Markell and Jones Disagree Over What Constitutes "Misconduct"

We've previously noted Bankruptcy Judge Bruce A. Markell's tendency not to take any shit to be a bit harsh on attorneys who run afoul of him. But it seems that at least one Judge thinks BAM may be going a bit far with his rulings.

Jane Ann Morrison had an interesting column yesterday about Markell being overruled by U.S. District Court Judge Clive Jones. The ruling was regarding Markell's sanctioning of attorney Neil Beller. Morrison reports:

Markell was harsh in his evaluation, writing Beller "discredits the work of all attorneys before this court and in the state of Nevada by calling into question whether attorneys will faithfully and loyally serve the interests of their clients." Markell disciplined the longtime Las Vegas attorney, saying Beller represented two opposing parties in the same bankruptcy case without obtaining the consent of the clients.

Beller appealed the reprimand, and U.S. District Judge Clive Jones looked at the same facts and said Beller's conduct "constitutes a mere professional courtesy and in no way, actual or potential, threatened harm to any represented party." Beller didn't violate Nevada Rules of Professional Conduct or breach his duty. In fact, Jones didn't see in his four-page opinion issued Sept. 3 that Beller did anything wrong.

Oh, Jones, you 'ole softy ... let Markell have his fun. Morrison notes that BAM has another appeal of a sanctioning he handed down to Henderson law firm Harris Merritt Chapman pending before the Ninth Circuit. We hope this doesn't stifle his ability to write those great bench-slapping Orders.

(LVRJ)

Who will get the nod for Judge Sandoval's Judge Jones' spot on the bench?

Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto
She’s Democrat and “effective and popular" according to Tobias. (RJ) Plus, President Obama seems to like the diversity angle with his judges and Cortez Masto would add some Latina flavor to the pale Nevada bench. Cortez Masto is also a native Nevadan. (AG website) She graduated Cum Laude from Gonzaga University School of Law, in Spokane, Washington in 1990. (AG website) Cortez Masto became Attorney General of Nevada in 2007 and worked as Assistant County Manager for Clark County for five years before that--giving her experience in the north and the south of the state.

Federal Public Defender Franny Forsman

Barbara Buckley

U.S. Magistrate Judge Peggy A. Leen

U.S. Magistrate Judge George W. Foley, Jr.

TEMPLATE FOR FED JUDGES:
Magistrate Judge McQuaid has spent 13 yrs on the federal bench, appointed as a magistrate in 1996. (US Dist Ct) He received his law degree from Willamette University College of Law in 1971, and was admitted to the State Bar of Nevada that year. Before his appointment to the bench in 1996, Judge McQuaid was a partner in the law firm of Georgeson, McQuaid, Thompson & Angaran in Reno. Biggest hurdle: he’s a Republican in a Democratic Presidency, but based on seniority on the bench, he may be the man for the job. (US Dist Ct)

Round Up from When We Were Gone

Will it be the Governor's Race or the U.S. Senate Race? (LV Sun offers a political profile of Rob Riggle Judge Sandoval)

Turns out our prior analysis of who will replace Judge Sandoval was flawed. Judge Jones will be moving from Vegas to Reno, opening a seat on the U.S. District Court in Vegas. Who's on the short list for the soon-t0-be-open seat in Vegas? We haven't heard a thing. Thoughts?

Who should get the cash? Creditors or the patients that Dr. Needles [allegedly] infected with Hep-C? Bankruptcy Court Judge Mike Nakagawa may lift the stay on Dr. Needles' clinics and give the victims a chance to collect some money. (LV Sun)

Halverson Day 3

More fun from Judge Halverson yesterday. First, U.S. District Judge Robert Jones denied Halverson's motion for a temporary restraining order to have the disciplinary hearing enjoined until after the election.

However, Judge Jones did not squash all hope for Halverson. He scheduled an Aug. 14 hearing for attorneys in the case to present arguments on a preliminary injunction. According to Halverson's attorneys, if Judge Jones grants the injunction, the Nevada Judicial Discipline Commission would be stopped from enforcing any punishment against Halverson, including permanently removing her from the bench. (Review-Journal) One of Halverson's attorneys, Michael Schwartz, was quoted as saying "We have a serious concern that her rights in this country are being deprived."

Then, in the afternoon, the disciplinary hearing was back on. Several more witnesses testified including two attorneys involved in a civil trial before Halverson. John Lukens testified that he saw Halverson slumped forward and sleeping during a case he had before her. He said he didn't want to wake Halverson because "you don't want to embarrass a judge publicly in a courtroom."
The other testifying lawyer, Jeff Braun, testified that he never saw Halverson asleep on the bench. (Review-Journal)

Then, District Judge Stewart Bell testified, stating that he was told that certain judicial orders submitted by attorneys disappeared from Halverson's court. Bell did not disclose who told him about the issue. Bell said he was told that the missing orders were from attorneys who were disliked by Halverson or who hadn't contributed to Halverson's campaign.
"It was very disturbing to us," Bell said. (Review-Journal)

Here's a summary of the Wed afternoon session of the Disciplinary Hearing from a WWL reader:

Halverson could not contain herself and here bizarreness really emerged.

For example, a routine witness from the agency that regulates security guards was called to establish that Halverson's two "body guards" that she brought into the court house bypassing security were not licensed. Halverson (on cross) demanded to know "the precise statute" (thumb and middle finger joined and held up, Halverson's head moving from side to side) that says you can prosecute the CON-SUM-ER for hiring an unlicensed private security guard.

Later, a local lawyer (former DDA, now in private practice) testified that his jury trial was Halverson’s first civil—and she fell asleep. Halverson’s “co-counsel”—who is actually more annoying than Her Fatness (he was actually biting his fingernails while posing questions to a witness at one point)—was boring in on cross, how do you know Halverson was really asleep, etc. etc.

She replied with her eyes closed, chin on chest, and breathing deeper than normal. The attorney then asks 50 different ways if the witness “measured”
Halverson’s breathing on prior occasions (the guy has know Fatso for 10 years)
to make that judgment.

Around 3:35 PM, a Fat woman in the audience—50ish, beach ball body—starts
laughing out loud. The Commission ejects her. She curses the whole way out and says “this commission should be ashamed of yourselves” before calling the proceedings "bullshit". Security was instructed never to let witness back in. It was quite a spectacle, and this was obviously a Halverson supporter. The woman was not Halverson fat—maybe 240 pounds—wearing slacks and tent top. Very trashy shoulder length bleach blond hair with stringy bangs covering most of her forehead. Ugly. Cheaply dressed. Real trailer trash. (In other words, a typical Halverson supporter?)

All in all, Halverson's doing a good job of letting the circus continue. I wonder how she thinks acting bat-shit crazy will play with voters.

Halverson Day 2-update

In order to provide as complete coverage of bat-shit crazy Halverson as possible, we will be update the blog each day with any material missed from the day before.

First of all, a reader wrote in saying that Halverson interrupted the hearing yesterday to emphatically demand that the Discipline Committee members refer to her as "Your Honor" because she is still a judge.

Judge Halverson brought her rolls of fun to the witness stand yesterday too. The Review-Journal describes her testimony as combative. She stated that she never treated her former bailiff like a personal servant, touched him inappropriately or ordered him to spy on court staff. Additionally, in classic bat-shit style, Halverson maintained that she has been persecuted by political enemies who want to remove her from the bench. (Review-Journal) Halverson then testified that "This is a bunch of hype" and that she has "the absolute right to be acquitted of these charges."

Halverson then apparently drugged the water at the Federal courthouse because she managed to get herself a hearing before U.S. District Judge Jones on a claim that the Disciplinary Committee's hearing violates her due process rights. (Review-Journal) [we will write on the federal Complaint and the hearing in a future post]

Here are some other highlights from a WWL reader:

At about 3:35 PM a new set of Halverson attorneys entered the hearing room and served the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline and the Special Prosecutor with a federal civil rights law suit that Halverson filed under 42 USC 1982, and with a notice of exparte hearing wherein Halverson will request the federal court to issue a temporary restraining order to halt the hearing. (42 USC 1982 provides for damages and is commonly used in police officer shooting cases and beating cases.) Halverson also claims she has a petition pending with the NV Supreme Court to delay the hearing but the Supremes have not acted on it yet.

The disciplinary hearing will start late (at 1:00 PM) today, because the Commission and the prosecutor will be in Federal Court this morning. The hearing did go until 6:00 PM today, and it was electric.

First, the tech expert that Halverson hired to search Ilene Spoor’s Court House computer for evidence that she had been emailing information about Halverson to the press testified that Halverson said “don’t believe everything you read about me in the papers and then lifted up her blouse and then asked him if there was any “urine on it”. He thought that comment was so strange he talked to a lawyer, then the police, then the Commission.

Next, Halverson was called to the stand and tried to avoid testifying by asserting the fifth amendment against self incrimination. This was overruled. Halverson then implied that the Nevada Supreme Court might not follow the law as handed down by the US Supreme Court—which Halverson insists holds that the disciplinary hearings are quasi-criminal in nature and therefore she does not have to testify.

The Commission responded that there is a NV Supreme Court cases that decided that very issue holding that the judge in question could not blanket take the 5th,
but could only assert the 5th on a question by question basis if the question created the risk of a criminal prosecution. Halverson then said that the “court” would resolve that issue “tomorrow”.

Nash-Holms (the prosecutor) then asked series of questions running through most of the accusations (ask Jordan to rub feet, ever touch him, call your law clerk a faux Jew, etc. etc.). Halverson denied every core allegation against her with a series of
"No"s, then got very combative and argumentative with the prosecutor and the
Commission adjourned at 6:00 PM.

All in all, a banner day for the blob of insanity. The Committee members should take care. Word is if you're around Halverson for too long, she drives you crazy or eats you instead.

Tuesday Roundup

The crackpot who brought ricin to a Vegas hotel room plead guilty to possession of a biological toxin before U.S. District Judge Robert Jones because the feds figure he had no intention of harming anyone. (Review-Journal) [uh . . . snap judgment on this one--owning an airborne toxin should be a strict liability crime]

File this one under dumbest prostitute ever: yesterday, a working girl propositioned Syeve Wynn in his casino. When he attempted to escort the escort to the door, she slapped him in the face. (Review-Journal)

Lake Las Vegas may be bailed out of its financial collapse. Bankruptcy Judge Linda Riegle said she will sign an order approving $127 million in post-bankruptcy financing for Lake Las Vegas, following a recommendation from a committee of unsecured creditors. (Review-Journal)

An in the build-up to O.J. trial [pt 2], yet another of the Juice's co-defendants has pled guilty and agreed to testify against the former NFL star and [acquitted] ex-wife murderer. (Review-Journal) [I hope Johnnie Cochran left some more cute rhyming closing arguments behind when he died or the Juice is in serious trouble].

Weekend Roundup

The Nevada Supreme Court has set July 1 for a hearing on term limits. (Review-Journal)

The trial of the man believed to have poisoned himself by keeping the exotic toxin ricin in his motel room, just off the Las Vegas Strip has been postponed by U.S. District Court Judge Robert C. Jones until Sept. 9. (Las Vegas Now)

Editorial providing thoughts on the inaugural use of web casting to show Nevada Supreme Court hearings. (Review-Journal)

A federal racketeering trial stemming from the alleged embezzlement of $400 million from China’s state-run bank is delving into the secretive and high-powered world of Strip high rollers. (Las Vegas Sun)

In Reno, a lawyer for flood victims said that this week's failure of another canal provides more ammunition in the legal battle to slow water flows in a century-old Northern Nevada irrigation system because it shows "these ancient embankments are not as strong as they appear." (Review-Journal)

Clark Co.'s agency managing the system to select private criminal attorneys for indigent defendants had its first open meeting. (Review-Journal)

The Hep-C criminal investigations are running at a slow pace. (Las Vegas Now)

Does the Nevada legal system abuse victims who are afraid to testify? (Review-Journal)

A former Washoe County water engineer accused of embezzling more than $2 million from the county water division and gambling more than $1 million at a local casino admitted to the crimes in a letter to his family, according to court documents. (Review-Journal)

The Clark Co. D.A.'s office is letting federal prosecutors have the first crack at convicting Antonin Rezko on corruption charges. (Las Vegas Sun)

Las Vegas Attorney Randal Shimon Appointed as Arbitrator on AAA Arbitration Roster. (eMediaWire)

Wed Roundup

Dr. "Needles" Desai's attorneys are requesting that the civil suit brought by the [alleged] victims of Endoscopy Center, who are now permanently afflicted with Hep-C, be delayed until the end of any criminal case. Plaintiffs' attorneys objecting, stressing that no criminal case has been opened--prosecution is just being threatened. (Review-Journal)

18-25 yrs olds in Vegas who carry a gun better watch out because they're being targeted by a federal-state task force. (Review-Journal)

The Nevada Supreme Court will hear a constitutional challenge to a deadline set by the Legislature for signature gatherers filed by property tax cap proponent Sharron Angle. (Review-Journal)

Nevada death row inmate William Castillo, who last year came within 90 minutes of his wish to be executed for a 1995 Las Vegas murder, has changed his mind and has been given a stay by U.S. District Judge Robert Jones while Castillo appeals his case in federal court. (Review-Journal)

The Fernley flood hearings continue in Reno before U.S. District Judge Lloyd George and yesterday evidence showed the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's risk assessment team recommended water flows at less than half the level currently channeled through the irrigation canal. (Review-Journal)

Congratulations to Las Vegas lawyers Aaron D. Lovaas and Kristan E. Lehtinen on opening the new business litigation law firm of Lovaas & Lehtinen, P.C. as of June 1, 2008. (PR Web)

And in political news, the state's highest government attorney, Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, endorsed Senator Barak Obama to be the Democratic nominee for President. (Review-Journal)

Arson is suspected in the North Las Vegas home fires. (Las Vegas Now)

Nevada Attorney General Cortez Masto filed a challenge to the Federal government's plan to build a nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain. (Las Vegas Now)

Scandals behind the judicial rankings

Accompanying the Judging the Judges report, the Review-Journal published an article detailing the judicial scandals that may have led to some of the low rankings. Here's the juicy bits:

• Judge Halverson is accused of mistreating staff, sleeping on the bench and illegally communicating with jurors. She was suspended with pay in July. Only 8 percent of the 303 attorneys who rated her said she should be retained;
• Judge Del Vecchio stands accused of sexually abusing his ex-wife's daughter when she was a minor and sexually harassing her as an adult while she worked as his executive assistant.
  Since the allegations went public, Judge Del Vecchio's retention score took a nose dive, falling 36 percentage points to 41 percent this year;


• Family Court Judge Steven Jones was arrested on a domestic battery charge two years ago after his live-in girlfriend said he threw her down a hall. She later recanted her story, saying it was fueled by chronic alcoholism. The incident was the fourth time in as many years that police arrested someone at the judge's home on domestic violence charges.
  Jones still earned a retention rate of 72 percent, "[b]ut that is down 13 percentage points from the 2006 survey";


• Chief Judge Kathy Hardcastle "drew some of the harshest condemnation in comments included in the survey." Some partly blamed Hardcastle for the Halverson debacle and critics called her "heavy-handed and vendetta-driven". One lawyer wrote, "Whatever my opinions of Judge Halverson, I did not then nor do I now believe that Judge Hardcastle had the authority to take the actions she did." Judge Hardcastle's retention score was 54 percent, down from 60 percent in 2006;


• Justice Nancy Saitta, "who at 45 percent received the worst retention score among state Supreme Court justices, was criticized for exaggerating her credentials." She claimed on her 2006 campaign Web site to have been an associate professor in political science at UNLV when "[i]n fact, she was a part-time instructor";


• District Court Judge Donald M. Mosley "was singled out as a case study by the Los Angeles Times for giving unspent campaign funds to a girlfriend who he said repaid them." His retention score was 56 percent, down 10 percentage points from two years ago;


• Municipal Court Judge George Assad got a retention score of 44 percent, down 23 percentage points after he was reprimanded last year by the Judicial Discipline Commission for detaining a woman in 2003 for no legally justifiable reason.


• District Court Judge Lee Gates saw his rating fall 6 percentage points to 43 percent after agreeing to acknowledge making two improper $5,000 campaign donations in 2004.

Ah the Nevada Judiciary: stalwarts of decency and ethical values, as those sitting in judgment should be.