Stephen R. Reed, the man who served as mayor of Pennsylvania's capital city for nearly thirty years -- earning him the nickname "Mayor-for-Life" from his political opponents -- pleaded guilty on Monday to stealing twenty historic artifacts.
According to PennLive, the artifacts in question include Wild West memorabilia valued at more than $19,000 which Reed claims he accidentally packed up along with personal belongings when he left office in 2010. "How they got into some box when moving out of office seven years ago, I don't know," explained Reed after pleading guilty to twenty counts of receiving stolen property.
Reed alleges that the boxes were packed by a subordinate.
As mayor, Reed faced harsh criticism for purchasing Civil War and Wild West artifacts with taxpayer funds. While Reed's planned National Civil War Museum eventually opened, his proposed Wild West museum never saw the light of day.
Ex-mayor's pension not at risk
Although the disgraced former mayor stated to the press that he felt "gut-wrenchingly humiliated" after entering his plea, Henry Hockeimer, one of the attorneys representing Reed, said that he doesn't believe the guilty plea will place the ex-mayor's pension at risk. Reed will be sentenced on Friday by Senior Judge Kevin A. Hess.
The charges against Stephen Reed stem from a 2015 sting operation, in which Reed's home and office were raided by authorities.
The raid resulted in 112 theft-related charges being levied against Reed, but these charges were later reduced to twenty by former Attorney General Kathleen Kane. Kane, who made national headlines in 2015 after refusing to resign after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court suspended her law license, was convicted last year on nine felony charges and sentenced to 10-23 months in prison.
Reed's legacy of scandal and corruption
Although Stephen Reed left office in 2010 his name has remained a fixture in local newspaper headlines because of questionable behavior during his lengthy term as mayor; even his Wikipedia entry begins not with a list of his accomplishments as mayor of Harrisburg, but with a mention that Reed has faced, or is facing, charges on nearly 500 counts of corruption, fraud, and theft since leaving office.
