In 2001, at 31, Kwame M. Kilpatrick, 6-foot-4 and a former college football player, beat an opponent twice his age for mayor of Detroit, a job he once said he had dreamed of since he was a child.
He was dubbed the hip-hop mayor, in part for his age, his flashy suits, and the diamond stud in his ear.
Though he swiftly drew controversy, Detroiters looked past talk of partying with exotic dancers, cronyism and a red Lincoln Navigator leased for his family with taxpayers' money. In 2005, voters re-elected Mr. Kilpatrick, who had been among the youngest mayors to run a major American city and whose draw, in part, was his sway over young voters.
In January 2008, a political crisis arose over the publication of racy text messages from the Mayor to a close female advisor, suggesting they had carried on a romantic affair. The messages also contradicted testimony that Mr. Kilpatrick and his advisor gave under oath last year during a civil trial in which several former police officers accused Mr. Kilpatrick of forcing them out of jobs, in part because their investigations might have uncovered his romance. In addition, documents revealed that Mr. Kilpatrick settled the case (and a second, similar lawsuit) for $8.4 million.
Mr. Kilpatrick, who is married and has three sons, has apologized to his wife, Carlita, and to the city, but has vowed, repeatedly, to stay in office. He has defiantly accused the news media of creating his woes, and blamed racism for his troubles.
On March 18, 2008, the City Council voted to ask Mr. Kilpatrick to step down, echoing similar calls from the local media and many prominent citizens. On March 23, 2008 Mr. Kilpatrick was charged by the Wayne County prosecutor with misconduct in office, obstruction of justice, conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice and perjury, felonies that could end his political career and send him to prison for as long as 80 years.
--March 24, 2008
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