quote:

NEWARK, July 12 — Sharpe James, the former mayor who towered over politics in this city for two decades and was a charismatic if combative cheerleader as it struggled to regain businesses and middle-class residents, was indicted on Thursday on charges of using city credit cards for personal expenses and letting a companion buy municipal property for a fraction of its worth.

Mr. James, who built a patronage machine largely through cult of personality, is accused of illegally charging more than $58,000 on two city credit cards for Jacuzzi dips, alcohol, movies, meals and weekend getaways for tennis tournaments with friends.

The United States attorney for New Jersey, Christopher J. Christie, said the case against Mr. James contained “stark examples of the greed and arrogance of unchecked power.”

Mr. James also faces a charge of conspiring with one of his frequent travel partners, Tamika Riley, to defraud the city by selling her nine parcels of city land for $46,000 that she quickly resold for $665,000.

Mr. James, 71, was led in handcuffs and leg shackles into a courtroom just two blocks from the City Hall where he held power. Released later on $250,000 bail, he told reporters that his wrists were a bit sore from the cuffs, but that he was happy to be freed.

“I’m innocent of all these charges,” he said. “And I look forward to my day in court when the truth will come out.”

The investigation, named “Operation Cornered Lot,” began three years ago, when federal agents received a telephone call from a Newark resident who said that the James administration was funneling city property to the mayor’s friends and political associates, according to Weysan Dunn, special agent in charge of the F.B.I.’s Newark office.

The case expanded last spring, when the United States attorney’s office began reviewing Mr. James’s use of his city credit cards during his last five years in office.

It culminated on Thursday in a 33-count indictment that included claims that he defrauded the city in ways both extravagant and venal: $1,440 for a trip to a beachfront resort in the Dominican Republic, where Mr. James claimed he wanted to assess the tropical gardens to see if they could be replicated at the Newark train station.

There was also, according to the indictment, $3,500 for a trip to Martha’s Vineyard (plus $207 for an advance ferry reservation for his Rolls-Royce); $167.22 at clubs in Rio de Janeiro’s red-light district; $297 to inspect a yacht he wanted to buy in Maryland; and $2,989 for a penthouse suite on a cruise that began six weeks after he left City Hall.

He also ran up more than $1,600 in frequent trips to Applebee’s restaurants and movie theaters outside Newark — and resulting in a $39 fine for exceeding the credit limit on the city card.

Then there was a $2,976 charge to rent a storage unit, the indictment charges, where Mr. James hid records pertaining to the city’s land sales to Ms. Riley and had a contract stating, “Authorized Users: None.”

Ms. Riley, 38, whom prosecutors described as a failed clothier lacking experience in real estate or redevelopment, was also indicted on Thursday and released on $100,000 bond.

Mr. James is accused of helping steer city property to her at severely discounted prices on nine occasions from 2001 to 2006. In February 2005, for instance, the city sold Ms. Riley land with an assessed value of $212,600 for $4,000; she resold it for $100,000 a month later.

While the indictment does not present evidence that Mr. James directly benefited, it said Ms. Riley gave him thousands of dollars in campaign donations, often shortly after buying or reselling the properties.

“When Sharpe James had a choice between enriching himself or helping the people of Newark, he chose self-enrichment,” Mr. Christie said in a statement as Mr. James and Ms. Riley pleaded not guilty in a 15-minute hearing in federal court here.

“When he had the choice between impartially serving the citizens of Newark and the state of New Jersey or rewarding female companions, supporters and himself with taxpayer money, he chose to cheat the people of Newark and the citizens of New Jersey.”

Mr. Christie said Mr. James could face up to eight years in prison.

But it is one thing to indict such a popular politician in this town, another to convict him. Mr. James’s immediate predecessor, Kenneth A. Gibson, was indicted in 2000, years after he stepped down from the mayoralty, on bribery, fraud and tax evasion charges involving his dealings with a suburban school board. Mr. Gibson’s trial ended in a hung jury, but he later pleaded guilty to one minor count.

Though Mr. James’s indictment was long anticipated, its official announcement was nonetheless a startling moment in Newark politics, magnified by its occurrence on the day the city commemorated the 40th anniversary of the riots that decimated its core.

“This is happening at a time when the entire city is involved in a retrospective of the riots, which is also the impact over the last 40 years of black political power here and elsewhere,” said Larry Hamm, the founder of the Peoples Organization for Progress, a community group that protested everything from police brutality to eminent domain proceedings during Mr. James’s tenure.

“We have had two black mayors in Newark since then and now both of them have been indicted by federal prosecutors. Those of us who have been in the struggle can’t help but believe that the larger society is trying to send some signals.”

Mr. Christie brushed aside suggestions that race played any role in the prosecution, and said that the timing, in relation to the commemoration of the riots, was coincidental.

In Trenton, where Mr. James is retiring this fall after four terms as a state senator, Republicans said the charges seemed like an overdue comeuppance for a man who had lived an extravagant lifestyle — he owned a Rolls-Royce, yacht and a home on the Jersey Shore — that many considered beyond the reach of his government salaries. Senate President Richard J. Codey, a Democrat, said only that it was a sad day for the city of Newark and for Mr. James’s family.

It is unclear what may happen to the three government pensions Mr. James collects; on Thursday, the state suspended withdrawals from the two accounts it controls.

According to the state treasurer’s office, he withdrew more than $500,000 from his $1.1 million retirement account at Essex County College, where he was athletic director before becoming mayor in 1986.

Mayor Cory A. Booker, whose administration is trying to reclaim some of the properties sold under Mr. James, declined to comment.

Mr. James’s defenders have said the property sales were part of a broader effort to boost the economy and reduce blight.

But Mr. Christie said on Thursday that for all the redevelopment Mr. James had orchestrated during his 20 years in office, his legacy “is forever scarred by the allegations contained in this indictment.”

quote: (post)

Originally posted by FeceMan
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/13/n...amp;oref=slogin


Well, I'm at a loss here. I just don't know.

quote: (post)

Originally posted by FeceMan
Actually, the intent of posting was to demonstrate that the Associated Press somehow forgot to mention James's political affiliation.

But, anyhow, it's nice to know that any corrupt Republican is immediately crucified on KMC while corrupt Democrats are dismissed.

quote: (post)

Originally posted by FeceMan
Actually, the intent of posting was to demonstrate that the Associated Press somehow forgot to mention James's political affiliation.

But, anyhow, it's nice to know that any corrupt Republican is immediately crucified on KMC while corrupt Democrats are dismissed.

quote: (post)

Originally posted by Schecter
the media generally doesnt bring up partisanship when dealing with city mayors or mayoral scandals...besides giulianni, these days, for obvious reasons.

now if it was a governor or congressman you would have a legitimate 'gotcha' thread, but im afraid this just isnt one.

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Wikipedia
Since June 1999, James simultaneously served as Mayor of Newark and New Jersey State Senator. He declined to run for re-election to the State Senate in 2007; his term as Senator will expire in January 2008.

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But you just posted the article to "crucify" him, no? So, apparently, it goes both ways on KMC.

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Originally posted by FeceMan

Actually, I could care less. I'm not dumb enough to label a party for the actions of one member.

quote:

Since June 1999, James simultaneously served as Mayor of Newark and New Jersey State Senator. He declined to run for re-election to the State Senate in 2007; his term as Senator will expire in January 2008.

quote: (post)

Originally posted by FeceMan
Actually, the intent of posting was to demonstrate that the Associated Press somehow forgot to mention James's political affiliation.

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Originally posted by FeceMan
Yeah, actually, it does, as it would be a mischaracterization of my motives to say that I was trying to "crucify" him.

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Originally posted by Mišt
Yeah but...its not about you.

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Originally posted by FeceMan
Considering that Robtard's post and your post were both directed at me, I would say that, yes, it is, in fact, about me.

quote: (post)

Originally posted by Mišt
And why does it matter? It changes nothing about his crimes.

quote:

Actually, the intent of posting [this article] was to demonstrate that the Associated Press [edit: New York Times] somehow forgot to mention James's political affiliation.