Ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick Lives Well Despite Owing $79,011 in Back Restitution Payments

Kwame Kilpatrick may have started a new life as a software salesman after being booted out as mayor of Detroit in 2008, but he still can't keep his name out of the papers for dubious acts. After serving 99 days in jail, he has moved on to the part of his sentence that includes a court-ordered restitution payment of $1 million -- and he has already missed an installment. This could land the mayor, convicted of lying over an affair, right back in jail.

Many of his supporters are praising Kilpatrick's ability to rebound from scandal. The ousted politician now lives in a 5,800-sqaure-foot rented mansion with his family near Dallas and earns a $120,000 salary. Not bad for a man who was drummed out of his hometown. But, he and his wife have been observed living what many would consider a lavish lifestyle for a man who is $1 million in debt. This would be a sign of positive recuperation from Kilpatrick's trials, were it not for the fact that his missed payment of $79,011 could be Kwame's second undoing.

Yahoo News reports:

The question now is whether Kilpatrick's rebound could soon be ending. The state Court of Appeals agreed to postpone a court hearing scheduled for Friday, but he still could face arraignment on the charge of violating his probation by missing a $79,011 restitution payment due last week. If the arrest warrant issued Thursday - and then suspended - is eventually served, he could wind up back in a cell overlooking the city he once led.

According to Kilpatrick's lawyer: "For him to earn and pay his debt to society - $1 million in restitution to Detroit - Kilpatrick has to maintain a certain lifestyle to woo clients in his new job as a software salesman." (Yahoo News)

Ex-Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick lives in this gated community on La Paloma Court. (AP)

That excuse might not fly with the courts. Kwame Kilpatrick and his wife have been observed living a lavish lifestyle that includes driving luxury cars, expensive habits like golf, frequently dining in expensive restaurants and enjoying spa treatments. Not only are these amenities an incredible waste of money when one owes $1 million, these type of spending habits will be seen as unrepentant by any judge deciding whether Kilpatrick missing a payment should be forgiven. The payment schedule is meant to be a punishment, not something for the ex-mayor to fit into his luxury lifestyle.

From a personal finance perspective, Kwame Kilpatrick is clearly suffering from an inability to live within his means. He and his wife need to be realistic about the new position they find themselves in and budget at all costs. Their champagne tastes cannot possibly be worth the bread and water reality Kilpatrick will face if he does not make his restitution payments on time.

Perhaps the media is being too hard on Kwame. Many of his supporters in Detroit see his continued persecution as a racial issue, even going so far as to call him "nothing more than a darker version of Bill Clinton." (Yahoo News)

If Bill Clinton can easily be forgiven for his extra-marital crimes and perjury, why can't Kwame? Are we making a big deal of his missed payment because of his race?

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