Two former Atlanta city officials convicted in a sprawling federal corruption investigation will serve their full sentences after President Trump denied their clemency applications, rejecting pleas that could have freed them from prison years early.

Millions in Bribes and Taxpayer Theft

Mitzi Bickers, who served as director of human services under former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, orchestrated a scheme that funneled approximately $17 million in city contracts to favored businesses. In exchange, she collected more than $2.9 million in bribes, which prosecutors said she used to purchase a lakefront home, a 2014 GMC Denali SUV, four Yamaha WaveRunners, and fund lavish travel expenses. A jury convicted her in 2022 on nine counts including money laundering, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit bribery.

U.S. District Judge Steve Jones described Bickers’ actions as a deliberate, calculated plan to cheat Atlanta taxpayers over multiple years. He initially sentenced her to 14 years in federal prison, later reduced to 12 years in 2025. She must also repay nearly $3 million in restitution to the city and serve three years of supervised release after completing her prison term.

Chief Financial Officer’s Luxury Spending Spree

Jimmie Beard held the position of chief financial officer for Atlanta from 2011 to 2018, controlling the city’s financial resources. Federal prosecutors proved he charged luxury trips to a city credit card, double-dipped on travel reimbursements, filed fraudulent tax returns, and exploited his position to obtain two custom-built machine guns normally restricted to civilian ownership. Beard pleaded guilty in 2024 to diverting government funds and lying to the IRS as part of a deal that dropped six additional charges including illegal machine gun possession.

Judge Jones sentenced Beard to three years in prison plus three years of supervised release. He must pay $177,197 in restitution along with a $10,000 fine. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Pardon Attorney revealed that both Bickers and Beard appeared among a massive list of clemency applications denied by President Trump on July 10.

Broader Investigation Continues

The two officials represent just a fraction of the federal corruption probe’s impact. Ten individuals total have been convicted in connection with the investigation into corruption during the Reed administration. Bickers played a pivotal role in Reed’s mayoral election victory before joining his administration. Despite the extensive investigation and multiple convictions of officials who worked under him, Reed himself has never faced criminal charges related to the corruption scandal that tainted his tenure as Atlanta’s mayor.