Resignation Deal Rejected By Kilpatrick

It's a deal that Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick of Detroit should take, but wont. The Democrat is charged in two separate criminal cases - one involving an assault of a police officer; the second stems from steamy emails to a coworker.

Thomas [Kilpatrick's attorney] called Prosecutor Douglas Baker's offer to drop one of the two charges in return for the mayor's resignation by Sept. 3 "gratuitous."

The other part of the deal would require the mayor to plead guilty to the remaining felony count.

Baker declined to discuss how the deal would be advantageous to the mayor.

"If it can settle the case, it's something that our office has decided would be a satisfactory resolution to the case," Baker said outside the courtroom. A veteran Wayne County prosecutor, Baker is retired but working on a contract to handle the case for Michigan Attorney General Cox. Cox called for Kilpatrick's resignation several months ago, after the mayor used the N-word and made other divisive comments during his State of the City speech.

The deal? The District Attorney would drop charges in the assault case if Kilpatrick resigns as mayor. Michigan Governor Granholm is supposed to consider a request by the Detroit City Council to have Kilpatrick removed from office. That is supposed to take place in September.

Don't hold your breath.

Meanwhile, the terms of Kilpatrick's bond would mean that he cannot attend the DNC convention in Denver; he's a superdelegate. That's bad news for the Obama campaign, which needs Michigan if he's got a chance to win the presidency.