From city hall to the slammer: 8 US mayors brought down by scandal

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who was indicted on Thursday on five federal counts, is not the first mayor to face criminal charges.

Adams is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery, and to receive campaign contributions by foreign nationals; one count of wire fraud; two counts of solicitation of a contribution by a foreign national; and one count of bribery. He pleaded not guilty to the charges on Friday.

Jessica Tillipman, associate dean for government procurement law studies at George Washington Law School, spoke to Newsweek about the significance of the indictment.

“It’s hugely significant,” Tillipman said. “First, we’re dealing with a jurisdiction that is very experienced with these types of issues, so you’re getting a very serious indictment from a very serious, what I’d say, kind of anti-corruption white collar crime related office within the U.S. government.”

Adams has indicated that he has no plans to resign. Tillipman said this represents a “changing dynamic” in law and politics.

“I feel like it used to be this kind of stuff would come out, and they would resign because either there was enough pressure on them to do so and that was just kind of seen as the natural next step, or there was kind of an excuse that they didn’t want to be distracted by this and then take away from what they owe the people of whatever jurisdiction that they are representing,” Tillipman said.

While Adams is the first sitting New York City mayor to be indicted, several mayors across the nation have been charged before. Tillipman explained what draws elected officials to commit criminal actions.

“You get to be in a position of power, and so there are people that want things from you and are willing to offer you these things,” Tillipman said. “So I think it’s opportunity, but I also think that there’s a component to it that is a bit of impunity and ego. People think that they’re never going to get caught.”

Who is Sheila Dixon?

Sheila Dixon assumed office as the mayor of Baltimore in 2007 after mayor Martin O’Malley was sworn in as governor of Maryland. She then went on to win the 2007 mayoral election.

The first female mayor of the city quickly became surrounded by scandal as she was indicted on 12 felony and misdemeanor counts in 2009. The charges against her included perjury, theft and misconduct.

Dixon was accused of misusing over $600 of retail gift cards donated to City Hall for needy families. She allegedly spent about $500 at Target and Best Buy to purchase items for her family and staff.

Two of the counts against her were dropped during the trial after prosecutors failed to call a key witness to testify. She was found not guilty on three counts and the jury failed to reach a unanimous decision on another count.

The jury convicted Dixon of embezzlement. She was sentenced to four years of probation and was ordered to donate $45,000 to the Bea Gaddy Foundation and to serve 500 hours of community service at Our Daily Bread. She also had to sell items she purchased with the gift cards.

Dixon resigned as mayor and was banned from seeking office while on probation. She ran for reelection as mayor in 2016, 2020 and 2024, losing in the Democratic primary in each of those election cycles.

Who is Ray Nagin?

Ray Nagin was first elected as mayor of New Orleans in 2002 and led the city through Hurricane Katrina. He was reelected in 2006 and served until 2010.

Three years after he left office, Nagin was indicted on 21 charges, including wire fraud, conspiracy, bribery, money laundering and filing false tax returns. He was accused of taking over $500,000 in payouts from businessmen in exchange for city contracts valuing millions of dollars.

Nagin was found guilty on 20 counts. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay $585,000 in restitution.

He completed his prison sentence in March.

Who is Patrick Cannon?

Patrick Cannon was elected as mayor of Charlotte in 2013. He declared his candidacy after mayor Anthony Foxx decided not to seek re-election and accepted a position as U.S. Secretary of Transportation.

Cannon had been serving as mayor for nearly four months when he was arrested in March of 2014 on multiple corruption and bribery charges. The charges followed a sting operation by the FBI dating back to 2010, when Cannon was a Charlotte City Council member.

He was accused of accepting more than $50,000 in bribes.

Cannon resigned as mayor shortly after his initial court appearance. In June of 2014, he agreed to plead guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud.

“For nearly half of my life, I have had the honor of serving the people of Charlotte. Much has been given to me in the way of the public’s trust. I regret having acted in ways that broke that trust. For that, I am deeply sorry,” Cannon said in a statement after pleading guilty.

He was sentenced to 44 months in prison. He was released from prison in 2016 after serving 22 months.

Cannon attempted to reenter politics by running for Charlotte City Council in 2022. He finished in last place in the Democratic primary.

Who is Bill Campbell?

Bill Campbell was first elected as mayor of Atlanta in 1993. Campbell won re-election in 1997 and was succeeded by Shirley Franklin in 2002.

Campbell was indicted in 2004, two years after leaving office, on racketeering, corruption, bribery, tax fraud along with mail and wire fraud schemes.

The criminal acts cited in the indictment occurred from 1996 to 2004. Campbell was accused of accepting over $150,000 in payments from multiple city contractors, concealing the benefits he received from contractors, soliciting and accepting illegal campaign donations and filing false tax returns.

Campbell was acquitted on racketeering, bribery and wire fraud charges. The jury found him guilty on three counts of tax evasion. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay more than $60,000 in back taxes.

He was released from prison in 2007 after receiving a shortened sentence by enrolling in a drug treatment program. He previously had told a judge that he was not struggling with a drug abuse problem.

Who is Kwame Kilpatrick?

Kwame Kilpatrick was the youngest mayor of Detroit at 31 years old when he took office in 2002. He won re-election in 2005.

In 2008, Kilpatrick was indicted on eight felony counts, including perjury, misconduct in office and obstruction of justice.

Kilpatrick and his chief of staff, Christine Beatty, both swore under oath that they did not have an extramarital affair with each other, but text messages were later released that appeared to contradict their testimonies.

Beatty was also charged in the indictment. She had resigned as chief of staff prior to being indicted.

Kilpatrick agreed to resign in September of 2008 and pleaded guilty to two felony counts of obstruction of justice. He was sentenced to four months in jail.

He was indicted on new corruption charges in 2010 alongside his father Bernard Kilpatrick, an aide, a contractor and the city’s water department chief.

Kwame Kilpatrick was sentenced to 23 years in prison in 2013. His sentence was commuted by former president Donald Trump less than 12 hours before he left office.

“Mr. Kilpatrick has served approximately 7 years in prison for his role in a racketeering and bribery scheme while he held public office. During his incarceration, Mr. Kilpatrick has taught public speaking classes and has led Bible Study groups with his fellow inmates,” the White House said in a statement.

Who is Tony Mack?

Tony Mack was elected as mayor of Trenton in 2010.

Mack was indicted on six counts in 2012. He was charged with conspiracy to obstruct and affect interstate commerce by extortion; attempted obstruction of commerce by extortion; accepting and agreeing to accept bribes; two counts of wire fraud; and mail fraud.

Eight others were also indicted alongside Mack, including his brother Ralphiel Mack.

The brothers were accused of conspiring to accept nearly $119,000 in cash to assist two individuals in acquiring and developing a city-owned lot.

Tony Mack was found guilty on all counts in 2014. He was sentenced to nearly five years in federal prison. He was released in 2018.

Who is Larry Langford?

Larry Langford was elected as mayor of Birmingham in 2007, defeating nine other candidates including incumbent mayor Bernard Kincaid.

In 2008, Langford, Montgomery investment banker William B. Blount and former state Democratic Chairman Al LaPierre were indicted on 101 counts, including bribery, fraud, money laundering and filing false tax returns.

Langford was accused of receiving $235,000 in bribes and engaging in a long-running bribery scheme.

He was convicted on 60 counts, which resulted in an automatic removal from office. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison, but he was released in 2018 after his sentence was commuted due to life-threatening health issues.

Langford died in 2019 at the age of 72.

Who is Buddy Cianci?

Buddy Cianci was the longest-serving mayor of Providence, serving from 1975 to 1984 and again from 1991 to 2002.

Cianci was required to resign by law in 1984 after pleading no contest to an assault charge related to an altercation with a contractor. After resigning, Cianci attempted to run in the special election, arguing that he received a five-year suspended sentence instead of prison time. The Rhode Island Supreme Court ruled he was ineligible to run.

Cianci later ran for mayor again and was re-elected in 1990.

He was indicted again in 2001 on charges of racketeering, conspiracy, extortion, witness tampering, and mail fraud with several other city officials.

Cianci was acquitted of 26 charges but found guilty of racketeering conspiracy, running a corrupt criminal enterprise. He was sentenced to five years in federal prison in 2002 and required by law to resign as mayor.

Cianci was released from prison in 2007. He went on to host a radio show and ran for mayor in the 2014 election. He narrowly lost the election.

He died in 2016 at the age of 74.

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