This is a timeline of Kwame Kilpatrick's political career.
1996 - 2001
Kilpatrick serves as floor leader in the Michigan House of Representatives.
2001
Kilpatrick is elected Mayor of Detroit, Michigan.
January 2, 2002
Kilpatrick takes office as Mayor of Detroit and performs inaugural address.
March 11, 2002
Kilpatrick Performs first State of the City Address
September 2002
Rumors of a party at the Manoogian Mansion on Labor Day surface.
April 30, 2003
Tamara Greene, a stripper at the rumored party at the Manoogian Mansion, is murdered.
May 9, 2003
Kilpatrick fires former Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown. Brown was supposed to investigate the alleged party at the Manoogian Mansion.
May 13, 2003
Former Detroit deputy police chief Gary Brown releases memo containing allegations of a wild party held at the Manoogian Mansion in 2002. The memo also alleged Kilpatrick's body guards of fraud and misconduct.
May 15, 2003
Kilpatrick denies allegations of a party at the Manoogian Mansion.
June 24, 2003
Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox concludes investigation into party. Cox found no evidence of a party ever occurring.
January 16, 2004
Michigan State Police finish investigation into the rumored party at the Manoogian Mansion. They find no evidence that the party ever occurred.
April 21, 2004
Detroit Police Lieutenant Alvin Brown sues Kilpatrick and the City of Detroit. He asserts that he transferred out of his homicide unit to prevent him from investigating the Tamara Greene murder.
May 17, 2005
Kilpatrick begins second mayoral election campaign. Reports surface that Kilpatrick abused his city credit card.
November 5, 2005
Elected for second term as Mayor of Detroit with 53 percent of popular vote.
January 3, 2006
Kilpatrick is stripped of special administrator role.
July 8, 2006
Kilpatrick is diagnosed with diverticulitis.
July 25, 2006
Detroit City Council unanimously approves his home-owner tax relief plan.
February 1, 2006
Kilpatrick accepts blame for turning in Detroit's 2005-2006 audit reports late and costing the city to lose more than half of its state funding. The remainder of the money will only be returned to Detroit when the audit reported is turned in. The 2006-2007 audit reports have yet to be turned in as well.
August 20 - September 11, 2007
Jury trial in whistle-blower case is filed by former police officers Gary Brown and Harold Nelthrope against Kilpatrick and the City of Detroit. Former Detroit Chief of Staff Christine Beatty's text messages were subpoenaed. Kilpatrick and Beatty testify under oath that they did not have any romantic or sexual relationship. Gary Brown requests the text messages from Judge Callahan, who was presiding over the case. Brown is told that the messages were misplaced.
September 11, 2007
Gary Brown and Harold Nelthorpe win their case and receive 6.5 million dollars plus interest as the city settles the case. Brown's Attorney receives the text messages and plans to use them to obtain attorney fees.
October 19, 2007
The Detroit Free Press requests all documents related to the settlement be released to the public under the Freedom of Information Act.
October 29, 2007
The City of Detroit Counsel Corporation rejects the Detroit Free Press's Freedom of Information Act Request on the grounds that the settlement has yet to be reached.
November 1, 2007
A new settlement agreement and general release is drafted. It states that Stefani is to turn over all original records and copies of text messages between Kilpatrick and Beatty that were obtained after the completion of the trial. It does not mention the $8.4 million exchange for silence regarding the text messages that were used to charge Kilpatrick and Beatty at the whistle-blower trial. The penalty for violating the agreement for Stefani, Brown's lawyer, is about $2.7 million. For the officers it is an amount equal to their settlement agreements.
December 5, 2007
Kilpatrick, Beatty, and all other parties sign the settlement agreement. Kilpatrick and Beatty sign as individuals, not officials of the city. Gary Brown's lawyer, Michael Stefani, signs a confidentiality agreement.
February 19, 2008
The slander suit filed against Kilpatrick, former Chief of Staff Christine Beatty, and Police Chief Ella Bully-Cummings is settled for $25,000.
March 11, 2008
Kilpatrick delivers his seventh State of the City Address.
March 12, 2008
Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox states that Kilpatrick should resign from office. Sam Riddle, Kilpatrick's former political adviser, says that Kilpatrick should resign.
September 17, 2008
Kilpatrick serves his last day as mayor of Detroit.
