Detroit Mayor Kilpatrick Pleads Not Guilty To New Assault Charges

Detroit, MI (AHN) - Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was arraigned on assault charges Friday, a day after he was jailed for violating his bond on an unrelated felony case.

Kilpatrick did not attend the hearing but appeared on a TV screen to plead not guilty to two felony assault charges. He is accused of assaulting or obstructing a sheriff's deputy who was trying to serve a subpoena. He faces a maximum of two years in prison for each count.

Kilpatrick was asked to pay at least 10 percent of the $25,000 bond. His next court appearance on the charges will be on Aug. 15.

Earlier in the day, the mayor was released on a 50,000 bond and the condition that he wear tracking device. He was jailed Thursday night after a judge found him guilty of breaking terms of the bond of his perjury case.

Kilpatrick crossed the Detroit River on July 23 to Ontario, Canada to promote the construction of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. He failed to inform the court in advance about his trip.

Kilpatrick was indicted in March together with his chief of staff Christine Beatty - with whom he is accused of having an extramarital affair - on charges of perjury, misconduct in office and obstruction of justice. He has also been accused of retaliating against police officers who investigated allegations of misconduct against him, one of whom was the Detroit Police Department Internal Affairs Chief Gary A. Brown.

The City Council voted 5-4 in June to begin a two-pronged approach to try to remove him from office. They approved two resolutions, one to let them begin impeachment proceedings, another asking Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm to remove the embattled mayor in case the proceedings fail.