DETROIT – When former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick resigned from office in disgrace and moved out of the Manoogian Mansion, he still had an ace up his sleeve.
The prosecution in Kilaptrick's federal trial say he held onto civic fund checks. Thousands of dollars were still in the account. Prosecutors say Kilpatrick did not disband the non profit but instead kept on spending, a lot.
Testimony on Kilpatrick Civic Fund money wraps up
"Vacations, camps for his kids, yoga lessons, etc." said legal expert Keith Corbett. "And then tried to put it on the people that gave money to that civic fund and they said, 'We didn't understand that was the reason we gave it. We thought it was going to advance education in the city, be a civic fund that was going to advance the city of Detroit."
A real estate agent, Aaliyah Salaam, testified on Wednesday saying when Kilpatrick needed a place to live he paid part of the down payment and his monthly rent was paid for with the civic fund money.
"A lot of times people want to pay up front," said Salaam.
More witnesses took the stand on Wednesday. They said they were pressured by Kilpatrick insiders to give large donations to Kilpatrick's non profit. They say they were told the money was intended to help kids and Detroit. They testified that they had no idea Kilpatrick was using the money for himself and his family. They did not know the Kilpatrick family was using the civic fund to pay for parties, take luxury vacations and go golfing.
Defense attorneys continued to argue that each event helps Detroit in some small way.