San Leandro councilmember accused of seeking improper public benefits
Ex-city manager's lawsuit accuses councilmember of pressuring her to approve installation of a memorial bench, plaque to honor his father; Oakland loses a legendary progressive voice
☕️MORNING BUZZ
—San Leandro Councilmember Fred Simon repeatedly pressured then-City Manager Fran Robustelli to violate city protocols, misuse taxpayer funds, and surrender her administrative authority—or face the consequences, according to explosive allegations in a recently filed lawsuit in Alameda County Superior Court.
In the detailed complaint, Robustelli alleged that Simon submitted unauthorized mileage reimbursement claims for routine travel between his home and City Hall, which she declined to approve. After internal review, Simon was ordered to repay the funds.
He also allegedly sought reimbursement for out-of-state and non-city-related travel—including a trip to a homeless shelter in Chicago and a desert water agency in Palm Springs, Calif.—expenses Robustelli reluctantly approved but flagged as potential misuse of public funds, according to the lawsuit.
Other councilmembers, when made aware of Simon’s request, “agreed that it was an abuse of public funds to be reimbursed for such trips,” Robustelli asserts in the lawsuit.
Additionally, Robustelli reported that Councilmember Simon improperly collected medical benefits from three public jurisdictions by filing a waiver-of-coverage reimbursement with the City of San Leandro despite receiving health coverage from other public agencies. Simon is also an elected member of the Oro Loma Sanitary District Board of Directors.
—Robustelli also alleges that her treatment was rooted in gender discrimination, stating that Simon and Councilmember Victor Aguilar, Jr. exhibited repeated behavior suggesting “a woman cannot be a city manager,” according to the lawsuit.
The allegations are part of a lawsuit that Robustelli filed on June 13 in Alameda County Superior Court on June 13 that also includes claims that Councilmembers Aguilar and Bryan Azevedo pressured her to seek approval for a container homes scheme that is now part of the FBI’s ongoing public corruption investigation in the East Bay.
Simon did not immediately respond for comment.
Allegations of gender bias toward Robustelli were also detailed in an independent investigation initiated by the city last year. The findings resulted in the censure of Simon and Aguilar, Jr. by the city council in November…
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—More inside:
More on the Robustelli lawsuit: Complaint alleges Simon sought memorial bench, plaque for his father at the San Leandro Marina.
Read the entire Robustelli lawsuit.
How much could San Leandro’s former city manager lawsuit net in a settlement? There’s a few connections to a similar recent complaint.
Ex-Hayward police chief files workers’ comp claim. Toney Chaplin’s retirement followed an on-duty injury.
Alameda County superintendent of schools narrowly lost her home to a fire that engulfed two other homes.
An appreciation: Dan Siegel, one of the most influential progressives voices in Oakland’s history, has died. He was 79.
Campaign finance data for June 30 through July 6.
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