Detroit mayor jailed after trip to Canada

DETROIT – Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was jailed Thursday for a bond violation in his perjury case, his pleas for leniency rejected by a judge who made it clear the mayor would get no special treatment.

Kilpatrick, charged with perjury and other felonies over his testimony in a civil trial, apologized and acknowledged that he made a mistake when he visited Windsor, Ontario, minutes away from Detroit, for city business last month. But District Judge Ronald Giles was not moved, saying he needed to treat the mayor like any other defendant.

“What matters to me … is how the court overall is perceived and how if it was not Kwame Kilpatrick sitting in that seat, if it was John Six-Pack sitting in that seat, what would I do? And that answer is simple,” Giles said.

It was a stunning outcome, exceeding even what prosecutors had sought. And it came two days after Kilpatrick’s mother, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, survived a Democratic primary election that was dominated by her son’s legal woes.

Kilpatrick was photographed Thursday and given a green jumpsuit like ones worn by other inmates. He will be treated like any other prisoner, “no better, no worse,” Sheriff Warren Evans said.

Kilpatrick and former top aide Christine Beatty are charged with perjury, misconduct and obstruction of justice, all tied to their testimony in a civil trial last year. At the heart of the case: steamy text messages contradicting their claim that they didn’t have a romantic relationship.