Charles Robertson (mayor)

Charles "Charlie" H. Robertson (born 1934)[1] is an American Democratic politician who served as Mayor of York, Pennsylvania from 1994–2002. He attended William Penn Senior High School in York and spent two years as a medic in the United States Army.[1]

Robertson is best remembered for his role in the 1969 York Race Riot, during which time he worked as a police officer. He helped to incite the violence by shouting, "White power!" and by allegedly giving white rioters ammunition and encouraging them to, "kill as many niggers as [they] can."[2][3] He was arrested on May 17, 2001, and released on $50,000 bail.[4] On May 27, 2001, Robertson was arraigned on murder charges stemming from his involvement in the riot; he was found not guilty on October 19, 2002.[2] While he admitted that he had shouted the racial slur (calling it "a youthful incident of ingrained police racism"), he steadfastly denied all other charges against him.[5][6]

References

  1. 1 2 Bunch, William (2001-09-02), Handcuffed By History, The New York Times, retrieved 2008-12-27
  2. 1 2 1969 Riot Investigation, York Daily Record, retrieved 2008-12-27
  3. ↑ Scolforo, Mark (2005-08-25), Nearly 300 get call to testify, The York Dispatch, retrieved 2008-12-27
  4. ↑ Wakin, Daniel J. (2001-05-18), York, Pa., Mayor Is Arrested in 1969 Racial Killing, The New York Times, retrieved 2008-12-27
  5. ↑ Clines, Francis X. (2001-05-17), Mayor Says He Expects to Be Charged in 1969 Killing, The New York Times, retrieved 2008-12-27
  6. ↑ Longman, Jere (2001-11-01), A City Begins to Confront Its Racist Past, The New York Times, retrieved 2008-12-27
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