Detroit thread. Post Kwame, Monica, and $1 houses here.

[Savonarola]

Yet another Travel with Charlie:

Students wait and worry at bus stops
Charlie LeDuff / The Detroit News
Detroit

Stand at Detroit's most notorious bus stop at the northeastern intersection of the Southfield Freeway and Warren. This is the corner where seven children waiting for a bus were shot in an after-school rampage. There was a school beef on Monday, the kids told investigators. Tuesday was the shooting. School starts in 10 days and still no one has been charged.

Talk to the kids on this corner. They'll tell you that standing at the bus stop can be tantamount to taking your life in your hands.

"I'm scared a lot of the time," said Mikhale Stinson, 17, who was waiting on the No. 46 with her sister, Arkeshia Crippens, 15. It was only 4 o'clock. The sun was high. Still, the girls were keeping a wary eye. "The only thing more dangerous than the bus after school is waiting for the bus after school. The longer you're standing still is the better chance that something bad is going to happen to you."

And now comes the news that Mayor Dave Bing may stop bus service on Sundays and after 6 p.m. on Saturdays while laying off 113 drivers.

Obviously, it is a hardship for those who need to get to work on the weekends but cannot afford a car. It means fewer people going to church, the grocery store and the cemetery to visit dear old dad. No one likes to take the bus. People take the bus because they need to take the bus.

But fewer drivers also means fewer buses during the weekdays, riders suspect, which translates into longer waits, which means kids standing around dangerous corners.

Look down at Stinson's feet, this is what you'll see at the de facto public school bus stop: an empty liquor bottle, a soiled condom, a mound of cigarette butts, exposed power lines where a street lamp once stood.

Look north: abandoned houses and small factories, roaming dogs, hard looking young men with empty eyes and nothing to do in the middle of a work day.

Look at it and think about what it takes to succeed in a Detroit school and suddenly a 25 percent graduation rate starts to look pretty good. Things are so bad that one member of the Detroit Public School Board told me she wouldn't send her dog to a high school in the city.

To make things worse, the schools are consolidating this year, meaning rival gangs are being forced to mix. John Roach, the spokesman for the Detroit Police Department, says the first two weeks of school are usually the most violent. Police are trying to prevent it from getting worse this year. But according to Roach, the federal grant money that allowed police to follow buses along the most troublesome lines ran out.

This development comes after the June 30 shooting, in which at least five summer school students attending Cody High -- and seven total -- were shot at this bus stop.

Robert Bobb, the emergency financial manager for the public schools, has launched a half-million dollar campaign to slow the exodus of Detroit children to alternative schools. Good luck.

Like so many kids I met riding the 46 line Wednesday, Mikhale and Arkeshia don't even attend nearby Cody High. Instead, they attend classes in Inkster, a suburban school district that provides private buses for Detroit children.

"Our mom won't let us go to Cody," Arkeshia said. "It's in the 'hood, it's too much drama, it's too dangerous and they don't even have enough books."

How do you hang a future on that? Mikahle said she would like to go to college to become a veterinarian. Arkeshia wants to study law.

"After college I don't think I'll come back to Detroit because it'll all be the same," Mikhale said.

She offered this devastating appraisal of young life in an old city. "You can't make your dreams in Detroit."

The No. 46 arrived -- on time.

"It gets worse when school gets back in and these kids are on the bus," said Anthony Harmon, 41, on his way to work as a cook in Dearborn. "You don't dare say anything to those teenagers. Not if you want to make it home to see your own."

Inkster High was the alma mater of the Marvelettes.  Barry Gordy discovered them at Inkster High talent show.   

Inkster is a historically black suburb near Dearborn.  Henry Ford built a plant there in the 30's, but he was convinced that the Jews would cheat the black workers out of their wages that he paid the workers only a quarter wage and gave the remaining 3/4ths to civic improvement.  (Needless to say, this was before the UAW.) 

[Savonarola]

From the FREEP:

Car insurance rate setting hits Detroiters unfairly
JEFF GERRITT

Jacked up insurance rates are driving people out of Detroit and other Michigan cities, and forcing tens of thousands of motorists to commit fraud or roll without coverage. Residents of the nation's poorest big city pay the highest average auto insurance premiums. Shelling out $4,000 a year, or more, is not uncommon in Detroit, while up to half of its motorists drive uninsured.

It's partly because of so-called territorial ratings, which allow insurance companies to base rates partly on where drivers live. It's not red-lining, nor is it illegal. Regardless of their driving records, motorists with Detroit ZIP codes get charged more, insurance companies argue, because they live in riskier neighborhoods.

Aren't poor schools, unreliable buses and Comcast Cable punishment enough for those of us who live here?

So far, politicians have opted for easy answers to the urban insurance crisis, like proposing to ban insurance companies from using credit histories. It's a good idea, but it will do little, if anything, to close the gap between city and suburban rates. Many urban residents also benefit from good-credit discounts.

The problem goes beyond Detroit, Flint, Benton Harbor and other urban centers. Statewide, 17% of all motorists drive uninsured, up from 11% in 1989, says the Insurance Research Council. Michigan's economic slump will make matters even worse. Nationally, a percentage-point jump in the jobless rate corresponds to a similar increase in the rate of uninsured drivers.

Unable to pay for coverage, some drivers buy fake insurance certificates for $50 or $60. Others get a bogus suburban address in a lower-risk ZIP code.

A sales rep in Warren, when I leased a new car eight years ago, advised me to get a phony address outside Detroit and then forward my mail to my real residence in Detroit. "All my Detroit customers do it," he told me.



Some drivers purchase insurance on monthly payments and then let the coverage lapse after the first month.

Southeast Michigan's lousy public transportation system leaves low-income workers with little choice. Tens of thousands of Detroiters like Sylvester Long end up driving uninsured.

Long, 50, earns $9 an hour, or about $270 a week, working four days a week, stripping and waxing floors. Even with a good driving record, Long had to pay nearly $200 a month to insure his 1995 Pontiac minivan. He couldn't continue to cough up almost a week's pay every month for auto insurance -- so he drove without it.

It caught up to him last month. Coming home from a neighborhood skating rink on a Sunday night, Long was rear-ended while he waited at a red light at Hayes and Kelly on Detroit's east side. He was treated for hip and back injuries at St. John Hospital and missed three weeks of work.

With his vehicle totaled, Long now gets to work by bus, riding 90 minutes each way from his home in northeast Detroit to his job in the New Center area. If the city cuts Sunday service, he'll lose a ride to work. Long told me he's in continual pain but can't get adequate medical care because he didn't have auto or health insurance. "The insurance rates are ridiculous," he told me last week. "They have to get the rates down to, say, $100 a month for people to afford it."

This year, I cut my auto insurance rates almost in half by shopping around, as the Insurance Institute of Michigan recommends. Still, rates will remain out of reach for many other city residents, even with the best deal. Reducing theft, arson and fraud are long-term solutions, but people need relief now.

Uninsured drivers put themselves at great risk and can even reduce what insured drivers collect in accidents. Government requires people to buy insurance. It should also help control the costs. The insurance industry has proposed cuts in mandated coverage or medical benefits, but Michiganders appear unwilling to accept changes to Michigan's unlimited no-fault system.

It's time to refuel the debate on territorial ratings. Setting rates by ZIP codes leads to some real absurdities, such as big differences in premiums for drivers living one block south of 8 Mile in Detroit and one block north in Ferndale.


Michigan can't fix a system that forces many city dwellers to drive uninsured without eliminating or restricting how insurance companies use addresses to set rates. Until then, drivers like Long will pay an unfair penalty for living in the D.

JEFF GERRITT is a Free Press editorial writer. Contact him at [email protected] or 313-222-6585.

It's not absurd at all to charge residents of Ferndale less than those of Detroit immediately south of Ferndale.  The block south of Ferndale is the home of Detroit's most notorious criminals; the city council.

This editorial illustrates one of many (many, many) problems with living in the city; it's more expensive than the suburbs.  Property taxes are higher, they have an income tax, and insurance rates are higher.

[Savonarola]

More from everybody's favorite school system:

Bobb wants mayor to run Detroit schools
Manager says he'll sue board over hiring of superintendent
Marisa Schultz and Mark Hicks / The Detroit News

Detroit -- Detroit Public Schools emergency financial manager Robert Bobb said Monday he hopes the mayor takes control of the struggling district, stripping the elected board of its powers after his one-year appointment ends.

"I'm hoping that the mayor takes the helm and takes control over these schools," Bobb said in an interview with The Detroit News.

"The governance structure in Detroit is going to have to change one way or another, whether they are under control of the mayor, under control of the state or under control of the courts. The current government structure is not working here."

Further expressing his dissatisfaction with the board, Bobb said he plans to sue members this week for promoting Teresa Gueyser from acting to general superintendent Aug. 13 without his approval or a national search.

"They violated my order and they've been given an opportunity to cure it, and they chose to thumb their noses at it," Bobb said.

Board members balked at Bobb's comments.

Marie Thornton said removing the board could "reopen wounds" and reignite fears over the previous state takeover, from 2000-04. She defended Gueyser's promotion and said Bobb's proposed legal action is another example of a "communication breakdown" between the board and Bobb.

"As long as both parties don't come to the table, there's a problem," she said. "Some of it needs to be decided in court -- his role, our role. ... But it's supposed to be about the children. With fighting on both sides, the kids are losing."

In a wide-ranging interview with The News, discussing his first six months, Bobb said he will double his efforts in the final six months of his term to transform the district, which is plagued by a $259 million deficit and dwindling enrollment.

Key to his vision is achieving radical reforms in the teachers union contract that would challenge cherished provisions, such as seniority.

"It's the Holy Grail for the union," Bobb said. "For us, it is a monumental problem."

Great teachers with less than 10 years of experience are losing their jobs while some longtime, but ineffective, teachers are retained, he said. Principals need to be able to keep the best teachers, he said.

Using the teachers' contract in New York City as a model, Bobb wants to create a special "chancellor's district" for the lowest performing schools -- an estimated 50-54 schools out of the district's 172. The schools would operate under new rules: no seniority for teachers, extended school days and prescribed teaching techniques.

Performance-based bonuses would be instituted for schools that achieve goals. Everyone, including custodians and cafeteria workers, would be eligible, based on a formula.

Among other provisions Bobb and Chief Academic and Accountability Auditor Barbara Byrd-Bennett are seeking: peer review to weed out underperforming teachers, an extended school year and mandatory professional development.

Bobb is seeking $86.8 million in concessions from the district's 10 unions and 16 bargaining units, including $45 million from the Detroit Federation of Teachers. The teachers' contract expired June 30. Both sides agreed last week to a 60-day extension to ensure classes could start on time.

Keith Johnson, DFT's president, said he hopes a long-term agreement can be reached without major concessions or additional cuts. He said the $45 million figure could change, depending on changing enrollment figures and state aid. "We're not going to negotiate cost savings (district officials) don't need," he said.

Other issues Bobb addressed:

• He and Byrd are working to reduce class sizes in kindergarten through third grade and working out financial details to reduce class sizes for grades 4-8 and high school as soon as this fall. The plan is possible through federal stimulus dollars. In all, the district is going after about $800 million in federal funds.

• Bobb has completed all the legal work to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy to alleviate the district's deficit. The district has not yet filed because "we'll have to see how we get through the contract negotiations," Bobb said, adding that he intends to bargain in good faith. "We are working hard to squeeze every nickel and every penny we can."

Bobb is continuing to reduce costs with vendors, ranging from lawn service to natural gas.

"Many of our creditors are falling in line," he said. The deals so far would allow the district to trim $6 million, Bobb said.

In the midst of an enrollment campaign that will bring comedian Bill Cosby to Detroit, Bobb said he realizes he's asking parents to trust that his rapid reforms will make a difference.

Mayor Dave Bing, who has supported mayoral control of the schools, was unavailable for comment, said press secretary Edward L. Cardenas. Gov. Jennifer Granholm has said she supports mayoral control and legislation is pending in Lansing that would eliminate the school board by July 1 and give authority to a mayor-appointed chief executive officer.

"Give the Detroit school system a chance," Bobb said.

"New leadership is coming into these buildings. ... I am not living in Alice in Wonderland. If we don't get a good teacher contract, that's going to have a negative impact on parents."

I think the school board's days are numbered and they know it.  Acting up like this is their way to try to show they're still in control; but it's probably only going to hurry along their dissolution. 

[Savonarola]

To save the city, Bing says he will make cuts
Detroit mayor says he must slash city jobs, pay, services
BY SUZETTE HACKNEY
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing took a hard-line stance with the city's unions on Monday, saying that to keep the city financially afloat he will have to reduce its workforce by 10%, lower labor costs and cut city services -- including some bus service.


Bing also took swipes at some city workers, who he said aren't working as hard as they could.


He accused union leaders of not negotiating in good faith and criticized residents for protests over proposed cuts to bus services while remaining largely silent as violence escalates in the city.

Bing is grappling with at least a $300-million budget deficit and up to an $80-million cash shortfall.

Last month, the mayor was concerned that the city could run out of money by October.

On Monday, Bing said there is enough money to survive -- for a while.

"I don't think bankruptcy is necessarily in the future, but I don't want anybody to think we are out of the woods," he said.



Some union leaders have suggested things are moving toward a strike.

The mayor said he won't be caught unprepared.

"I hope it doesn't come to that," Bing said, "but they have to do what they have to do, and so do I."

The cuts seem almost piecemeal -- $7 million here, $11 million there, another $10 million over here -- but Bing said his slicing and dicing approach to overhead costs is the only way he'll save the city from a financial disaster.

Bing said he plans to manage the city out of possible financial ruin by eliminating at least 1,000 jobs, effective Sept. 26. If the city's roughly 50 unions agree to a 10% pay cut that would be reached through 26 furlough days, Bing said the number of layoffs could be adjusted. The furloughs are estimated to save the city about $11 million.

But he emphasized that some workers are going to lose their jobs.

"These are not going to be temporary layoffs -- I've got to reduce the workforce in the City of Detroit," Bing said at a news briefing Monday. "We can't afford to carry 13,000 employees. We don't have the money to do that."

Starting today, the city's roughly 3,500 nonunion employees will bring home 10% less in their paychecks. Bing has said that will offer the city a savings of $10 million.

Some union leaders have said they're not protesting the 10% pay cut, but find unacceptable some of the other concessions Bing seeks.


For example, the city wants to eliminate longevity pay, which would save at least $7 million, as well as paid lunches and daily overtime for employees. "We're trying to work and survive, too," said Leamon Wilson, chairman of the presidents of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees locals.

City employees who are the lowest in seniority -- and thus first in line to be laid off -- generally make between $30,000 and $50,000. Add in benefits, and the city estimates they each can cost the city up to $80,000 per year.

Bing said city residents also must prepare for a decrease in some services, though he said no final decisions will be announced until Sept. 10 on changes to bus service provided by the Department of Transportation, including driver layoffs and route changes and eliminations.

The DDOT cuts will be part of an overall 10% reduction in the city's workforce he must make to keep the city afloat, he said.

The city faces a deficit of at least $300 million, and revenues are expected to fall about $80 million below projections in the current fiscal year.

Last week, Bing backed off cuts to DDOT and recalled 113 bus driver layoff notices after Detroiters protested during four days of public hearings that bus service cuts could cost some riders their jobs.

Bing said any changes to the bus system won't take effect until Sept. 26. The mayor said 50 bus drivers called in sick Saturday and the city received no complaints about the abbreviated staff, "so that's at least 50 drivers we don't need."

In addition, Bing said that on Monday he passed six DDOT buses on the city's east side: "Three were totally empty, and the others had five or six people on them."

Henry Gaffney, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 26, which represents city bus drivers, could not be reached Monday for comment.

I'll bet Shrek Cockrel Jr. is weeping for joy that he lost.

[Savonarola]

State withholds another $11.3M from Detroit
BY SUZETTE HACKNEY
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

Already strapped for cash, the City of Detroit lost out on more than $11 million in state revenue sharing last month because city officials have not submitted a fiscal audit.

Last week, state officials estimated the city would lose out on about $1 million for the month of August. That figure was readjusted Tuesday to $11.3 million.

The Department of Treasury is now withholding $24.5 million owed to the city because the required 2008-09 annual audit is eight months late. The state distributes revenue sharing on the last day of each even-numbered month.

"The audit will be submitted in October, as we work to ensure more timely submissions hereon," Detroit Mayor Dave Bing said in a statement Tuesday.

Detroit is dealing with a $300-million budget deficit and up to an $80-million cash shortfall. This week, Bing said he must shrink the workforce by 10%, lower labor costs and cut services to keep the city afloat financially.

On Tuesday, about 3,500 nonunion employees received 10% pay reductions. The city has historically been late filing financial audits with the state.

The 2005-06 fiscal year audit triggered the succession of late audits. The late audits have resulted in the state withholding revenue sharing repeatedly, and mandating that it had to give approval for the city to sell bonds.

Leading credit rating agencies such as Moody's cited the late audits as part of its justification for lowering Detroit's rating to junk bond status.

I had no idea that cooking the books was so time consuming. 

[Savonarola]

And another "Only in Detroit" story:

Elderly crime victims fight back
George Hunter / The Detroit News
Detroit -- Jewell Garrett was tired of being a victim, so he fought back.

The 95-year-old retired Chrysler factory supervisor had been robbed four times recently in or near his home on Cascade Street on Detroit's northwest side, allegedly by the same man: 19-year-old Ivory Maudlin, who lives three doors down.

Garrett bought a car in June; the next day, Maudlin allegedly stole it. Garrett rented a car; the next day, police say, Maudlin stole that, too.

So when Maudlin broke into Garrett's house on Aug. 13, allegedly to rob him again, Garrett was ready with a heavy, metal file he used to sand cars.

"I was going to cold-cock him with it," Garrett said Thursday. "But he ran away."

Garrett wasn't the only elderly resident of Cascade Street who refused to submit to Maudlin.

Police say Maudlin also carjacked 94-year-old Ruby Lyons on Sunday as she prepared to pass out Jehovah's Witness pamphlets.

Maudlin got away with her SUV, police said -- but not before Lyons bit him on the arm.

"I had to fight back," said Lyons, who does not know Garrett, although they live on the same block. "I wasn't even thinking about it -- he attacked me, and I was going to do something about it."

Maudlin was arraigned Thursday on charges of carjacking, unarmed robbery and assault in connection with the alleged crimes against Garrett. Maudlin also was arraigned Wednesday on another carjacking charge, stemming from the Sunday robbery of Lyons' 2007 Jeep Cherokee. He's being held in the Wayne County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bond.

A 14-year-old who allegedly acted as a lookout during one of the robberies against Garrett also was arrested.

He will be tried in Wayne County Juvenile Court, police said.

The boy had been arrested in March after leading police on a high-speed chase in a stolen car. Maudlin was in the passenger seat, but was let go because he claimed he didn't know the car had been stolen, police said. The boy was out on bond, which was revoked following his most recent arrest.

Violent acts 'cowardly'
Detroit Police Chief Warren Evans invited Garrett to speak to the media at police headquarters Thursday in an effort to put a human face on the problem of crimes against the elderly.

"We don't have much of a community when we can't protect the elderly and we can't protect children," Evans said. "We're being significantly challenged with both. I want people to feel as indignant as I do about it, and understand they have a responsibility to look after elderly people, and to call the police when they see something.

"It's almost hard for me to fathom the cowardly nature of the act," the chief said. "I've heard people say these things are caused by difficult circumstances, but no circumstances in the world would cause a grown man to rob and assault and beat elderly people."

Garrett, a widower who has lived in his home for 44 years, also was perplexed about why he was targeted.

"I'm a churchgoing person. I don't bother anybody," he said. "But I'm not just going to let someone keep taking from me."

He said he was eating dinner the night of Aug. 13 when he heard a noise behind him.

"I turned around, and there he stood," Garrett said. "I didn't hear him come in. I jumped up real quick and drew back the file. I guess he was scared, too, because he ran back out the window."

Struggle leads to injury
Lyons said her struggle against her attacker resulted in a broken arm; the woman is scheduled to undergo surgery today.

"I came back home from Kingdom Hall (at about noon Sunday) because I forgot my (religious) literature," Lyons said. "I had just gotten into the van and then (Maudlin) snatched me and threw me in the street.

"I got up and grabbed him and bit him. I tried to pull him out of the van but he closed the door on my arm and drove away."

'I was tired of it'
Both Garrett and Lyons said they felt compelled to fight back. Garrett said the string of alleged incidents angered him.

"I bought a 2002 Buick Century on a Wednesday (in June), and on Thursday (Maudlin) came in my driveway and stole it. I didn't even have time to get plates for it.

"I called AAA and got a rental car, and the next day he came back and stole that one, too," Garrett said.

Police say Garrett also was robbed by Maudlin on June 27 and Aug. 10.

"I was tired of it," Garrett said.

Police arrested Maudlin and his young, alleged accomplice after they found Lyons' sport utility vehicle in southwest Detroit and staked it out. A man rode a bicycle up to the vehicle, got in, and started to drive away.

"That person wasn't the perpetrator, but he led us to the perp," Evans said.

Darlesse Till moved to Cascade Street three months ago, but she said she's planning to move because the neighborhood is "crazy."

"I've got three kids. I don't want them to have to live around here," said Till, 22. "When you get people robbing old folks like that, it's hard to believe. When someone starts to do something like that, they need to think of their grandmother or grandfather."

Edit- Changed this to the more detailed Detroit News version

[Savonarola]

From The Detroit News:

City still wants to pick up the check
From the "You Can't Win for Trying" File: Councilman Kwame Kenyatta learned this week he can't take over the upkeep of his city-owned car to save the city some cash.

Kenyatta announced last week that he wanted to assume the estimated $7,200 a year cost of gas and maintenance of his Crown Vic. But in a response letter, Terrence King, director of the General Services Department, told Kenyatta that only the municipal garage can do vehicle maintenance because of "potential liabilities."

Kenyatta also wanted to start paying for the gas when he fills up at city pumps. But, alas, that's not possible either.

In the following excerpt from King's letter, he painfully illustrates just how bumpy a road City Hall's "reinvention" may be.

"We appreciate your initiative to help the city defer costs of the maintenance and fuel but we do not have the ability to receive reimbursements to a specific object code due to budget restrictions. The budget department needs to be contacted in order to create an object code that could be used to reflect this reimbursement and the billing process will need to be defined. At this point, we do not have the ability to accept your offer."

Bureaucracy always wins.   

[Alcibiades]

[Savonarola]

What a city:

Detroit deputy police chief held up, robbed

Police are investigating the weekend armed robbery a Detroit police deputy chief, who was held up for $300 in cash on the city's west side.

Deputy Chief Herbert Moreland was off duty and robbed outside of his car around 3 a.m. Sunday, said Spokesman John Roach.

Roach said Moreland was with a friend on the 12000 block of Santa Rosa and was getting something out of his trunk when a man put a gun to his head and demanded his wallet. Police also believe a second suspect was at the scene.

"At some point the deputy chief struggled with the suspect and the deputy chief had his departmental-issued weapon with him and fired several shots at the suspect, who fled," Roach said.

No one is believed to have been struck by any bullets, Roach said. The suspects got $300.

Roach said that Chief Warren Evans has turned the investigation over to Michigan State Police. Moreland's wife works for the Detroit Police Internal Affairs section.

"Chief Evans felt that because this incident involved a high-ranking member of the Detroit Police Department, he wanted to make sure there was an independent review," Roach said. "He also wanted there to be no question about the investigation into the overall incident."

Anyone with information on the robbery is asked to call Crimestoppers at 800-773-2587 (SPEAKUP).

[Alcibiades]

Wow.  Won't make a difference of course. :p

[Savonarola]

Meanwhile in the lives of the pimp and infamous:

Kilpatrick late, short on restitution payment
Doug Guthrie / The Detroit News
Detroit --Former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has fallen behind on monthly payments toward the $1 million he owes the city in restitution for his conviction last year on crimes related to the text message scandal.

Kilpatrick, who now lives in Southlake, Texas, and works as a salesman for the Covisint subsidiary of Compuware, paid $3,000 to the Wayne County Circuit Court on Wednesday afternoon. The money arrived a day late and $3,000 short of the court-ordered $6,000 monthly payment.

Wayne County Circuit Judge David Groner, who sentenced Kilpatrick to serve 99 days in jail for obstruction of justice and now oversees his probation, was notified Wednesday about the short payment, said Russell Marlan, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Corrections.


"We relayed this information to the judge this afternoon," Marlan said. "It is up to Judge Groner now as to what he wants to do."

Kilpatrick reportedly makes at least $110,000 a year working for Covisint, with the potential for earning commissions and bonuses that could triple his earnings.

There was no indication Wednesday how or when the judge will respond.

Kilpatrick's lawyer, Michael Alan Schwartz, last week notified Groner, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy and Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox that his client has cut his payments in half because he no longer is receiving advance payments on his anticipated commissions. The advances were set to last for six months, which have passed.

Groner had based Kilpatrick's monthly payments on 30 percent of his monthly income. For the first six months Kilpatrick worked for Covisint, he said he would receive double paychecks of $20,000 per month. The extra money was coming from anticipated commissions and bonuses.

Schwartz said the reduction in his client's monthly income must result in a reduction in his restitution payments.

Groner has declined to bring Kilpatrick back to town for hearings to explain previous late and partial payments. He also has declined to hold hearings requested by the prosecutor at which Kilpatrick would be required to publicly detail his assets and income. The Michigan Department of Corrections Probation Department has performed an assessment that remains confidential.

[Savonarola]

Kilpatrick bid to lower payment to $6 denied
By M.L. ELRICK
Free Press Staff Writer

One day after former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick cut his court-ordered restitution payment by 50%, the Michigan Court of Appeals rejected his bid to lower it 99.9%.

In a terse, one-sentence order issued today, the appellate court said that Kilpatrick's bid to lower his monthly restitution payment from $6,000 to $6 was "denied for lack of merit."

In March, Kilpatrick's lawyer had argued that the ex-mayor's monthly expenses — including $2,700 for rent and $900 to lease a new Cadillac Escalade — ate up $9,994 of his $10,000 monthly salary from his job as a health care software salesman with Covisint, a subsidiary of Compuware. Kilpatrick now lives in a million-dollar mansion – larger even than the Manoogian mansion of his mayoral days – in a gated community outside Dallas.

After media reports detailed Kilpatrick's lavish living in the weeks after his release from the Wayne County Jail, Judge David Groner ordered Kilpatrick to pay $6,000 a month toward the $1 million he agreed to pay the city of Detroit as part of his deal to plead guilty to obstruction of justice charges stemming from the text message scandal.

While Kilpatrick's appeal to pay only $6 a month outraged many, his attorney, Michael Alan Schwartz, said at the time: "I don't think he was ordered to live a more modest lifestyle ... Is it better Mr. Kilpatrick drives a beat-up Yugo?"

Rather than ask Groner, the Wayne County Circuit Court judge who approved Kilpatrick's plea deal, to reduce the former mayor's restitution payments, Schwartz appealed the matter to the Michigan Court of Appeals.

He got his answer today.

The Man keeps keeping Kwame down.   

[Darth Wagtaros]

Detroit must be destroyed for the good of the Union.

[MadImmortalMan]

"I don't think he was ordered to live a more modest lifestyle ... Is it better Mr. Kilpatrick drives a beat-up Yugo?"

LOL.  Yes?

[Josquius]

So....are they going to demolish most of the city then?