Read Rep. Marcia Fudge’s letter of support of Lance Mason before domestic violence conviction

CLEVELAND, OH (WOIO) - Many came to the defense of former Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Lance Mason after he assaulted his then-wife Aisha Fraser Mason back in 2014.

Congresswoman Marcia Fudge was one of those people.

In a brutal attack Mason struck his wife repeatedly in the head while driving.

He slammed her head against the window and dashboard and bit her in the face in front of their two young children.

The incident led to eight charges, from felonious assault to kidnapping and endangering children.

The former judge took a plea deal, reducing the charges to a domestic violence charge and felonious assault.

He was sentenced to 24 months in prison, but ended up serving nine months.

We reached out to Marcia Fudge for a comment following the allegations of her friend and she replied with this statement.

“My heart breaks for Aisha Fraser.  I pray for Aisha’s family, especially her children, as they attempt to deal with this tragedy.  My support of Lance in 2015 was based on the person I knew for almost 30 years – an accomplished lawyer, prosecutor, state legislator and a judge.  That’s the Lance Mason I supported.  The person who committed these crimes is not the Lance Mason familiar to me.  It was a horrific crime.  I and everyone who knew Aisha are mourning her loss.”

Following his stint in prison, Mason applied for a job with the city of Cleveland and “won” the position, according to Mayor Frank Jackson.

His title: Minority Business Development Administrator

Following the stabbing of Fraser, the public is wondering why he had a job in the first place.

In the original letter Fudge stated that Mason was a kind, intelligent man, and a loyal friend.

The latter is what people are considering to be the problem, but people involved in the hiring process (Mayor Jackson) insists that this wasn’t a political favor by any means.

The mayor stands by the policy of hiring convicted felons as city officials.

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