Mel Reynolds

Mel Reynolds

Melvin Jay "Mel" Reynolds (born January 8, 1952 in Mound Bayou , Bolivar County , Mississippi ) is an American politician . Between 1993 and 1995 he represented the state of Illinois in the US House of Representatives .

Career

Mel Reynolds came to Chicago as a child . Until 1972 he attended Chicago City College . He then studied at the University of Illinois until 1974 . In the meantime he also studied law. In 1986 he taught political science at Harvard University . Reynolds became the founder and president of the American Scholars Against World Hunger relief organization . Politically, he became a member of the Democratic Party .

In the 1992 congressional election , Reynolds was elected to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC in the second constituency of Illinois , where he succeeded Gus Savage, who had been defeated in the Democratic primary, on January 3, 1993 . Charged against Reynolds in August 1994 for sexually abusing a 16-year-old campaign worker in 1992. Nevertheless, he was re-elected to Congress in November 1994 . On August 22, 1995, he was convicted of sexual assault, obstruction of justice, and child pornography . His resignation took place on October 1, 1995.

Reynolds was sentenced to five years in prison and could expect his release in 1998. In April 1997 he was charged with bank fraud following an investigation by the SEC . As a result, his prison sentence was extended by another 42 months for bank fraud. Despite this legal history, he ran in his party's 2004 primaries for his return to Congress. He didn't have a chance. Incumbent Jesse Jackson Jr. received 88 percent of the vote.

In November 2012 he announced that he would run for the mandate of the resigned Jackson in the April 2013 by-election. In his party's primary election on February 26, almost synonymous with the actual election due to the strength of the Democrats in this district, he will meet former Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson, among others .

On February 18, 2014, Reynolds was arrested in Zimbabwe for his visa expiry. He was also found to be in possession of pornographic videos and that he had been filming with several women in a hotel. Possession of pornography in Zimbabwe is a criminal offense. In addition, he is said to have not paid around $ 24,000 in hotel costs.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ WBEZ 91.5: Admitting 'mistakes,' Reynolds bids for Jackson's congressional seat (November 28, 2012)
2. ↑ http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/02/18/us-congressman-zimbabwe-pornography/5577005/

Web links

• Mel Reynolds in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Mel Reynolds in the nndb (English)