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The New York Times
Ex-Mayor of Newark
Indicted in Corruption Case
By DAVID KOCIENIEWSKI,
nytimes on the Web, July 12, 2007
NEWARK -- Sharpe James, the
former mayor who towered over politics in this city for two decades, was
indicted today on 33 counts of fraud and depriving government of honest
services, chiefly relating to $58,000 in personal expenses he racked up on city
credit cards.
He also faces charges of conspiring with a companion to defraud the city by
selling her nine parcels of city land for $46,000 that she turned around and
resold for $665,000.
Mr. James, a flamboyant, charismatic leader who built a patronage army largely
through cult of personality, is accused of illegally charging Jacuzzi dips,
alcohol, movies, meals and weekend getaways for tennis tournaments with friends
on his city cards in what the United States attorney for New Jersey, Christopher
J. Christie Jr., called “stark examples of the greed and arrogance of unchecked
power.”
The 150 fraudulent charges listed in the 89-page indictment include $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; $3,500 for a trip to Martha’s Vineyard (plus $207 for
an advance reservation for his Rolls Royce); $2,976 for a storage unit; $167.22
at nightclubs in Rio de Janeiro’s red-light district; and $297 to inspect a
yacht he wanted to buy in Graysonville, Md.
He also paid $39 for exceeding the credit limit on the city card.
“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 appeared in federal court here to plead not guilty. “When he had the
choice between impartially serving the citizens of Newark and the state of New
Jersey or rewarding companions, supporters and himself with taxpayer money, he
chose to cheat the people of Newark and the citizens of New Jersey.”
Also charged Thursday was Tamika Riley, 37, who joined Mr. James on many of the
trips and bought the nine parcels of city land at cut-rate prices.
Prosecutors described Ms. Riley as the owner of a failed Newark clothing store
who operated a public relations and entertainment firm, lacking real estate or
construction experience and the financial backing to development blighted
properties.
Mr. James appeared in court this afternoon in handcuffs and ankle shackles,
wearing a blue suit with no necktie. His bail was set at $250,000, for
which he put up his home as collateral. He has to surrender his passport
and a firearm he keeps at home in a safe, but was expected to be released this
afternoon.
He said almost nothing during the hearing beyond answering the judge’s question
as to whether he understood the charges against him. "Yes, I do," Mr.
James said.
Bail was set at $100,000 for Ms. Riley, who was wearing black slacks and a black
top with a plunging neckline, as though dressed for a nightclub.
Gerry Krovatin, Ms. Riley’s lawyer, declined to comment. Ray M. Brown, Mr.
James’s lawyer, said, "There are a lot of strategic issues we’ve still got to
work out" and would take no questions.
Neither Mr. James nor Ms. Riley entered pleas today.
Though the indictment had long been anticipated, its handing up today was a
significant moment in Newark political history, coincidentally coming as the
city commemorated the 40th anniversary of the riots that decimated its core.
Mr. James, 71, continues to have many close friends and allies here, and while
he has been shunned by the reformist administration of Mayor Cory A. Booker,
some — particularly African-American peers — felt as though they, too, were
being chastised.
“You can say what you want about the guy but Sharpe came along when we needed a
cheerleader,” said Armando Fontoura, the Essex County sheriff and a former
Newark police officer. “He was great in keeping people in the suburbs from
engaging in the fashionable habit of knocking Newark. All I feel is
sadness for him, his family and the people of Newark.”
Larry Hamm, the founder and head of the Peoples Organization for Progress, a
community group that has protested everything from police brutality to the use
of eminent domain during Mr. James’s time in office, noted that Mr. James’s
predecessor, Kenneth A. Gibson, was indicted in 2000 on bribery, fraud and tax
evasion charges.
“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,” Mr. Hamm said. “We have had two black mayors in
Newark since them 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.”
Attorney General Anne Milgram, who joined Mr. Christie in announcing the
indictment, said in a statement: “The incidents of theft and abuse
detailed in today’s indictment allege a shameless and outrageous misuse of
government funds that are stunning in their scope. While a city struggles
to balance its budget and provide vital services to its residents, its mayor
spared no expense to entertain himself lavishly with public funds.”
The chairman of the state Republican Party, Tom Wilson, issued a statement
saying: “This indictment is about as surprising as the sun rising in the
morning. Sharpe James hasn’t had a private sector job in 30 years, yet
managed to acquire a Rolls Royce, a yacht and a house on the water at the Jersey
shore. All the while his colleagues in the Democrat Party tolerated,
celebrated and even promoted James’s political power.”
After the indictment was announced, Mr. James turned himself in to F.B.I. agents
in Newark.
The inquiry began last summer, as F.B.I. agents began examining more than
$60,000 in travel expenses Mr. James charged on two city credit cards. Mr.
James said in interviews last year that all the travel was for legitimate city
business. But during the past several months, the grand jury has heard
testimony from three city police officers who accompanied Mr. James as security
guards on the trips, and a travel agent who booked more than $60,000 in trips
for Mr. James and his entourage, including a $6,500 visit to Rio de Janeiro
during his final week in office.
By fall, investigators had subpoenaed thousands of pages of city documents
related to the sale of more than 5,000 lots at prices less than a quarter of
their appraised value, often to friends, associates and campaign donors of Mr.
James. Among them was Tamika Riley, a public relations consultant who
occasionally traveled with the former mayor. Ms. Riley bought at least
nine city-owned properties for $46,000 and quickly resold them for $700,000.
Prosecutors have called employees of the city housing department before the
grand jury and have asked whether Mr. James personally directed Newark officials
to sell property to his friends and political allies at a discount, according to
people knowledgeable about the case who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Basil Franklin, the city’s former director of housing and development, testified
last month. His lawyer, Henry Klingeman, declined to discuss the
testimony, saying that Mr. Franklin “was an innocent bystander and not a target
or subject of the investigation.”
As prosecutors and grand jurors have moved ahead in the criminal case, Mayor
Booker has been pressing to recoup some of the land. He made the land
sales a major issue during his campaign last year and won a court injunction
blocking dozens of proposed sales, including three involving Ms. Riley.
In May, Mr. Booker notified 32 developers that Newark intends to reclaim 250
lots that were sold at a discount because the purchasers had reneged on their
obligations to build on them within 18 months. Using that as leverage,
city officials are pressuring some of the developers to pay more now for the
land.
Carla Baranauckas contributed reporting from New York.
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