Detroit (WWJ/AP) -- A judge has ruled that there's enough evidence for Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick to stand trial on assault charges stemming from a confrontation with two investigators.
"There's nothing on this record that shows that [the mayor's] actions were in fact accidental," said Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Ron Giles.
Judge Giles ordered Friday the mayor be bound over for trial, after two investigators testified that an angry Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick shoved one of them into the other and made racial remarks while they were trying to deliver a subpoena to Kilpatrick's friend.
Giles is the same judge who ordered Thursday that Kilpatrick must keep wearing an electronic tether as part of his bond. He also put the mayor in jail last week for violating bond restrictions tied to his separate perjury case.
Wayne County sheriff's Detective Brian White said he and county prosecutor's investigator JoAnn Kinney were delivering subpoenas for witnesses in a separate perjury case against Kilpatrick when White spotted a truck he believed belonged to one witness parked in front of a house.
Listen to White's testimony as he discribes what happened next: **WARNING: STRONG ADULT LANGUAGE**
White said he rang the door bell and told a man who opened the door he was looking for Bobby Ferguson. The man told White he was Ferguson's brother and Ferguson wasn't there, the detective said.
At that point, White said, Kilpatrick charged through the door, swore at him, told him to get off the porch and shoved him.
"The defendant charged at me,'' White said. ``He grabbed me with both hands on my shoulder. ... At that point, I hit investigator Kinney. I was thrown into her.''
White and Kinney both testified Kilpatrick used the F-word in describing them while urging his security detail to get them off the porch. They said the mayor also made racial remarks about her and White.
"You're a black woman,'' Kinney quoted the mayor as telling her. ``You should be ashamed of yourself being with a man with the last name white. You should not be a part of this."
White is white. Kinney and Kilpatrick are black. "He was very, very angry,'' Kinney told the court.
Listen to some of Kinney's testomony: **WARNING: STRONG ADULT LANGUAGE**
Attorneys Mayor Kilpatrick played a partial audio tape they say shows that a police detective who claims he was shoved by the mayor was not under duress and joked about the situation.
On the 18-second tape released Thursday afternoon, White asks a police dispatcher to "change the header to assault on a police office - and fondling.''
The dispatcher asks "this gonna be newsworthy man?" and White is heard saying "this is uh, this is..yeah." Listen to what defense attorneys released.
Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Doug Baker protested to Giles over defense lawyers' release to the media of part of the tape, saying it was an improper effort to influence the legal proceedings.
"I think it's in violation of ethical rules which talk about a lawyer not releasing evidence that is likely to prejudice a proceeding,'' Baker said. ``I think it's contemptuous of this proceeding on the part of the defense.''
Defense lawyer Jim Thomas said County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, whose office is handling the perjury case against Kilpatrick, has repeatedly made public comments on the cases against the mayor.
Earlier at the hearing, Michigan State Police Detective Sgt. Twana Powell showed photos of the porch where prosecutors the mayor assaulted two investigators. When asked by a defense lawyer whether she had photos of any bruises to the investigators, she said she didn't.
Listen to closing remarks and Judge Giles' decision:
If convicted, Kilpatrick could face up to two years in jail and/or fines of up to $2,000.
Stay tuned to WWJ Newsradio 950 for the latest developments.
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