Mitzi Bickers resentenced for bribery and money laundering in Atlanta corruption case
Mitzi Bickers is a former city official who worked under during the Kasim Reed administration. (FOX 5 Atlanta)
ATLANTA - A federal judge on Wednesday reduced former Atlanta city official Mitzi Bickers’ prison sentence by two years after vacating four wire fraud convictions tied to a bribery scheme that funneled millions of dollars in city contracts to preferred vendors.
The backstory:
Bickers, once the city’s Director of Human Services under former Mayor Kasim Reed, was resentenced to 12 years in prison for her remaining convictions on three counts of money laundering, one count of conspiracy to commit bribery, and one count of filing a false tax return.
Bickers, 57, was the first person to stand trial in the federal corruption investigation at Atlanta City Hall and received the longest prison term in the case. Prosecutors accused her of accepting roughly $3 million in bribes in exchange for helping contractors secure about $17 million in city work, including bridge repairs, snow removal, and sidewalk projects.
Bickers was indicted in 2018 and found guilty in 2022 of all but three of the 12 charges against her, including bribery and tampering with an informant, which the jury rejected. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld her convictions in August 2024, excluding the wire fraud counts. The case was sent back to district court for resentencing.
A former pastor and political consultant, Bickers was appointed to her city post after helping Reed win the 2009 mayoral election. Prosecutors said she used bribe money to purchase a lakefront home, jet skis, a luxury SUV, and to fund international travel.
She is one of nearly a dozen people convicted in the sweeping federal probe into corruption during the Reed administration.
Mitzi Bickers' reduced sentence
What they're saying:
U.S. District Judge Steve Jones said the original 14-year sentence could no longer stand after prosecutors moved to dismiss the wire fraud charges—once central to the case—following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the scope of federal wire fraud laws. While Bickers’ defense sought a sentence of 80 months, Jones found a 12-year sentence appropriate, citing what he called "very bad" conduct tied to the bribery and money laundering convictions.
The judge declined to lower the $2.9 million in restitution Bickers was ordered to pay following her 2022 conviction. She has already served two and a half years behind bars.
Still, prosecutors argued that Bickers continued to downplay her crimes. "Respectfully, this case was not about undotted Is or uncrossed Ts," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Kitchens, calling her actions deceptive and damaging to the city's workforce.
Mitzi Bickers timeline of legal woes
Timeline:
Here's is a look at the timeline of legal troubles:
2009–2013
- Bickers allegedly begins accepting bribes to steer city contracts.
- Serves as Director of Human Services for the City of Atlanta from Feb 2010 to May 2013.
2014–2015
- Accused of attempting to influence public contracts in Jackson, Mississippi, by offering campaign assistance and perks to officials (unsuccessful).
March 2018
- Initial federal indictment unsealed: Bickers charged with conspiracy to commit bribery, money laundering, wire fraud, and tax fraud in relation to Atlanta city contracts.
August 2018
- Superseding indictment adds charges related to attempted bribery in Jackson, Mississippi.
April 2021
- Trial begins in federal court.
- Key contractors Elvin Mitchell Jr. and Charles Richards Jr. testify they paid Bickers more than $2 million in bribes to secure $17 million in city contracts.
- Prosecutors present evidence of luxury purchases with the alleged bribe money, including jet skis, a lake house, and international travel.
March 23, 2022
- Convicted on 9 of 12 counts, including bribery conspiracy, money laundering, wire fraud, and filing false tax returns.
September 8, 2022
- Sentenced to 14 years in federal prison.
- Ordered to pay nearly $3 million in restitution and serve three years of supervised release after prison.
June 2023
- Federal prosecutors request dismissal of 4 wire fraud counts after new Supreme Court precedent.
- Prosecutors also request a resentencing, arguing those counts should not stand.
- Bickers continues to appeal her convictions and sentence in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.
SEE ALSO:
- Mitzi Bickers trial: Former Jackson mayor testifies
- Former city of Atlanta official Mitzi Bickers found guilty in corruption case
- City of Atlanta fires two employees tied to Mitzi Bicker's corruption trial
- Former Atlanta official Mitzi Bickers sentenced in City Hall corruption investigation
- Prosecutors want to dismiss some charges for former Atlanta official in corruption case
The Source: The details in this article come from court documents filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Additional details come from previous FOX 5 Atlanta reports.