SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – The embattled mayor of one of California’s largest cities forcefully declared his innocence Friday, denying charges that he supplied alcohol to teenagers for a strip poker game in his room at a youth camp and declaring himself a victim of a smear campaign by political enemies.
Stockton Mayor Anthony Silva made brief remarks outside his lawyer’s office, neatly dressed in a suit and tie a day after leaving jail in shorts and a T-shirt following his arrest on charges that included child endangerment and secretly recording confidential communications without consent.
Silva didn’t take questions and didn’t talk about his political future amid growing calls for his resignation.
Prosecutors say a review of Silva’s cellphone turned up an audio recording of a gathering last August in his bedroom at the summer camp he hosts annually where at least four young adults and a 16-year-old were playing strip poker and drinking with the mayor.
Silva vigorously denied all charges while not specifically addressing whether the game occurred.