Former East Cleveland mayor Brandon King and former East Cleveland councilman Ernest Smith
Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com
By Kathy Wray Coleman, editor, associate publisher
EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio - A Cuyahoga County jury on May 29 found suspended East Cleveland mayor Brandon King and former councilman Ernest Smith guilty of public corruption charges.
The trial followed months of legal manoeuvrings and claims of corruption by judges and prosecutors from the defense team.
East Cleveland is a neighboring Black suburb of Cleveland of some 15,000 residents, and one of the poorest cities in the nation.
King, 57, was convicted of three fourth-degree felonies – theft in office and two counts of having an unlawful interest in a public contract – as well as misdemeanor offenses. He faces up to 18 months in prison on the felony convictions alone.
King was found guilty of steering $75,000 to family businesses, while Smith, 49 and recalled from office by voters in 2022, was convicted of misusing a city vehicle and gas card. Both are barred from office for seven years. They remain free on bond, at least until sentencing on July 8.
Their supporters say the case is politically motivated and racist since both are Black and County prosecutor Mike O'Malley has allegedly been targeting Black elected officials for prosecution and leaving White ones, including some corrupt common pleas judges, alone.
King had been the city’s mayor since 2016. He was indicted in late October on 12 counts, including theft in office, unlawful interest in a public contract and soliciting or receiving improper compensation. In short, prosecutors say he steered contracts and money to family members and friends, and handed favors to former councilman Smith, who is Black like King.
King was later suspended with pay by the Ohio Supreme Court at the urging of Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O'Malley, whom critics say is out to criminalize Black, male elected officials one by one, and any outspoken Black community activists he can railroad into prison with help from crooked and racist judges.
O'Malley bragged to the mainstream media on Thursday after the jury convicted King and Smith, saying in part that “Mayor King’s conviction was inevitable,” and that "the citizens of East Cleveland deserve better than what their municipal government has provided them."
Activists say that it is unprofessional for O'Malley to brag about his efforts to imprison Black elected officials with help from a debilitating legal system in the county that is plagued with racism and steeped in public corruption.
Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com are the most-read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio. Tel. 216-659-0473. Email-editor@clevelandurbannews.com
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