Ex-Atlantic City mayor gets probation for embellishing war record

[darrels joy]

Ex-Atlantic City mayor gets probation for embellishing war record

by Rudy Larini/The Star-Ledger Friday July 25, 2008, 2:00 PM


AP Former Atlantic City Mayor Robert Levy, right, leaves the U.S. District Courthouse in Camden, N.J., with his lawyer Edwin Jacobs, left, Nov. 1, 2007.

Former Atlantic City Mayor Robert Levy today was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine by a judge who said Levy continues to exaggerate his military service in Vietnam.

Levy, 61, had pleaded guilty in federal court in Camden in November to one count of falsifying his service record when he applied for increased veterans benefits in January 2003.

During today's hearing, Judge Jerome B. Simandle asked Levy to explain more about the dangerous missions behind enemy lines he told probation officers he participated in.

"I just picked up my M-16 and my radio and went along," said Levy, looking tan and fit with a neatly trimmed gray beard. "I didn't do this on a regular basis, but on occasion they asked me and I always said yes. I was not a hero running around like Rambo. I was scared to death."

But Judge Jerome B. Simandle was skeptical.

"It would appear to be a significant exaggeration was made to the probation," Simandle said. "It shows that unfortunately Mr. Levy has a lot of work to do to come to grips with his experience in Vietnam."

The judge also ordered Levy to pay $25,198 to the Veterans Administration.

Ironically, Levy may still collect the benefits he sought unlawfully. The VA is considering Levy's application to collect disability payments for post-traumatic stress disorder that did not manifest itself until he left the Army in 1984.

The former mayor served two tours of duty during the Vietnam War and came home with a Bronze Star, but falsely claimed he had been awarded two other military honors, a Combat Infantryman's Badge and a Parachutist Badge.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/200..._mayor_to.html

[darrels joy]

Former Atlantic City Mayor Pleads Guilty


Former Atlantic City Mayor Pleads Guilty to Lying to Get Benefits


By GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press Writer
CAMDEN, N.J. November 1, 2007 (AP)
The Associated Press

The former mayor of Atlantic City pleaded guilty Thursday to lying to enhance his veterans benefits, a crime that played a role in his bizarre three-week disappearance earlier this fall.


Making his first public appearance since leaving office Oct. 10, Robert
Levy admitted to falsely claiming to have been awarded two military medals and embellishing his military record in order to receive more money in disability benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Levy admitted fabricating stories that as a soldier in Vietnam, he had been left in the jungle for weeks along with South Vietnamese troops he was working with to fend for himself. He also claimed to have made a number of parachute jumps when he did not.

Though those claims were untrue, Levy was a decorated Army veteran who was given eight medals including two bronze stars, said his lawyer, Edwin Jacobs.

As a federal judge read the accusations, Levy said, "Yes, your honor," but
little else.

The increased benefits over four years came to a total of $24,683. It was unclear whether he would have to repay that.

Levy is scheduled to be sentenced in February. As part of his plea deal, he agreed not to appeal his sentence as long as it's not more than six months.

The Democrat was elected in 2005 to preside over a city in which the political corruption is almost as famous as the casinos. Four of the last nine mayors have been charged with taking bribes; three men who were on the city council last year are now in prison in another bribery case.

Levy disappeared from city life in late September before resurfacing to resign. He cited ill health and the federal investigation into his war record as his reasons for leaving.

The Press of Atlantic City reported last fall that the Vietnam veteran's claims that he was a member of the Green Berets were untrue. He apologized, but federal authorities have been looking into whether Levy made that claim to increase his veteran benefit payments.

During his absence from city hall, Levy spent time in a substance abuse and mental health treatment center in northern New Jersey. Jacobs described the mayor's time there as "a detox situation."

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.