Cudahy : Councilman Censured for Comment on Casino Favors

In an unusual action this week, four members of the Cudahy City Council voted to censure fellow Councilman John O. Robertson Jr. for actions they said are “unbecoming to a holder of public office.”

Mayor Joseph Graffio and council members Joseph Fregeau, Alex Rodriguez and Jack Cluck at Monday’s council meeting officially censured Robertson for making “false and defamatory claims” about them when he said they used their positions to pay back a local businessman who supported them during last April’s election.

Robertson said in an interview with The Times that he believed the four council members have supported Silver Saddle Club owner Charles King by passing ordinances that favor King’s card casino because King is a strong political supporter. All four council members and King have denied the charges.

Robertson called the censure ridiculous, and stood by his comments.

“The fact is that the council for one reason or another has been extremely supportive of King,” Robertson said. “We have to ask why they keep supporting the man . . . the whole heart of the argument was that I had the audacity to say that they are linked to Chuck King. It seems I hit a tender spot, and now they want to censure me.”