Jailed Ex-Mayor Sharpe James Takes Bus Back To Newark

AP/Joe Epstein

Five-time Newark mayor Sharpe James left a prison facility in Virginia Tuesday, and boarded a Greyhound back to his home city, where he'll serve out the rest of his 27-month sentence from a halfway house. Of course he could have taken a plane or a train, but instead the former official—convicted of fraud for selling city property to his mistress at a bargain price—chose the company of his former inmates. On the trip back he even staged a mini-protest, demanding refunds for all when the group was delayed. “Unfortunately, Mayor, it doesn’t work that way,” he was told.

While incarcerated, Sharpe played handball, read, and worked on his memoir. Here's an excerpt from "A Sharpe View," courtesy of the Times: “Many argue that with success comes power, influence, and, yes, sometimes unwanted attention. One must remember the Monkey Theory: the higher you climb in life, the more” you are exposed.

Even so, throngs of supporters greeted him when he finally disembarked in New Jersey, bearing signs that read "no crime committed," "Sharpe for governor" and "Booker must go," referring to his successor Cory Booker. "It's good to be home,'' said Sharpe, according to the AP, as he made his way through the crowd in a black SUV.