Columnist Jeff German: Siller’s criticism of mayor on target

Friday, March 28, 2003 | 4:32 a.m.

FINALLY, a public official with political courage has stepped forward to single out our popular mayor for his poor judgment.

Oscar Goodman was criticized in this space a couple of weeks ago for inviting Joseph Cusumano, a reputed mob associate banned from Nevada casinos, to a party at the mayor's home.

It was suggested that Cusumano's presence among the 100 guests made light of the state's laws aimed at keeping organized crime figures out of casinos and created the perception that the mob still is tolerated in Las Vegas.

Last week Gaming Control Board member Bobby Siller, a straight shooter who oversees the state agency's Enforcement Division, which keeps an eye on organized crime here, said he shared those concerns.

And he promptly became a hero of sorts to local law enforcement authorities who have been shaking their heads in disbelief over Goodman's lapse in judgment -- but who also have been afraid to speak out publicly out of fear of political retaliation from the mayor.

Siller, who headed the Las Vegas FBI office from 1995 to 1998, has never been shy about offering his opinions, so it's probably not surprising that he would be willing to stand up and take Goodman to task.

"When you hold a position like (mayor) and associate yourself with people of questionable backgrounds, you open yourself up to questions," Siller said.

Giving credibility to Siller's voice is the fact that he has devoted his entire career in law enforcement with the FBI and the Control Board to fighting organized crime. He knows what he's talking about.

Siller, who was recently reappointed by Gov. Kenny Guinn to a second four-year term on the board, insisted that he wasn't speaking out because of any personal animosity toward Goodman, as the mayor has alleged.

He said he felt the need to talk after Goodman, while defending his association with Cusumano, criticized the state's Black Book process that prohibits "undesirables" like Cusumano from casinos.

Goodman, who represented many underworld figures during his career as a top criminal defense lawyer, went to bat for the 67-year-old Cusumano at his Black Book hearing in 1990. After contentious testimony, the Nevada Gaming Commission decided that Cusumano was a big enough threat to the casino industry to be listed in the Black Book.

To this day, in the face of the state's evidence, Goodman continues to argue that Cusumano, an ex-felon tied to slain Chicago mob kingpin Anthony Spilotro, was not worthy of being included on the notorious list.

That stance would be fine if Goodman still was practicing law for the mob. But he isn't. He has been mayor for four years.

"In the position he holds as mayor, he should exercise a little bit more leadership and responsibility to the statutes and the regulations and policies that we have in this state," Siller said.

"It undermines our efforts to keep gaming free of the criminal element."

It also sends a message to the rest of the country, whether true or not, that organized crime is alive and well in Las Vegas -- and socializing with its happy mayor.

And what kind of message does it send to the law enforcement officers who worked so hard over the past two decades to clean up the casino industry?

Maybe now that Siller has had the political courage to go public with his concerns, others in Nevada officialdom will step forward to disavow the mayor's actions.

Maybe Goodman will even realize that he has done this city a disservice and offer an apology.