Former Detroit Mayor's Release From Prison Gets Mixed Reactions
DETROIT, MI — Reactions to President Donald Trump's decision to commute the sentence of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick Wednesday mirrored the former mayor's reputation: a mixed bag.
Some people spoke highly of the move, citing Kilpatrick's children. Others said he was an unrepentant criminal.
"Kwame Kilpatrick is a person of great talent who still has much to contribute," Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said in a statement. "I know how close he is to his three sons and I could not be happier for them being together again. This is a decision President Trump got right."
Kwame Kilpatrick is a person of great talent who still has much to contribute. I know how close he is to his three sons and I could not be happier for them being together again. This is a decision President Trump got right.
— Mayor Mike Duggan (@MayorMikeDuggan) January 20, 2021
Kilpatrick, 50, served more than seven years of a 28-year prison sentence for corruption crimes before having his sentence commuted Wednesday by Trump and he was released from a minimum-security prison in Oakdale, Louisiana.
In a statement, the White House said the commutation was strongly recommended by prominent members of the Detroit community, Alveda King, Alice Johnson, Diamond and Silk, Pastor Paula White, Peter Karmanos, Representative Sherry Gay-Dagnogo of the Michigan House of Representatives, Representative Karen Whitsett of the Michigan House of Representatives and more than 30 faith leaders.
During his incarceration, Kilpatrick taught public speaking classes and led Bible Study groups with inmates, according to the statement.
The announcement came in a flurry of clemency action in the final hours of Trump's White House term that benefited more than 140 people, including rappers, former members of Congress and other Trump allies.
Kilpatrick's sentence was reduced but his 24 felony convictions still stand. He is still on the hook for $195,000 owed to the Internal Revenue Service and $1.5 million to Detroit, according to The Associated Press.
Read More: Coalition Seeks Early Prison Release For Former Detroit Mayor
There had speculation previously that Trump would pardon Kilpatrick when he was pardoning a slew of former officials around the country. However, those rumors never resolved, in part due to political reasons, the Detroit Free Press reported previously.
In June, additional speculation surfaced after reports that Kilpatrick was set to be released from prison due to concerns surrounding the safety of inmates amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Read More: Former Detroit Mayor Kilpatrick Could See Early Prison Release
In 2013, Kilpatrick was convicted of racketeering conspiracy, fraud, extortion and tax crimes. The government called it the "Kilpatrick enterprise," a scheme to shake down contractors and reward allies, The Associated Press reported.
Detroit U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider, a Trump appointee, blasted the decision to release the former mayor, calling him a "notorious and unrepentant criminal," according to The Associated Press.
Adolph Mongo, a strategist who worked on Kilpatrick's 2005 reelection campaign, said he hoped for Kilpatrick's release and called his prison sentence "a raw deal," saying it's an example of how Blacks receive unequal treatment.
"Trump is out of his mind, but he's probably the only one who would do it," Mongo told The Associated Press. "Ten years — that might have been enough but 28 years is ridiculous."
Reporting and writing from The Associated Press was included in this report.
This article originally appeared on the Detroit Patch
