Elrick: Where Are Kilpatrick's Family Members Now That He Needs Them?

Whatever you believe about Kwame Kilpatrick, know this: Friends and family mean a lot, writes M.L. Elrick.

He, like his mother the congresswoman, put plenty of them on the payroll when they were in office. And, even after his fall from City Hall, they've always turned out to support him at public appearances and in court.

Until now.

It's been more than two weeks since Kilpatrick began making daily appearances in U.S. District Court to face public corruption charges, along with his father, Bernard, his best friend, Bobby Ferguson, and former city Water Department Director Victor Mercado, and we have yet to have a family member join us on the hard benches in the back of the courtroom.