South Gate Official’s Case Goes to Jury

The criminal case against South Gate Treasurer Albert Robles went to the jury Tuesday after testimony that portrayed a political world of profane and crass elected officials, some of whom said threatening language is part of the game, and others who said such talk made them fear for their lives.

“You keep on trucking,” said state Assemblyman Mervyn M. Dymally (D-Compton), who testified early in the trial that he has often shrugged off threats from other politicians in southeast Los Angeles County. Robles is charged with making death threats against four people, including two state legislators.

Dymally’s testimony reflected a major theme of Robles’ defense during the one-week trial. They said behind-closed-doors political speech is not to be taken literally: It’s part of the unspoken rule book.

“We all do it,” said South Gate Mayor Xochilt Ruvalcaba, who cited “I’m going to cut you off at the knees” and other rough phrases as some examples of the threatening language she has heard over the years.

But prosecutors contend that people receiving Robles’ statements were so intimidated that they had to watch their backs.

Tough-talking politicians, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Jennifer Snyder, do not have a free pass to make threats. Robles, among other things, is charged with threatening to rape Sen. Martha Escutia (D-Whittier) and kill her husband, Leo Briones.

“There is nothing political about raping somebody. There is nothing political about shooting them in the head,” Snyder said during her closing argument in Norwalk Superior Court.

Robles is also charged with threatening the lives of Assemblyman Marco Antonio Firebaugh (D-Los Angeles) and a South Gate police lieutenant. All of the alleged threats were relayed through intermediaries.

Defense attorneys dismissed the case as a political ploy by the state legislators who, they said, are retaliating against Robles for their political defeats. Defense witnesses have said the district attorney’s office concocted police reports and tried to put words in their mouths.