composure early on. But as the questioning progressed, the former mayor bristled at times, and tried to elaborate on several occasions before the judge or prosecutor cut him off.
When Siringas pressed Kilpatrick about the gift from Moroun, Kilpatrick said he believed the money came to his wife and children while he was in jail.
Siringas asked if others had given the family financial gifts.
"Because of the incredible work of your office, madame prosecutor, there are a lot of people who have continued to give help to my wife and my children," Kilpatrick said, adding, "I don’t know why people do what they do."
When Kilpatrick was mayor, he proposed buying the abandoned Michigan Central Depot from Moroun. Kilpatrick wanted to turn it into a state of the art police headquarters. The deal eventually fell apart.
Kilpatrick also sparred a bit with the judge.
When Groner asked him who is paying for his million-dollar rental home in tony Southlake, Texas, Kilpatrick responded:
"I guess it’s a lease home, but I’m not a party to that lease.”
“Someone else is paying the rent?" Groner asked.
"I assume that my wife is paying the rent."
"And why do you assume that?" Groner asked.
"Because I’m not."
By the end of the day Thursday, even the subject of when to resume the hearing grew testy.
Kilpatrick said he can’t make one date because he had to make a presentation in Chicago for his employer, Covisint, a subsidary of Compuware, the Detroit-based company led by Karmanos.
Groner asked: "Could you move it?"
"I’m trying to pay my restitution, your honor," Kilpatrick replied.
"Well, we’re trying to get your restitution," Groner retorted.
The revelation about the support Kilpatrick has received during the scandal drew scrutiny from prosecutors.
Kilpatrick and his wife deposited nearly $1.2 million into their bank accounts after Kilpatrick was sent to jail on Oct. 28, 2008 -- and have spent nearly all of it -- according to a prosecutors’ analysis.
The analysis was contained in a two-page document which was entered into evidence. It says the Kilpatricks had no money in their joint account and in Carlita Kilpatrick’s account on Oct. 15, 2008.
By Oct. 13 of this year, they had deposited $1,160,374 and written checks or withdrawn $1,150,498, leaving a balance of $21,761.
Moroun was the fifth powerful Detroit area businessman whose personal role in supporting the disgraced former mayor emerged for the first time at Thursday’s hearing.
The businessmen, according to one person familiar with the time preceding Kilpatrick’s guilty plea in September 2008, felt that Kilpatrick’s financial situation during the text message crisis was "a practical impediment" to his resignation.
Kilpatrick was concerned that he would be unemployed and broke with a family to support. "Other people were concerned, too," said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity. He said people wanted to help Kilpatrick resign to move the city past the crisis; seeing their contributions as something like a public service.
Defending himself in court, Kilpatrick said he has been truthful about the money in his control. If people gave gifts that went to his wife, who has her own bank account, that is not his business — or the court’s, for that matter.
Kilpatrick testified he has paid about $87,000 in restitution since his sentencing. He agreed to pay $1 million to the city of Detroit in his plea deal.
He said he still has student loans from his law school. And he said he owes his attorneys more than $600,000.
He said he has other liabilities, but Groner did not press him to list them.
Staff writer Joe Swickard contributed.
Contact JIM SCHAEFER : 313-223-4542 or jschaefer@freepress.com

October 29, 2009
BROWSER
Kilpatrick to Detroit: 'Let me go'
BY MARK W. SMITHFREE PRESS WEB EDITORFormer Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick talked with WXYZ-TV reporter Steve Wilson for several minutes as he walked through Detroit Metro Airport on Wednesday.
Kilpatrick is in town today to appear before Wayne County Circuit Judge David Groner after the former mayor failed to report detailed financial information in May.
Here are the highlights from the interview with WXYZ:
On allegations he has been slow to repay his restitution:
"I'm not denying any part of what I have a responsibility to do. I'm not missing any part of the rules, and I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing."
On his relationship with former top mayoral aide Christine Beatty:
"A woman that I respect and love very much and did a great job for the city of Detroit, our relationship went too far and that's what I did."
On his rise and fall from power in Detroit:
"I was anointed to do a job in the city of Detroit, and my gift and my anointing took me to a place that my character couldn't keep."
On the possibility of more criminal charges:
"I was thrown in jail for cheating on my wife and lying about it, so you never know."
On how Detroit shaped him:
"I was born and raised here. This city gave me a sense of fight, a sense of determination and the spiritual connection that I have."
On his advice for Detroit:
"The city, in order for it to move on, you're going to have to let me go. Start allowing yourselves to love one another, so you can continue to move forward."Contact MARK W. SMITH: msmith@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @markdubya or follow a feed of blog updates at @browserblog.

October 30, 2009
4 with a stake in the city gave Kilpatrick $240,000
Extra $50,000 went to ex-mayor's family
BY JOHN GALLAGHER, JENNIFER DIXON and JOE SWICKARDFREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
Editor's note: In the print version of this story the wrong photo identified James Nicholson. The correct photo is below.The four businessmen who loaned Kwame Kilpatrick $240,000 have strong ties to the former Detroit mayor and efforts to redevelop downtown.
They are:
Peter Karmanos Jr., co-founder and chairman of Compuware Corp.
Karmanos remained a strong Kilpatrick supporter during the text message scandal, suggesting midway through that Kilpatrick was "the best we've got" and should stay in office. He gave Kilpatrick a job with his organization once the ex-mayor left jail.Karmanos said in a statement Thursday that he and "other concerned citizens" loaned Kilpatrick the money last year "so that we could encourage him to resign. We were concerned about the city, and we wanted to help care for his family until he could get back on his feet."
Roger Penske, billionaire businessman and racing legend.
He headed the city's 2006 Super Bowl XL Host Committee, then took over as chairman of the Downtown Detroit Partnership, a civic group that created Clean Downtown.Penske's statement: "Together with several other business leaders, I made a personal loan to former Mayor Kilpatrick last year in response to his concern for the welfare of his family following the disclosures which led to his resignation. To date, the full amount of the loan remains outstanding."
Dan Gilbert, founder and chairman of Quicken Loans.
Gilbert agreed to move his company's headquarters downtown in 2007 with generous incentives from the city. The move has been delayed, and Gilbert is to lease space in Compuware's downtown headquarters rather than build his own headquarters for now.Gilbert's statement:"Together, with several other business leaders, I made a personal loan to former Mayor Kilpatrick. We were concerned about the city's inability to move forward due to the situation and circumstances that had surrounded former Mayor Kilpatrick and his administration. In our view, it was important for the city, and the entire region, that the mayor leave office as soon as was practical. The belief was that the mayor would make the decision to leave office sooner knowing that a loan would be made available to him for the welfare of his family at some time in the near future."
James Nicholson, head of Detroit-based PVS Chemicals
Nicholson cosigned a letter to fellow executives in 2005, urging them to contribute to Kilpatrick's re-election campaign. The letter is credited with helping Kilpatrick pull off a close win in his race for a second term. Nicholson then cochaired Kilpatrick's second-term transition team. He did not return a call for comment.
Manuel (Matty) Maroun
A fifth well-known businessman's name came up Thursday when Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Athina Siringas asked Kilpatrick whether Manuel (Matty) Moroun gave his wife and children checks totaling $50,000.
Kilpatrick said he believed Moroun, whose Warren-based empire includes the Ambassador Bridge, trucking companies and real estate holdings, gave his wife and children money while he was in jail, but he said he didn't know how much.
Phil Frame, a spokesman for Moroun, said Moroun gave the three children and Kilpatrick's wife separate checks totaling $50,000, along with a letter in which he said: "My heartstrings are tugged when I think of the storm that your family has weathered, and my heart is heavy that your children and you have been harmed while doing everything possible to strengthen your family."
http://www.freep.com/article/20091030/NEWS01/910300334/1003/news01/4-with-a-stake-in-the-city-gave-Kilpatrick-240000

October 31, 2009
Ex-mayor's saga is drama we don't need
BY ROCHELLE RILEYFREE PRESS COLUMNISTUnfortunately, Detroit got caught up in the soaps again Thursday -- "All My Children" and "The Days of Kwame's Lives."Yes, lives -- because there are two Kwame Kilpatricks:One professed his love for his wife and family and apologized to his city last year in a televised moment that scored higher than most Super Bowls.The other came to town Thursday, claimed he didn't know who was paying the rent on his family's luxury home in Texas and exposed four prominent businessmen who gave him money to speed his way out of town.His plea to Detroit when he arrived Thursday was: "Let me go."Our response: "Wish we could."
Three strikesKilpatrick spent the afternoon in Judge David Groner's court asking or avoiding questions, even some from the judge himself. At day's end, Groner told him to report back Nov. 17 for further questioning.Why?It isn't necessary.Strike One: The Free Press reported that Kilpatrick and his wife, Carlita, deposited nearly $1.2 million into their bank accounts after Kilpatrick went to jail last Oct. 28. Let's see, that would be the million he owed the city and $200,000 for the family to live on until he got out of jail and got a job. Despite a court order requiring him to reimburse the city $6,000 a month, the former mayor initially claimed he could afford to pay only $6 a month, and then only $3,000 a month. Oh, and his family spent most of that $1.2 million, according to prosecution analyses.Strike Two: Despite Groner ordering Kilpatrick to outline his wife's finances, where all the money apparently was kept, Kilpatrick declined, saying he didn't think he had to.Strike Three: The former mayor just revealed that four prominent businessmen had given him a $240,000 "loan" (And yes, I put loan in quotation marks for obvious reasons.) and the owner of the Ambassador Bridge had given his family $50,000 just because.I know this isn't baseball, but why would Groner need to hear more? This soap opera doesn't need another episode.
Do the city a favorDetroit is facing a major election next week and the embracing of new leadership. Business interests in the city are trying to convince other businesses to move here.Enough. We don't need the circus to come back to town.If the judge wants to do Detroit a favor, he can give the ex-mayor until Nov. 17 to pay Detroit all he owes and head back to Texas for good.Then we can let him go.Or he can find him in contempt of court and in violation of his plea agreement.Then we can let him go. To jail.Contact ROCHELLE RILEY: rriley99@freepress.com
http://www.freep.com/article/20091031/COL10/910310368/1003/news01/Ex-mayors-saga-is-drama-we-dont-need
TO ALL THE IDIOTS WHO LENT THIS MORON MONEY - GOOD LUCK GETTING YOUR MONEY BACK!

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