DETROIT (WWJ) – A federal judge has denied a request from former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick to be released from court supervision, citing in part his “lavish lifestyle.”
Late last year Kilpatrick asked Judge Nancy Edmunds to be released from supervision in order to make it easier for him to travel and work as a pastor.
Kilpatrick, who in 2013 was sentenced to 28 years in prison on numerous charges including racketeering and wire fraud, was released from prison after he was granted clemency by former President Donald Trump in 2021.
He became eligible to be released from supervision after one year. But in an opinion filed on Thursday, Edmunds denied his request.
“Defendant committed very serious crimes, and he still owes a significant amount of restitution,” Edmunds wrote, noting he’s still obligated to pay more than $192,000 to the IRS.
The judge wrote Kilpatrick “has a history of spending his money on a lavish lifestyle rather than paying off his obligations.”
Kilpatrick has only made a little over $5,000 in payments towards his restitution obligation, according to Edmunds, but, as recently as 2022, he and his wife “sought to raise $800,000 to purchase a residence in a gated, luxury community in Orlando, Florida.”
“While that effort was later canceled, it demonstrates a desire to resume his former lifestyle, rather than a focus on repaying the debts he owes,” the opinion reads.
Edmunds said by continuing Kilpatrick’s supervised release, the Court will ensure that he will remain under supervision during continuing efforts to collect the restitution owed in the case.
In a separate order, the judge also denied a request from Kilpatrick's friend Bobby Ferguson, who also asked to be released from supervision.
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