“Christine Beatty, once an influential figure at Detroit City Hall, waved goodbye to loved ones as she was ushered from a courtroom to begin a 120-day jail stay for obstruction of justice. She will serve her term in Wayne County jail, where Kilpatrick has been serving an identical sentence since late October. Beatty and Kilpatrick, both 38, were charged with lying about their affair under oath during a 2007 civil trial on claims that two police officers were punished for investigating alleged wrongdoing in the mayor’s inner circle.” [Link]

Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick refused to step down from the city’s top job today and vowed to fight a string of charges he and his former chief staff Christine Beatty were facing in connection with 12 felonies, including perjury, obstruction of justice and misconduct in office. “I’m deeply disappointed in the prosecutor’s decision; I can’t say I’m surprised, however,” Kilpatrick told a press conference as he read from a prepared text. “This has been a very flawed process from the very beginning. However at the same time I recognize this is merely the first step in a process that I believe in that is grounded in the presumption of innocence that is guaranteed to each American citizen by the Constitution of these United States. I look forward to complete exoneration once all the facts surrounding this matter have been brought forth.” [Link]