North Las Vegas council candidate has misdemeanor battery conviction
A candidate for North Las Vegas City Council was convicted in 2009 of misdemeanor battery in a domestic violence case involving his girlfriend.
William E. Robinson II, who is running for the Ward 2 seat currently held by his father, William Robinson, was convicted in an April 2009 trial and served 10 days in jail. The rest of his 180-day sentence was suspended. He also was ordered to pay a court fine of $332 and undergo counseling for domestic violence.
Robinson, now 32, appealed the decision but later withdrew his appeal.
His girlfriend, Re'Sean Britt, told police that Robinson pushed her, choked her and threw a bottle at her during a July 22, 2008, argument over "relationship issues" in a gym parking lot, according to court records. Police took pictures of Britt's swollen face and redness around her shoulders that she said was related to the incident.
Britt downplayed the episode in her court testimony, saying Robinson was simply trying to calm her down and keep her from walking home alone in a dangerous neighborhood.
Robinson did not testify.
The couple is engaged to be married on Nov. 11.
On Thursday Robinson called the incident "a private issue that was worked out" between him and Britt.
"I'm happy that she saw it in her heart to take me back," he said.
Britt, 23, echoed her court testimony, saying the incident was "a one-time thing that got blown out of proportion" and that the couple has worked through their personal issues.
Robinson said he isn't worried that news of his conviction will harm his campaign.
"I'm worried about putting people back to work and doing what's right for the city of North Las Vegas," he said. "That's what keeps me up at night."
Robinson's father has held the Ward 2 seat since 1983. He has to surrender it this year because of term limits adopted in the late 1990s.
The younger Robinson is facing six opponents for the seat.
Early voting began Wednesday in North Las Vegas and continues through April 1. The primary election is April 5. In races in which no candidate wins a majority, the top two finishers move on to the June 7 general election.
Contact reporter Lynnette Curtis at lcurtis@review
journal.com or 702-383-0285.
