Robert W. Levy, Sr., known as Bob Levy (born May 16, 1947, in
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.
Mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, New Jersey was incorporated on May 1, 1854. It is governed within the Faulkner Act (formally known as the Optional Municipal Charter Law) under the Mayor-Council system of municipal government (Plan D), implemented by direct petiti ...
. In September 2007, Levy disappeared from Atlantic City without telling the public or the press why he was leaving. His sudden absence sparked a controversy over who should become the acting mayor of Atlantic City. On October 10, 2007, attorneys for Levy announced his resignation, effective immediately.
Early life
Levy is a lifelong resident of Atlantic City. He became a
lifeguard
A lifeguard is a rescuer who supervises the safety and rescue of swimmers, surfers, and other water sports participants such as in a swimming pool, water park
A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features ...
in 1960 and married in 1964 after graduating from
Atlantic City High School
Atlantic City High School (ACHS) is a comprehensive public high school in Atlantic City, in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. It is the lone secondary school of the Atlantic City School District.
The current school building opened ...
. Levy married Hazel Washington, an
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
woman, and experienced hostility from his own family for the
interracial marriage
Interracial marriage is a marriage involving spouses who belong to different races or racialized ethnicities.
In the past, such marriages were outlawed in the United States, Nazi Germany and apartheid-era South Africa as miscegenation. In 1 ...
.
Military career
Shortly after his marriage, Levy enlisted in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
. After basic and advanced infantry training at Fort Dix, New Jersey, basic airborne training at
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama– Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employee ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
, and an eight-week field communications course Levy was assigned to
Fort Knox
Fort Knox is a United States Army installation in Kentucky, south of Louisville and north of Elizabethtown. It is adjacent to the United States Bullion Depository, which is used to house a large portion of the United States' official gold re ...
,
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...
, as a field communications crewman. In August 1965 Levy was sent to
Würzburg
Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River.
Würzburg ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
, before being assigned to the 1st Aviation Battalion, 1st Infantry Division in
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
. In April 1967 Levy returned to the United States and was assigned to
Fort Hood
Fort Hood is a United States Army post located near Killeen, Texas. Named after Confederate General John Bell Hood, it is located halfway between Austin and Waco, about from each, within the U.S. state of Texas. The post is the headquarter ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. In 1970 Levy began his second
tour
Tour or Tours may refer to:
Travel
* Tourism, travel for pleasure
* Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service
* Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus
* Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...
in Vietnam. In June 1971 he came back to the U.S. and after leave became a tactical communications chief instructor for 10 months at Fort Dix. During his tours during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
he was awarded two
Bronze Stars
The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a Combat, combat zo ...
. In June 1972 Levy began working as an army recruiting officer in
Toms River, New Jersey
Toms River is a township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Its mainland portion is also a census-designated place of the same name, which serves as the county seat of Ocean County.Fort Carson,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...
, and promoted to First Sergeant. Levy stayed in Colorado until 1982 when he returned to New Jersey at
Fort Monmouth
Fort Monmouth is a former installation of the Department of the Army in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The post is surrounded by the communities of Eatontown, Tinton Falls and Oceanport, New Jersey, and is located about from the Atlantic Ocean. T ...
in September where he stayed until he retired in 1984.
Return to Atlantic City
After he retired Levy went back to being a lifeguard and in 1986 became the chief lifeguard and beach patrol chief. Between 1990 and 2003, appointed by then-Mayor
Jim Whelan
Jim Whelan (November 8, 1948 – August 22, 2017) was an American Democratic Party politician, who served in the New Jersey State Senate where he represented the 2nd Legislative District, from January 8, 2008, until his death.
Early life
Whela ...
, Levy served as Atlantic City's Emergency Management Director. From 1998 to 2006 Levy headed the Department of Emergency Services. After being a lifelong
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
, Levy switched party affiliation to Democrat in 2004.
Levy entered the race for mayor of Atlantic City after City Council President Craig Callaway withdrew from the Democratic mayoral primary in 2005. With backing from Callaway and his supporters, Levy beat incumbent mayor Lorenzo T. Langford in the Democratic primary. Levy went on to easily win the mayoral election against
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independe ...
candidate Joseph Polillo.
False claims of service and the federal investigation
As early as 1980, Levy began to claim he was a member of
U.S. Army Special Forces
The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army.
The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal mi ...
. The claim was also on campaign literature during his 2005 campaign for mayor. After doubts of Levy's Green Beret service were expressed to ''
The Press of Atlantic City
''The Press of Atlantic City'' is the fourth-largest daily newspaper in New Jersey. Originally based in Pleasantville, it is the primary newspaper for southeastern New Jersey and the Jersey Shore. The newspaper designated market runs from Ware ...
'' by James Simmons, a Vietnam War veteran, in September 2006, the newspaper began investigating Levy's war records and discovered there was no record he was in the U.S. Special Forces. In November 2006 ''The Press of Atlantic City'' planned on publishing its findings and Levy admitted to the newspaper he was never in the U.S. Special Forces. Upon this information, federal investigators began to examine whether or not Levy properly obtained a
Combat Infantryman Badge
The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is a United States Army military decoration. The badge is awarded to infantrymen and Special Forces soldiers in the rank of colonel and below, who fought in active ground combat while assigned as members of e ...
(CIB) that he used to obtain additional veterans' benefits. Levy admitted that he lied about receiving the CIB as well as
Parachutist Badge
A parachutist badge (or parachutist brevet) is a military badge awarded by the armed forces of many states to soldiers who have received parachute training and completed the required number of jumps. It is difficult to assess which country was the ...
or "jump wings". Levy also admitted that there were false entries on his official service record which he did not correct and that he used these false entries to obtain benefits.
Disappearance
In late September 2007, rumors began to emerge about the federal investigation and questions were raised about whether or not Levy would resign as mayor. On September 26, 2007, after signing seven ordinances into law, Levy left Atlantic City in a city-issued
Dodge Durango
The Dodge Durango is a mid-size sport utility vehicle (SUV) produced by Dodge in three generations starting with the 1998 model year. The first two generations were very similar in that both were based on the Dodge Dakota and Ram Pickup, both fe ...
for an unknown destination. Administration officials said Levy was on temporary medical leave, but refused to say where he went. His lawyer later revealed that Levy had checked into the
Carrier Clinic
Carrier Clinic is an American private, not-for-profit behavioral healthcare system located in Belle Mead, New Jersey specializing in psychiatric and addiction treatment. Carrier's system includes a 281 licensed bed inpatient psychiatric hospital ...
in
Belle Mead, New Jersey
Belle Mead is an Local government in New Jersey#Unincorporated communities, unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Montgomery Township, New Jersey, Montgomery Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset ...
, about two hours north of Atlantic City. At the time of Mayor Levy's unexplained disappearance, Atlantic City Business Administrator Domenic Cappella told officials and the press that Levy had verbally designated him as acting mayor of Atlantic City.
During the Atlantic City Council meeting on October 3, 2007, both members of the public and the council demanded the Business Administrator yield the office of Acting Mayor of Atlantic City to the President of the City Council, William Marsh. On October 5, 2007, claiming that the "mysterious disappearance of Mayor Levy is now a national news story causing significant embarrassment and exposing the city to unwarranted risk", Councilman Bruce Ward filed suit in
Superior Court
In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civi ...
asking for a declaratory judgment that the Office of Mayor of Atlantic City was vacant. That same day
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Jon Corzine
Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006 and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran fo ...
offered state assistance and staff to help the city, and stated that Levy's disappearance was "dysfunctional and chaotic behavior," and that "the situation today can't go on for an extended period of time.".
Resignation and aftermath
On October 9, a Superior Court Judge indicated she would rule on whether the mayor's seat was vacant or not by October 12, and administration officials released a letter from Levy's lawyer to the Business Administrator dated September 28 explaining that Levy had checked into the
Carrier Clinic
Carrier Clinic is an American private, not-for-profit behavioral healthcare system located in Belle Mead, New Jersey specializing in psychiatric and addiction treatment. Carrier's system includes a 281 licensed bed inpatient psychiatric hospital ...
and was about to leave and spend time recovering at home. One day after this letter was released, Levy's lawyer announced that Levy had resigned, effective immediately. Levy's attorney cited health issues and the pending Federal
Department of Veterans Affairs
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...
investigation for the resignation.
After pleading guilty of defrauding the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in November 2007, Levy was sentenced to three years' probation and a US$5,000 fine, and ordered to pay over US$25,198 in restitution to the Department of Veterans Affairs. The July 25, 2008, ruling also required Levy to continue his court-ordered psychiatric treatment. The judge noted that Levy seems to be continuing to embellish his military record, by claiming he helped out the Pathfinders, which does not appear on his record.