Kilpatrick makes appearances in federal and circuit court - Fox 2 News Headlines

Wednesday was a busy day for Kwame Kilpatrick.  He had to make appearances in two separate courtrooms.  The former mayor was back in Wayne County Circuit Court after starting the day in federal court for his ongoing corruption trial.

Kilpatrick must be starting to feel a little deja vu.  Another day, another text message that prosecutors say show that he and pal Bobby Ferguson were running a racket out of City Hall.

Federal agent Carol Paszkiewicz testified that several text messages show Kilpatrick and Ferguson conspiring to get Ferguson in on lucrative city water contracts.

In one of the text message exchanges, they discuss an assisted housing development.

Kilpatrick: I'll call you later on Graimark.  I know you met today.  It's (expletive) up, but I'm with George now.  I'll explain later.

Ferguson: I met with them.  I'm cool.  You know I don't cry for (expletive) that don't help both of us.  I didn't push the % issue, I turned in budget # for sitework, what we need to talk about is that (expletive) Soave.

Kilpatrick attorney Jim Thomas said the government provided a bias view of what the messages were really saying.  He said Ferguson and the mayor were trying to revive the housing project.

From federal court, Kilpatrick went to Circuit Court returning to the basement courtroom where he had one of the most unpleasant experiences of his life.  He arrived in good spirits seemingly oblivious to the fact that the last time he was in this courtroom he was sentenced to prison and led away in handcuffs.

This time was a lot easier.  Judge David Groner merely set a date for a hearing on what happened to the proceeds from the former mayor's memoirs.  All sides agreed Kilpatrick will return on March 12 for a hearing after his federal case concludes.

"His position is to pay off his restitution whether it's from a book, from employment, what have you.  His objective is to pay off the restitution.  What the issue here is, is the constitutionality of the statue that says any proceeds that he earns, whether it's from a book or any other property for that matter, will go to the crime victims' fund," said Kilpatrick Daniel Hajji.

He also said Michigan's Son of Sam law, which prevents criminals from profiting from their misdeeds, is unconstitutional, but he declined to say whether he would support a Sister of Kwame Kilpatrick law.  That kind of legislation might allow the mayor to keep everything the book makes after his restitution is paid in full.

Question and Answer

HUEL PERKINS: What about all those book signings (Kilpatrick) did in Detroit, where is the money from that?

ELRICK: Mr. Hajji says the former mayor has not gotten a penny from all those signings.  I personally have seen him and his supporters carrying boxes of books to churches to sign them.  Presumably he's not giving them away.  In fact, people came expecting to pay for them.  But, Mr. Hajji, if we take him at his word, says that not a cent of that has gone to the former mayor and if we want to get answers to that we need to ask the publisher.

PERKINS: Didn't Judge Groner discover that there was some sort of document that diverted the profits to Kilpatrick's sister Ayanna?

ELRICK: The prosecutor and Judge Groner in court determined that this money was supposed to be diverted to Ayanna Kilpatrick before it got to the Taxpayers for Restitution.  They put a stop to that saying that money should go into escrow, but in escrow, so far, it's been no go.  Not a cent.