Former Detroit Mayoral Aide Pleads Guilty

'I Lied Under Oath', Beatty Says

WDIV Channel 4 News:

Christine Beatty is headed to jail.

The former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick’s chief of staff has reached a plea deal with prosecutors. She pleaded guilty to two felony counts of obstruction of justice.

Beatty agreed to five years of probation and will serve 120 days in Wayne County Jail. She will pay $100,000 in restitution to the city of Detroit, which will be paid for during the five years of probation.

She will have until Jan. 5 to begin serving her time.

She will not be allowed to travel outside of Wayne, Macomb or Oakland counties during that time.

An emotional Beatty called a news conference Monday afternoon at her lawyers' office.

Beatty said while weighting her choices, she decided not to go to trial and take the chance of being away from her daughters longer than necessary. [...]

"We are very happy as to how this was settled. We are ready to move on as a city, as a region, as a state," Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said. "Come Jan. 5, when she is sentenced, we can truly move on and close the chapter on this."

Beatty, who has two young daughters was facing seven felony charges, had previously rejected a deal from Worthy in September that included a 150-day jail sentence.

Kilpatrick and Beatty were charged in March with perjury, misconduct and obstruction of justice. They're accused of lying under oath about an affair and their roles in the firing of three police officers.

Kilpatrick accepted a plea deal and began a 120-day jail sentence in October. His deal also called for him to resign as mayor, spend five years on probation, and pay $1 million to the city and surrender his law license.

Beatty Pleads Guilty

WWJ Newsradio 950:

A text-messaging sex scandal that gripped Detroit since January ended Monday when the last main figure, ex-mayoral aide Christine Beatty, pleaded guilty to two felonies and agreed to a 120-day jail sentence.

"I lied under oath,'' a tearful Beatty told Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Tim Kenny, the same words her former boss, ex-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, uttered in a courtroom during his own guilty plea in September.

Beatty offered the pleas to a pair of obstruction of justice charges, and under a deal with prosecutors, on Jan. 5 will be sentenced to serve four months in jail and five years of probation and pay $100,000 in restitution to the city. [...]

Beatty was charged with perjury, misconduct and obstruction of justice. She and Kilpatrick were accused of lying during a whistle-blowers' trial about being romantically involved.

They also denied their roles in the firing of deputy police chief Gary Brown, but text messages between the two contradicted their statements.

Related WWJ articles.

Related NBF post.