A judge has ordered the immediate removal of Carson’s mayor from his position as a director of the Water Replenishment District of Southern California, finding he held two incompatible public offices at the same time, the District Attorney’s Office reported Friday.
Robles has served continuously on the WRD’s board since 1992. In March 2013, Robles was elected for the first time to the Carson City Council. He is currently the city’s mayor after being re-elected in November 2016.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James Chalfant issued his ruling Thursday, which was the same day that it was announced that Robles was being honored for his WRD work with a $110-million wastewater treatment facility in Pico Rivera being named after him.
“This is a great honor,” Robles said about the facility’s name, according to a WRD statement. “I have been director for almost 26 years and for more than half that time I’ve been working to make this facility a reality.’
The District Attorney’s Office sued Mayor Albert Robles in January 2016, maintaining that the two positions he held were “incompatible” under the law. The office alleged that a clash of duties could arise because the WRD and the city of Carson have overlapping territory, duties and responsibilities.
Robles could not be immediately reached regarding the ruling.