Southeast : MAYORAL BLOW

Gadfly Joe Marsico doesn’t deny it; he punched Whittier Mayor Michael Sullens after a community forum last May.

But Marsico has rejected any thought of a plea bargain, preferring to go to trial to try to clear his name. Last week, Whittier Municipal Judge Abner M. Fritz set a Sept. 19 trial date. Marsico, a longtime City Hall critic, contends that he was provoked by Sullens, who was not seriously injured.

“I’ve got false teeth and a bad back. I’m no fighter,” Marsico said Thursday. “I thought they would drop this. It was such a petty thing.”

But Deputy Dist. Atty. Daniel Lenhart said his office has no intention of dropping the case, although officials did decide against prosecuting Marsico on a new charge, that he illegally solicited money for his legal defense fund at the recent Uptown Whittier Street Festival.

“He had only collected a few dollars,” Lenhart said.