Brooks resigns House seat before pleading guilty to tax fraud
State Rep. Tyrone Brooks, D-Atlanta, resigned his seat in the Legislature on Thursday before pleading guilty to one count of tax fraud and no contest to five counts of wire and mail fraud.
A sentencing hearing has not been set yet.
Brooks faced 30 federal charges of wire, tax and mail fraud related to his work with a pair of charities. The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged that Brooks used contributions meant for those charities for his personal expenses. A trial for Brooks had been set for June.
The veteran lawmaker and civil rights leader pleaded not guilty in 2013 after he was indicted.
In a letter to Gov. Nathan Deal dated Thursday, Brooks said he was resigning his seat after 35 years in the General Assembly to transition back to full-time “civil human rights work.” He ended his letter, “Peace and justice, we shall overcome.”
