Ottawa Mayor Larry O'Brien says he intends to stay on in his post, despite the criminal charges against him.

O'Brien was charged by the Ontario Provincial Police Monday after a probe into allegations he offered a bribe to former opponent Terry Kilrea in exchange for dropping out of the 2006 mayoral race.

"I've decided not to resign because there's a lot of work left to be done here at City Hall and I feel that I'm the person that should be doing it," O'Brien said Tuesday.

Kilrea has signed an affidavit claiming O'Brien offered him a spot on the National Parole Board, or money, if he withdrew from the race.

O'Brien denies doing anything wrong.

"I can honestly tell you that in no time in my life would I ever have imagined or even considered the possibility of criminal charges," he said Monday night.

CTV News has learned O'Brien has told some councillors he turned down a plea deal of lesser charges in order to fight the criminal charges.

O'Brien's council colleagues have been advised by city lawyers to keep doing their jobs and refrain from talking about the mayor's legal woes.

"My job here is to continue to ensure the public's important business moves forward in a timely fashion," Coun. Peter Hume said.

Yet some say the situation poses questions over whether the mayor can do his job.

"I felt that I had been cheated out of my opportunity to ask legal and process questions that needed to be asked and answered," said Coun. Diane Deans.

O'Brien is expected to go to court in late 2008 or early 2009, but is scheduled to make his first court appearance next month in Ottawa.

In addition to claiming he was presented a spot on the parole board, Kilrea alleges he was offered $30,000 to cover his expenses. Kilrea did eventually drop out of the race, but said he never accepted any money.

Kilrea said the last eight months have been tough on him and his family.

"There's no happiness, there's no joy. This is not a happy time," he said.

Kilrea added that he's not about to make a statement on O'Brien's decision to stay on as mayor, yet he feels this is a matter of integrity.

"If people say 'Well, it's okay,' then so much for our political system," he said.

O'Brien has denied the bribery accusation, along with the claim that he discussed a possible appointment for Kilrea with federal Environment Minister John Baird, a Conservative Ottawa MP and the Treasury Board president during the period in question.

Baird, who is at the climate change conference in Bali, has denied ever discussing an appointment for Kilrea.

The Ontario Provincial Police laid the charges after more than eight months of investigation that included one search warrant and 48 interviews, including Baird.

OPP Supt. David Truax told CTV Ottawa that O'Brien has been charged with two Criminal Code offences.

The formal charges are:

  • Section 121(1)(d) of the Criminal Code, which deals with offering a reward or benefit in exchange for co-operation, and
  • Section 125 (b), which involves negotiating a benefit for appointment to or resignation from office "in expectation of a direct or indirect reward, advantage or benefit."

Truax said the maximum sentence for those two charges is five years in a penitentiary.