It’s been almost 34 years since Francis “Frankie” Citro Jr. saw the inside of a Nevada casino.
He has not had a meal at any of the restaurants at the Bellagio or gone to the art gallery there. Haven’t encountered any of the beautiful exhibits at Wynn Las Vegas or Encore. Never visited any of the showrooms and lounges where some of his friends gather. He’s never seen that multi-story book in downtown Circa.
Now he wants to.
Citro, one of 37 people on Nevada’s Excluded Persons List — also known as the Black Book — is prohibited by Nevada law from entering any of the state’s licensed casino properties. If he tried to enter and was discovered, he could be charged with misconduct and the property that let him in could face disciplinary action “as an improper method of operation.”
The Control Board’s 3½-page regulation 38 specifies exactly where people on the list cannot go.
The ordinance states that anyone on the list “shall be excluded in every part of said gaming facility including but not limited to the casino, rooms, theater, bar, pool, lounge, showroom and all other related facilities of said gaming facility.”
But Citro, who turns 80 on Sunday, is trying to do something no other person has done – get removed from the Black Book while he’s still alive.
Periodically, the Nevada Gaming Commission reviews the list and removes the names of people who have died since the last review. The current list has at least two people who have died since the last review.
Citro and his attorney, Las Vegas attorney Michael Lasher, posted Citro’s request to be removed from the blacklist on Friday. Once reviewed by the Gaming Control Board’s enforcement division, the commission will have 90 days to either set a hearing for Citro or deny the petition.
Lasher thinks Citro has a compelling case for removal.
In his 10-page petition, Lasher explains how Citro is a changed man from the one who famously appeared before the Nevada Gaming Commission on Nov. 21, 1991 in a tuxedo and heard the commission’s five members vote unanimously to ban him from the state’s casinos.
“There is good cause to grant the petitioner a hearing and to remove him from the list of excluded persons,” Lasher’s petition states. “The petitioner was placed on the list because of four felony convictions and his alleged reprehensible character gleaned from media accounts and government crime reports. Over the decades, the petitioner’s character and reputation have become stellar. He is a reformed man, doing good for his community by raising money for charity as an entertainer. And the media has not responded.
First convicted in 1980
Citro was convicted in August 1980 of extortion, in July 1987 of conspiracy to use counterfeit credit cards, both in US District Court in Nevada. He was also found guilty in February 1986 of extortion in the US District Court Central District of California. He served two years in prison and was placed on probation.
Once out of prison, Citro found himself before the gambling commission.
In addition to the conviction, Citro was placed on the list based on his “notorious and unsavory reputation as reflected in government criminal reports, indictments and newspaper articles.”
But since his prison term, Lasher said Citro has reformed and found some allies who support him. The media articles about him have turned positive.
“A Los Angeles Times article dated March 27, 2013, quotes North Las Vegas Police Officer Steve Noahr: “I’m a police officer. I deal with a lot of people who were doing things 40 years ago, who are now trying to make a living. You pay your debt to society, why be persecuted for life?”
“And former Gov. Lonnie Hammergren told the Los Angeles Times on March 28, 2013, ‘if anyone ends up on the list, it should be Frankie.'” And in April 2013, the Charlie Rose show on CBS’s ‘Good Morning America’ covered the petitioner’s plight, describing how difficult it is to live in Las Vegas while on the list. Nevada Lt. Lt. Lonnie Hammergren again spoke on behalf of the petitioner, saying there are a lot of nasty people who should are on the list but the petitioner is not one of them as he has lived a clean life for many decades.”
Long list of supporters
Even in the decade following these comments, more people have stood up for Citro. Among his supporters, according to the petition, are musical conductor Mariano Longo, cardiologist Herbert Cordero and lawyers Dominic Gentile and Frank Beninato, the Reverend Michael Boykin and Las Vegas entertainer Frankie Scinta.
“Scinta is repeating what others have said,” the petition reads. “The petitioner is not known as a gangster or criminal, but as a friend in the community, struggling to make a living to take care of his family.”
One reason for the perception that Citro is a mobster or mobster is his schtick as “Las Vegas Tough Guy Frankie Citro.”
He loves to tell stories about the town’s history and mob days of the past and between these tales he uses his credible baritone voice to sing be-bop and Italian folk songs.
Lasher has also received support from some of Citro’s friends and neighbors in the petition to regulators.
“The petitioner has done extensive fundraising for various local charities,” the petition states. “As just a few examples, he hosted a Christmas dance party to benefit the children at Child Haven, for which he received letters of appreciation. He also helped with another charity drive, which collected 3,000 socks for the homeless.”
Lasher also hopes to rely on the Fourteenth Amendment, which could allow him to seal records of his convictions.
“If petitioner’s convictions had arisen under Nevada statute (and not federal law), they could be sealed. Pursuant to NRS 179.245 (1)(a), even a Category A felony may be sealed after 10 years from the date he was released from actual custody or released from parole or probation. 1987.”
Hearing requested
In the petition, Lasher submitted his proposal to the commission to conduct a hearing.
“The commission now has the unique opportunity to demonstrate that its procedures are fair and that people can be removed from the list by means other than death if the circumstances warrant it, as they are doing here,” the document said.
“The petitioner has paid his debt to society, has redeemed himself and would not bring the gaming industry into disrepute. All the reasons he was originally placed on the blacklist now no longer apply. He should be removed.”
A representative of the gambling control board said on Friday “to our knowledge, no person still alive has ever been removed from the list of excluded persons.”
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