The response to former

LA

The conviction of Councilor Mark Ridley-Thomas for bribery, conspiracy and fraud was highly unusual, to say the least.

As both my colleague Erika Smith and a subsequent news article pointed out, Ridley-Thomas is not facing the public horror, outrage and condemnation that usually accompanies

a corruption verdict, but

,

On the contrary

,

receives homage instead of contempt.

Shortly after the jury found him guilty of seven felonies last week

MARCH 31ST

, Los Angeles Mayor Ridley-Thomas called an opinion leader and a champion of our city. A former colleague of the city council called him the ruthless advocate, the unstoppable force. The people of his community remembered him as a 40-year veteran of activism and politics who devoted his life to public service.

This outpouring of support and gratitude for a convicted felon seems to cause some confusion. What is Ridley-Thomas anyway, people seem to ask a saint or a sinner?

Why, they want to know, is a man so enthusiastically praised by government officials and

ordinary voters of his constituents

facing the possibility of several years in prison? Shall we

to consider

Did you call him a good man who spent his life effectively fighting for marginalized and destitute voters in neglected neighborhoods, or a selfish, bribery-taking pol who abused his power for his own personal gain?

Some of his supporters are apparently angry that the government would even bother to prosecute a man who has done so much for Los Angeles. Some have concluded that he must have been

harassed or subject to a witch hunt or racially targeted or victim of any other mockery of justice.

And I suspect there has been a mockery. Perhaps the jury was wrong; maybe there was no quid pro quo and

he has been wrongly convicted. Ridley-Thomas, who has denied wrongdoing from the start, will certainly have a chance to make that argument when he appeals his case. I wish him luck; I too have known and admired him for many years.

But there is another possible

statement, and that is that both versions of the story are true

,

that Ridley-Thomas is both a fiery and effective fighter for his constituents

other

a briber. sura

,

some cognitive dissonance is required to take that in. But isn’t that the truth about people? We contain multitudes.

Ridley-Thomas may be the reformer of the Los Angeles Police Department, the champion of the reopening of the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital, the homelessness fighter and caring officer with deep ties to a deprived, marginalized community

other

the man who received special benefits for his son, Sebastian, from the then dean of the USC social work program in exchange for supporting a district contract for the university. Prosecutors said he accepted free tuition for graduate school and a paid professorship for Sebastian.

It’s possible because people are complicated

.

They are

in

consistent. They can be tempted and sometimes they are

succumb, especially when their children are involved.

Many people suggested to come in

the LA

Times stories that Ridley-Thomas’ crimes don’t outweigh

everything he has achieved over the years. That’s a matter of opinion, but I think it’s probably true.

Are

it is also true that removing him from government will deal a blow to the city, the region and the communities he represented.

But even if his good works outweigh his crimes, they do not excuse them. The simple truth is that he had no right to accept valuable favors in exchange for official acts, which is what the jury concluded he did.

Selling your office for personal gain is something you can do

not

be tolerated. The fact that he is 68 years old, that he did it for his son, that he could have supported the USC contracts even if he had not been offered a bribe, and that his municipal district will not be represented for some time, that has all meaningless. determine whether he is guilty.

Like Councilman Jos Huizar and Councilman Mitchell Englander before him, Ridley-Thomas was found to have betrayed public trust.

Does this mean that all his years of doing good are pointless and should count for nothing? Of course not.

Ridley-Thomas’ life story and all the work he’s done and the benefits he’s brought to LA and any other extenuating circumstances his supporters want to highlight are perfectly appropriate subjects for his sentencing, currently scheduled for August 21. members, friends, colleagues and associates of the defendant to submit letters in advance explaining why clemency is warranted.

Who is Mark Ridley-Thomas in its entirety? He’s complex and contradictory, just like the rest of us, I suspect. The jury weighed in

proof of his guilt

;

the judge must fully weigh the man before deciding what his sentence should be.

@Nick_Goldberg