Former Stockton mayor leaves jail after posting bail

After 10 days in San Joaquin County Jail, former Stockton Mayor Anthony Silva was released on bail Wednesday afternoon.

Silva, 42, was arrested March 5 at San Francisco International Airport when he returned from vacationing in Colombia. Prosecutors allege that Silva stole hundreds of thousands of dollars that were intended for a local youth club.

San Joaquin County Deputy District Attorney Robert Himelblau said the alleged theft between 2010 and 2014 involved money Silva received from the Boys and Girls Club of America to run the Stockton Boys & Girls Club. Silva is executive director of the Stockton Kids Club, the successor to the Boys & Girls Club of Stockton.

A six-count grand jury indictment also alleges Silva used credit cards from the club to pay for trips to the Philippines and South Lake Tahoe, and for a recurring charge for an online date site, Filipino Cupid.

Silva has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Although a San Joaquin County Judge on Monday reduced Silva’s bail to $350,000 from $1 million, Silva had to document that the bail funds were from legitimate sources.

Confirming Silva’s release on bail Wednesday, one of his attorneys, Allen Sawyer, said in an email, “Mr. Silva is glad that he gets to spend time with his son. We are glad Mr. Silva is now able to assist his defense closely.”

Sawyer said Monday that Judge Ron Northup ordered GPS monitoring and prohibited Silva from visiting the Stockton Kids Club.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of America revoked the Stockton club’s 50-year charter in 2013 after months of controversy involving its leaders, including Silva, according to the Stockton Record. Silva was chief executive officer of the Boys & Girls Club of Stockton from 2005 to 2011.

Silva was elected mayor on a populist theme in 2012, but he endured a turbulent four years in office as Stockton struggled to recover from the recession.

He was arrested in August on charges related to a strip-poker game at his Amador County youth camp. Under this legal cloud, he lost his race for re-election in November by more than 50 percentage points to Michael Tubbs.

Prosecutors alleged that Silva recorded camp counselors playing strip poker, including one as young as 16, and that he gave alcohol to a minor. In November, Silva rejected a settlement offer that would have closed his criminal case. The felony charge against him for illegal recording was reduced to a misdemeanor in October. The case is still pending.

This story was originally published March 15, 2017 at 5:55 PM with the headline "Former Stockton mayor leaves jail after posting bail."