ANSAN
2009
THE UNIVERSITY OF JAHYI KANSAN
THURSDAY DECEMBER 3, 2009
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Baltimore mayor Sheila Dixon leaves a news conference Wednesday in Baltimore. Dixon resumed her regular duties the day after her misdemean conviction for taking gift cards meant for a program to help the city's poor children.
Convicted mayor may keep office
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BALTIMORE — Mayor Sheila Dixon's misdemeanor fraud conviction fails to meet a key standard necessary for her removal from office, her attorney said Wednesday as the mayor resumed her regular duties a day after the verdict.
Her criminal defense lawyer, Arnold M. Weiner, said the guilty verdict reflected testimony about actions that weren't part of Dixon's duties as City Council president, the post she held at the time.
State law requires removal of elected officials who are convicted of crimes related to their public duties and responsibilities.
It's not clear if her defense team
would have an opportunity to argue that point before a suspension took effect, or whether such a claim would be decided by the trial judge or another court.
Her defense team plans to appeal the conviction
said Dixon owes her constituents an apology if she plans to fight for her job.
a very traumatic city has a
"The city has been put through
a very intimate situation. She should apologize for having placed the city in this situation and maybe ask the city for forgiveness," said Schmoke, who served as Baltimore's
"The city has been put through a very traumatic situation."
mayor from 1987 to 1999 and is now dean of Howard University's law school in Washington.
KURTL. SCHMOKE
Former Baltimore
mavor
Dixon's conviction of fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciality of $525 worth of gift cards carries a penalty ranging from unsupervised probation to five years in prison. Her sentencing hasn't
"She should apologize for having placed the city in this situation and maybe ask the city for forgiveness."
Meanwhile, former mayor and fellow Democrat Kurt L. Smokeh
would be removed permanently and replaced by the City Council president if she loses all appeals.
been scheduled. The jury acquitted her on three other counts, including felony theft, and failed to reach a verdict on a second count of misappropriation.
Byron L. Warnken, associate pro
Under state law, Dixon must be suspended upon sentencing for a
KURT L. SCHMOKE
Former Baltimore
mayor
conviction that's related to her public duties and responsibilities and involves moral turpitude. She
fessor at the University of Baltimore School of Law, said Maryland case law has determined that fraudulent misappropriation is a crime of moral turpitude. He said any argument that Dixon's conviction wasn't related to her public duties would be weak.
but a stronger case could made that she can't be removed as mayor for an offense she committed before attaining that office.
City Solicitor George A. Nilson, a Dixon appointee, said the first-term mayor would remain focused on citizens' concerns and the city's business until her appeals are exhausted.
— I think that's an argument," said Warnken, an experienced appellate and criminal defense lawyer.
"I it's a moor point that I'm finished being City Council president"
Meanwhile, mayoral spokesman Scott Peterson said Dixon's focus "is on the city and the citizens of the city"
LAWRENCE
Wedding industry thrives despite economic downturn
Here comes the business
BY HONG VU editor@kansan.com
He said Dixon conducted a senior staff meeting Wednesday morning and had lunch with the city's public schools chief.
Jessica Wenberg did not plan to get married this soon.
Money problems have forced Wenberg and her fiance to move in together and to marry more quickly than they expected.
"It's a little rushed, but in this difficult time, we just feel like we need to support each other more," said Wenberg, 28, an elementary school teacher. "And why not now?"
The decision to tie the knot made by hundreds of other couples like Wenberg and her fiance have helped to boost the wedding industry in Lawrence, which some companies say is still thriving despite widespread economic uncertainty.
"It is really crazy," Garrison said. "We did not expect to have weddings in the fall, but people keep coming in."
Garrison recalled the chaos last June when she and three other staff members handled 26 weddings in one weekend.
Savvi has had about 300 tuxedo orders this year as compared
"I was running back and forth to make sure that everyone had a chance to try their tuxedos on," she said.
JESSICA WENBERG Bride-to-be
other staff members have had to work an extra day every week to meet the increased demand. Savvi will also soon offer more bridal gowns.
"We didn't think the economy would support it, but we've got two cabinets full of orders," she said.
BLOOMING BUSINESSES
to about 200 last year, according to company figures. On average, Garrison said, one customer would need 15 tuxedos for a wedding. Since early summer, Garrison and
Cary Engle
Cary Engle of Englewood Florist, 1101 Massachusetts St., said orders for flowers had doubled since the beginning of 2009. He attributed this increase to more wedding orders.
Catering, music services and flower shops in the city also reported a surge in the number of customers this year.
"It's a little rushed, but in this difficult time, we just feel like we need to support each other more."
"Things would have been really bad if it hadn't worked out," said Myers, who is the father of two
For DJ Gary Myers, 2009 was a good year for business. He hasn't always had this luck. He quit his job in October 2008 to start his own DJ service, which he said was his "lifetime passion." In the beginning, Myers would check his e-mail first thing every morning to see if he had any new orders. But nothing came through.
"I was like, 'there you go. You've got booked.' he said.
When the traditional wedding season arrived with
But as soon as April hit, orders for wedding music began to flood in, quickly filling up his weekend schedules.
summer, Myers even had to turn down potential clients because of his full schedule.
children.
"I was running back and forth to make sure that everyone had a chance to try their tuxedos on."
MARISSA GARRISON Savvi Formal Wear
Soon after, he decided to expand his business by investing in more
music and equipment. Myers now works with two other DJs and has worked in several cities in Kansas and other neighboring states.
NO ELOPING FROM HARD TIMES
Even in the thriving wedding industry, the effect of the recession can be felt. Savvi has sold tuxedos originally priced between $250 and $2,000 for sale prices of $20 or $30. Englewood Florist now charges much less for some items than it once did.
While some shops flourish, others in Lawrence continue to struggle.
Along Massachusetts Street, the city's business hub, shops and offices are still shutting down, leaving empty spaces and making traces of the economic crisis more visible. Meanwhile, surviving companies
were struggling to make ends meet.
Edited by Brenna M. T. Daldorph
and forth to show her customers new products. Madison was so busy because she had to lay off two of her four employees.
On a hot August afternoon at the beginning of the back-to-school season, Morgan Madison, owner of fashion shop Eccentricity, 716 Massachusetts St., was running back
Like everywhere else around the world, Lawrence has been hit hard by the financial downturn. The city's unemployment rate reached 6.4 percent in July, the highest in the last 10 years. Although it is still relatively low in comparison to the national rate, the recession has taken its toll on people's incomes and the businesses that supported the college town of 91,000 people.
"Because of the economy, people don't want to spend too much on trendy clothes," said Madison, 28. "We've had to cut back quite a bit."
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