Bermans working on reconciliation

Gilbert Mayor Steve Berman and his wife, Michelle, say they have resolved their very public marital breakup, attending the Gilbert Chamber of Commerce's Community Excellence Awards together on Friday night.

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"I have not given up on my marriage, I have not given up on my wife, and we're trying to work through things," Steve Berman said in a telephone interview Monday afternoon.

Their reconciliation seems improbable after months of accusations of spousal abuse by Michelle against Steve, prescription drug abuse by Steve against Michelle, and an order of protection obtained by Michelle that forced Steve to temporarily give up his gun collection.

However, "Nothing's impossible if you want it bad enough," Steve Berman said.

Michelle Berman asked Monday that she and her husband be allowed their privacy.

"Please respect that. Please let us be," she said. "I just wish our children would stay out of our marriage, I wish the newspaper would stay out of our marriage, because it's between two people, not 2,000."

Michelle Berman sought orders of protection against her husband and his son, Steve Berman Jr. The mayor said an Oct. 15 court action removed all remaining restrictions on whether he and Michelle could contact or be near each other. The order against Steve Berman Jr. has not been dismissed, according to the Maricopa County Superior Court's Web site.

The couple's appearance together on Friday definitely created a buzz.

"I would say I was a little surprised, I think most people at the chamber awards Friday were surprised, when Micky walked in with him it was all the talk," said Town Councilman Don Skousen. "Maybe pleasantly surprised. They both looked good, and I hope it works for them."

Skousen recently joined the race to unseat Berman in next spring's elections. Many of his prospective opponents have said Berman's personal issues have contributed to voter discontent with the two-term mayor.

The Bermans married in November 2007 after dating for six years. This is Steve Berman's fourth marriage and at least the second for Michelle. Their marital problems became public in July after Gilbert police turned an investigation of a domestic complaint against Steve Berman over to the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.

Michelle Berman told the Tribune at that time she had notified authorities because Steve Berman had threatened to kill her father, and Steve had abused her physically and emotionally. Steve Berman denied the abuse charges Monday.

Court records showed Steve Berman had also been involved in acrimonious breakups with previous wives, including instances where the women alleged he had threatened them with violence. In one case, a court commissioner found that the woman couldn't work because of injuries she suffered in an assault by Berman. A psychologist noted "long-standing tension in the family, coupled with episodic violence."

Michelle Berman has also claimed she's been the victim of violence in other relationships. In September, she filed a report with Tempe police claiming that her former husband Steven Corey, with whom she had been staying, had assaulted her. He is scheduled to go to trial Wednesday on a misdemeanor charge in the case, a Tempe City Court employee said.

The sheriff's investigation into Steve Berman is under review by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, according to spokesman Mike Anthony Scerbo.

The three men gathering signatures in order to run against Steve Berman in the March 10 primary all said they wish the couple well but doubt a reconciliation will be a game-changer.

"As far as what impact that might have, I think that's between the mayor and the voters," Skousen said.

"It's always been about the issues," said Dave Petersen, a former town councilman running against Berman.

Twenty-one-year-old mayoral candidate Eric Hurley said the publicity around the mayor's marriage reinforced perceptions people already had of Berman as self-centered and unresponsive to voters.

"This is really kind of a small thing in the story of Steve Berman," Hurley said.

The mayor has also drawn criticism over the last year or so for accepting a truck loaned to the town by SanTan Ford, for accepting an expensive suit from Dillard's and for yelling at a television news camera crew questioning him about the $40 million expenditure on Big League Dreams at the park's opening.

Berman said he didn't think his personal life would affect his fortunes in the March primary election or, if necessary, the June general elections, noting former Mayor Cynthia Dunham tried and failed to make an issue of his marital record before he defeated her in 2001.

He said he would run a campaign based on the town's successes since he took office. "Gilbert's got some pretty sophisticated voters, and I think they're going to take a look at how the town has performed over the last eight years," he said.