Politics

Atlanta City Councilman To Pay $15K For Ethics Violations

January 16th, 2015

Atlanta City Councilman Michael Julian Bond has agreed to pay more than $15,000 to settle over a dozen violations of the city’s ethics code.

The six-page settlement details how Councilman Bond took a $3,000 advance for a trip he never took and accepted dozens of free tickets for things like a Chaka Khan concert and the annual Dragon-Con convention. It also outlines his use of public money for personal travel, private tutoring and to print DVDs and pins for his high school reunion.

Bond will pay a $400 fine for each of the six times he requested tickets or admission to an event and a $250 fine for each of the six violations of the city ethics code, totaling $3,900. He’ll also pay $11,320.81 in restitution.

As part of the agreement, which Bond signed earlier this month, he acknowledges he violated the city’s ethics code.

The city’s Chief Ethics Officer Nina Hickson opened an investigation into the councilman after local news channel 11-WXIA flagged him for his spending.

The city’s ethics board still needs to accept the settlement.