Longtime Kilpatrick fundraiser Emma Bell took the witness stand Thursday and is expected to testify about giving the former mayor kickbacks.
Bell is expected to face a brutal cross-examination from Kilpatrick lawyer James C. Thomas about her gambling, tax woes and personal life. On Wednesday, he referred to her as a gambling addict and alcoholic.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Bullotta
But first, Bell faced a softball:
“How you doin’?” Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Bullotta asked Bell.
“I’m OK, thank you for asking,” Bell said.
Bullotta walked Bell through her time in Detroit and her history with Kilpatrick and his parents.
She met the family in the early 1970s through the Shrine of the Black Madonna in Detroit.
“We all went to the same church and sometimes were at political events together,” said Bell, who wore a long strand of pearls to federal court.
Bullotta asked Bell about her relationship with Kwame Kilpatrick.
“We had a good relationship, a very good relationship,” Bell said, adding she started raising money for Kilpatrick’s mayoral campaign, charity and other entities in 2003.