PoPo Outside of Richard Harris' Office Last Week

Apparently a disgruntled client. Nobody was shot.

(Thanks, Tipster!)

Superhuman Attorney Angry At Board's Ruing

A panel of Metro department personnel and civilians has concluded that Officer David Gilbert was justified in Tasing local attorney Raymond James Duensing then shooting him three times after a traffic stop got a little out of hand back in November of 2009.

Duensing, who is represented by attorney Mace Yampolsky, still faces several felony counts in connection with the incident. Mace argued that the Officer Gilbert should have used pepper spray instead of the Taser. (Not really)

From the RJ:

Police said Duensing was Tased after his vehicle was stopped . They said he was shot after he reached toward his front right pocket for a .45-caliber handgun. Police also said Duensing reached for a folding knife.

Yampolsky said he is stunned that his client, who three times unsuccessfully ran for Congress on the Libertarian ticket against Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley, was shot after a traffic stop.

"He's a practicing lawyer who committed a traffic offense," Yampolsky said.

Yampolsky denies Duensing ever reached for a weapon while fleeing from police.

"According to my client, he did not," Yampolsky said.

In our opinion, it's never a good sign when you have to start a sentence with "according to my client ... "

If you recall the story, Ray claimed that he was able to remove the Taser barbs from his chest with his bare hands, fearing that the shock may affect his heart condition. That's hard to believe:

It's difficult to tell from that photo, but Ray doesn't look like he's in better shape than Mr. Cage Fighter who's writhing in the fetal position up there. We're going to need to see him pull off this feat in person before we're convinced.

(LVRJ)

Who Do You Believe?

By now you've heard about local attorney Raymond James Duensing, the man who was shot by police last week after fleeing on foot from a traffic stop. Here's what police say went down according to the LVRJ:

Police said the officer fired his weapon after Duensing was asked to get out of his Pontiac rental car because a record’s check indicated he had a warrant for his arrest. Police said Duensing then fled and was unsuccessfully Tased and shot after he reached toward his front right pocket for a .45-caliber handgun. Police also said Duensing reached for a large folding knife.

Apparently, not Everybody Loves Raymond. [Rimshot!] However, Ray (who goes by 'Jim') told a different story in his comment to a post published by the Independent Political Report. Here's how it really went down, According to Jim [ok, we'll stop]:

I was pulled over for driving straight through an intersection in a right turn only lane. I did signal for my lane changes to the left.

After exiting the vehicle at the officer’s request, I was standing with my back to the vehicle. The car’s open door was to my right. My hands were raised above my head. I was calmly speaking to the cop attempting to talk my way out of being taken to jail over an unpaid High Occupancy Vehicle ticket.

With my hands raised above my head, the cop shot me with a taser in the chest. As I have had heart problems since my premature birth, I believe a Taser to be a lethal weapon. Several people without heart conditions have been killed by this weapon.

When the taser began electrocuting me, instinct took over. I have been shocked by standard 120 volt electricity, which is what is used in your home. That was bad enough. Metro’s tasers contain “50,000 volts of pain compliance” according to one of the cops at the family law court who was operating the checkpoint.

Let me tell you, it is quite painful.

I immediately turned to my left and began moving away from the source of the electrocution. By the time I got to the back of the vehicle, I had reached up with both hands, grabbed the electrodes, and pulled them away from my chest. The juice then flowed through my arms - not my heart. As I lay here in my hospital bed, I firmly believe this instinct saved my life.

I continued running away from the taser. I heard the cop fire it again, but did not feel an additional shock.

I was running down the sidewalk with empty hands. I heard three pops from behind me. At first, I thought it was another taser shot. Then, I saw my left arm dangling.

I was taken down by a second officer - who was nearby conducting a separate unrelated traffic stop. He had me lying facedown on my broken arm. It was at this point that he found my licensed and registered pistol in my right cargo pants pocket and my Emerson folding knife in my right front pocket.

Let me reiterate. I am a firearms instructor at the world’s largest firearms training facility. I always carry a gun and at least one knife. I NEVER pulled either of these items out of my pockets.

The shooter was on my right side and from his perspective had to have been able to see that my right hand was indeed empty. The officer that I was running toward never reached for any weapon.

We've never been tased, but it seems like some super-human strength would be in order to reach down and pull out the probes. Then again, it does seem a bit excessive to start firing at a fleeing suspect after a routine traffic stop.

So, who do you guys believe? Is it counsel-hunting season for Metro, or did Jim do something that screamed Just Shoot Me? [last one, we promise] One thing's for sure, we could all benefit from reviewing Chris Rock's advice. (NSFW)

(Thanks, commenters!)

Judge Miley involved in Soccer Mom Fight?

We've been hearing some rumors that Clark County District Court's judicial hottie, Judge Stefany Miley (Dept. 23), was involved in an altercation at a soccer field. The rumor is that she allegedly assaulted a soccer mom a few months back and that a police report was filed alleging assault and battery.

Well , turns out there is a police report filed with Las Vegas Metro:

Bill Cassell from @LVMPD confirmed Judge Miley's name was in a report about an altercation at a soccer game...no details, no charges yet. (KLAS investigative journalist Twitter account and George Knapp Twitter account)

We'll keep you updated as details come out because nothing would make us happier here at WWL than a cat fight between two soccer moms, one of whom wears the black robes by day.

[thanks to S for the initial tip]

Sorry boys: Prostitution Arrests Shut Down the Daylight Ogling of Topless Strippers

Since the beginning of time, it has been the dream of men everywhere to ogle trashy women in the open sunlight and not have to hide in the darkened lairs of strip clubs. Thanks to the Rio and Sapphire Strip Club, this dream became a reality at the Sapphire Pool . . . until yesterday.

According to the RJ:
The Rio has indefinitely closed its adult-themed Sapphire Pool after it failed an "integrity check" by Las Vegas police on Saturday, the property's owner confirmed late Tuesday.

The Rio wouldn't explain to the RJ what "failed an integrity check" means. Las Vegas Metro was not as reluctant to comment:

Several women were arrested by undercover officers on charges of prostitution at
Sapphire Pool this weekend, according to Metro. The activity over the weekend caused the strip club-branded pool to close for two days and and the subsequent suspension of European-style sunbathing for the remainder of the season, said Rio spokeswoman Deanna Pettit.

“There were several arrests for prostitution,” officer Bill Cassell of the Las Vegas Metro Police Department said. “We do this all over the valley every day. It was just their day.” (Daily Fiasco)

Let's take a second and bow our heads for the men who's dreams are now dashed. [hat tip to WD on finding the story]

Taxpayers, Rejoice!

Good news, fellow citizens! Metro has agreed to pay a ridiculously high settlement for that guy who insisted on wearing a hat and beard on duty. From the RJ:

The Metropolitan Police Committee on Fiscal Affairs is scheduled to approve a $350,000 payment next week for Detective Steve Riback, an observant Orthodox Jew who claimed he was experiencing religious discrimination on the job.

Fox 5 reported a few more details about the settlement, stating that Riback would be able to keep wearing "a neatly trimmed beard no longer than one-quarter inch and a baseball hat without a logo or with the department's logo."

Three hundred fifty G's and he gets to keep the beard!? Well played, counsel. We hope the defense was able to milk Metro for sufficient billables before advising them to cave to those terms. It seems to us that had a simple letter of apology been written at the outset, Nevada taxpayers may not have been forced to pay off Mr. Riback's mortgage for him. But where's the fun in that?

(RJ, Fox 5)

No Prosecution of Suge Knight [alleged] batterer of women?

Looks like the next celebrity prosecution in Vegas may have stalled.  The D.A. is refusing to move forward in the prosecution of hip-hop mogul/thug entrepreneur Suge Knight unless his girlfriend of three years testifies that he beat her.

The Las Vegas Sun reports:

So why, two months later, haven’t charges been filed? Apparently it is because the victim, Melissa Isaac, who said she was Knight’s girlfriend of three years, has vanished. Even though prosecutors have the police witnesses, they want Isaac’s testimony, and she’s not helping.

Metro detectives can’t find her. She won’t return their calls. She has stalled her own case.

Hmm . . . hiding from police.  Doesn't want to testify.  Could it have something to do with Knight's history (available here)

Suge Knight must be frightened to death that the police will find her and she'll testify against him.  Why I bet he's cowering in a corner, crying . . . um . . . nope, apparently he found some solace in a strip club: 

. . .  Knight was spotted partying in a Strip nightclub less than 24 hours after he posted $19,000 bail on charges of felony assault with a deadly weapon, drug possession and misdemeanor domestic violence.

Awesome.  Some celebrities are afraid to live above the law.  It's nice to finally have one who openly couldn't give a damn what the D.A. is planning.

Midweek Roundup

Looks like this Construction Defect Home Owners' Association/politician/attorney scandal is heating up and will be high drama. A retired Las Vegas police officer named in the allegations of corruption committed suicide yesterday. (Review-Journal)

In the Endoscopy/Dr. "Needles" Desai civil matter, Judge Earl ordered that Dr. Needles and the other [alleged] scumbag greedy physicians who handed out free Hep-C to their patients will be deposed. (RJ) Although, I am guessing there will be a record number of times a deponent takes the 5th in each deposition.

Congratulations to Laura Bielinski, Christopher Kircher, Erin Lewis and Zachary Takos, who were named associates at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. (RJ)

Meanwhile, Harmful Error continues its coverage of the impending judicial election [now 100% Halverson free!] (Harmful Error)

Halverson to Hospital from Domestic Abuse

If you haven't read it by now, suspended Judge Elizabeth Halverson is in the hospital after she was assaulted by her husband. Her injuries are not life threatening.

The Review-Journal reports:

Police were called to her house late last night to respond to a domestic
violence call. Police said her husband, Edward Halverson, 49, hit her with a frying pan.

Edward "Evil Ed" Halverson was booked into the county jail on one attempted murder count, one count battery with substantial bodily harm and one count battery with a deadly weapon.

Wow. Maybe Halverson's baliff really should have accepted the judge's request that he kill her husband . What a bastard. He hit her with a frying pan. That's cruel. It's not as if she's agile and could get out of the way.

More Fun with Nevada Defendants--Fleiss and naked bus hijacker

Former Hollywood madame and current Pahrump laundromat owner/Nye County Superstar Heidi Fleiss has been charged with possession of the painkiller hydrocodone without a prescription and use of methamphetamine. (Review-Journal)

And if you missed it earlier this week, in what may be the high water mark for crime with a Vegas-flair, a naked man hijacked a bus. The Review-Journal reports:

Las Vegas police said the man, 35-year-old Charles P. Sell, was first seen stealing a beer at the 7-Eleven on the corner of Lamb Boulevard and Washington Avenue about 8 a.m.

An officer arrived at the scene and the man fled, a police spokesman said. Sell then climbed onto the back of a moving CAT bus traveling east on Washington, broke one of the back windows with his fists, and climbed in.

He threw the driver off the bus and drove it about 200 yards before jumping off . . .

The report misses the most important point: was he naked during the entire crime spree? Did he walk into a store naked and steal a beer before hijacking the bus?

And if you've been wanting more coverage of Dr. "Needles" Desai, there's a nice bio piece on how he rose up and [allegedly] blackmailed and browbeat his way to the top in Vegas. (Review-Journal)

Thurs Roundup

The FBI announced a major child prostitution bust with links to Las Vegas. At least 65 people have been arrested in Las Vegas as a part of Operation Cross Country, including pimps, prostitutes and people soliciting prostitutes. (Las Vegas Now)

Congratulations to District Judge Arthur Ritchie Jr. [pictured right], the presiding judge for Family Court, who has been named new Chief Judge for the Eighth Judicial District Court. (Review-Journal) In other court personnel news, congratulations to Edward A. Friedland, Esq. who has been selected to serve as the Court Executive Officer and Clerk of the Court of the Clark County Courts. (Harmful Error)

Parents whose 4 yr-old with a genetic disease died after they him left alone in their SUV are facing murder charges. (Review-Journal)

Before his Public Defender could talk to him, a man accused of robbing and beating Oakland Raiders receiver Javon Walker alleged in open court that police pressured his fiance to press charges against him in a domestic violence case. (Review-Journal)

The Nevada Supreme Court will take up the issue of whether term limits for state and local officials are constitutional. Under the current term limits, those who have served for 12 years in office can no longer run for office. (Review-Journal)

Las Vegas Police detectives have submitted a felony case against a well-known tag crew member to the district attorney’s office as a suspect in the graffiti outbreak at the Regional Justice Center. (Las Vegas Sun)

An editorial suggesting that a Clark County Baliff's tasering of a 23 yr-old audio-video technician for the entertainment/education of kids might not have been a good idea. (Las Vegas Sun)

After 25 years of serving the City of Henderson, Police Chief Richard Perkins is retiring. (Las Vegas Now)

In Carson City, an attorney with only 8 yrs of experience is running for a District Court Judicial seat, claiming the requirement that judicial candidates must be licensed for at least 10 years doesn't apply to him because he was licensed before the law went into effect. (Nevada Appeal)

Congress will not be rolling back the Internet gambling ban this year after a House committee deadlocked on an amendment to prevent federal agencies from completing the new rules until the agencies defined "unlawful Internet gambling." (Review-Journal)

An international defense contractor accused of attempting to bribe an Army office is on the loose after cutting his electronic monitoring bracelet and disappearing. Some Assistant U.S. Attorneys are questioning Magistrate Judge Lawrence Leavitt's decision to allow the suspect to remain under electronic monitoring at a friend's home. (Las Vegas Sun)

In Ireland, the lethal toxin Ricin was found in the prison cell of a former Las Vegas poker dealer accused of conspiring with a Clare woman to kill her partner and his two sons. (Breaking News)

Knapp details the legal wrangling that led to a dismissal in the Gage trial while pointing out the absurdity of Gage's claim of being "vindicated" after 8 of 12 jurors in an earlier trial said he was guilty. (Las Vegas City Life)

District Judge Herndon unsealed the three year old malpractice suit against Judge Miley. (Review-Journal)

Finally, Congratulations to Las Vegas lawyer Aaron D. Lovaas who has been named by Mountain States Super Lawyers magazine as one of the top business litigators under 40 in the state of Nevada. (PR Web)

Tues Roundup

Convicted sex offenders are challenging a new Nevada law that tracks sex offenders based on the crime they committed instead of their assessed risk of re-offending. The sex offenders' attorney, Randall Roske, says the new law is unconstitutional and demonizes a group of people who aren't a risk to society. (Fox 5) [uh . . . I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that most people wouldn't describe convicted sex offenders as not "a risk to society". But maybe it's just me]

A 24-year-old man has been arrested on a second-degree murder charge for allegedly providing more than 160 pills, including 32 hydrocodone pills to a 16 yr-old wrestler at Centennial High School. (Review-Journal)

Apparently, the U.S. Dept. of Justice doesn't know how we do things in Nevada. They are looking into the details of how the Dept. of Energy awarded a four-year $47.7 million contract to handle licensing for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository with Morgan Lewis & Bockius, a firm acknowledged to have conflicts on nuclear waste matters. (Review-Journal)

After 15 minutes of deliberating, a coroner's jury unanimously found a Las Vegas police officer was justified when he shot and killed a man who was armed, pacing and screaming for the demons to go away and had pointed his weapon at a friend and his brother. (Review-Journal)

One of the first patients infected with hepatitis C at Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada spoke about the infection, "When they diagnosed me with hepatitis C, it was just like my whole world crashed." (Las Vegas Now) [makes me proud the judicial system will allow Dr. "Needles" Desai to plead the 5th and not testify in the civil trial].

Some homeowners who are being foreclosed on are vandalizing the property before leaving. (Las Vegas Now)

A Lyon County man was sentenced to eight years in prison for the unprovoked February knife attack/throat slashing of a Carson City man. (Nevada Appeal)

Apparently Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Joe Bonaventure doesn't want alleged murderers on the street of Vegas. A 24-year-old woman accused of murder in connection with slaying of a furniture store manager was denied bail on Monday morning. (Review-Journal)

Over at the O.J. circus, District Court Judge Jackie Glass rejected a bid by O.J. Simpson's defense team (headed by criminal defense attorney Gabriel Grasso) to question prospective jurors about what they know and think about the former football star and a bid to use a lengthy pretrial questionnaire to gauge how people in the jury pool might respond to defense strategies in Simpson's armed robbery and kidnapping case. (Review-Journal)

Congratulations to Richard Chatwin, named as an associate by the Gerrard Cox Larsen law firm. (Review-Journal)

And Congratulations to Steve Hiltz, directing attorney for the Clark County Legal Services Program's Children's Attorney Project, who the American Bar Association recognized with its Child Advocacy Award. (Las Vegas Business Press)

Finally, Congratulations to Michael Bonner, John Brewer, Mark Ferrario, Mark Fiorentino, Robert Gronauer, Christopher Kaempfer, Neal Klegerman and Thomas Kummer, who Chambers USA ranked as leaders in gaming, corporate law, litigation and real estate/zoning and land use. (Las Vegas Business Press)

Thurs Roundup

Wanna hear some good songs about the law? Above the Law posted its list of the top 10 legal songs. (Abovethelaw.com)

The woman who was with Pacman Jones when the Minxx Strip Club got shot up was found dead in the Bronx yesterday after being thrown off a building. (Review-Journal)

District Judge David Barker dismissed the charges against Lt. Juanita Goode, who was facing felony counts of falsifying loan information to purchase a $600,000 home in Las Vegas. (Review-Journal)

The Ninth Circuit ruled that employers have no right to read employee's text messages without consent. (ABA Journal)

A fugitive sweep that is being called the largest such operation by U.S. Marshals in Nevada nabbed more than 200 criminals wanted on felony charges, representatives with the agency said Wednesday. (Review-Journal)

Happy days for Bankruptcy attorneys! The number of Southern Nevada bankruptcies in the first four months of 2008 have exceeded the total number for all of 2006. (Las Vegas Business Press)

Apparently, not everyone agrees with the ethics of Noel Gage's litigation "strategy". The State Bar filed a grievance in March that Gage was splitting fees with non lawyers, including [allegedly] crooked medical consultant Howard Awand. (Review-Journal)

A former Mirage craps and blackjack dealer is claiming he was wrongfully terminated by the gaming giant because of his age and because of the high cost the company paid to provide health insurance to his wife who has cancer. (Las Vegas Business Press)

Wed Afternoon Roundup

The Nevada doctor convicted of abducting his estranged wife is asking to be released from prisong due physical incapacity from Multiple Sclerosis. (Nevada Appeal)

District Judge David Barker today dropped all charges against a Las Vegas police lieutenant who was accused of theft and burglary. (Review-Journal)

The Nevada State Prison in Carson City will close. (Review-Journal)

The Las Vegas City Council has denied Crazy Horse Too's liquor license application. (Review-Journal)

Justice Department lawyer Gregory Addington told a U.S. District Judge Lloyd George that seasonal fluctuations have further reduced water flows in a century-old canal that supplies parched farmlands east of Reno and urged the judge not to block the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation from increasing flows again this fall and winter through Fernley, where earthen walls of the Truckee Canal collapsed in January and flooded nearly 600 homes. (KESQ)

(a very slow legal news) Tuesday Roundup

Las Vegas police found Oakland Raiders wide receiver Javon Walker unconscious after he was robbed on a street off the strip. (Nevada Appeal)

Las Vegas Municipal Judge George Assad is going to have to apologize formally to a woman he jailed for two hours because her boyfriend did not show up in court to pay four-year-old traffic tickets. (Las Vegas Sun)

Chief Justice Roberts has appointed five East Coast judges to investigate the ethical issues involved in Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Kozinski's hosting of a publicly accessible website with humorous and explicit pictures. (WSJ)

Photos from the trial of former UMC CEO Lacy Thomas. (Review-Journal)

The ABA Journal details how a client letter left on the copier led a Las Vegas attorney to report his partner for misappropriation of client funds. (ABA Journal)

Wed Roundup

Congratulations to Robert Eglet, senior partner or Mainor Eglet Cottle, on obtaining a $4.5 million verdict for his client who was injured by a driver who attempted to pass a large tractor trailer on US 95 and struck the client's vehicle head-on. (KVBC)

ACLU is unhappy with a wedding handbilling law that says it's "unlawful" to solicit "any person to be married" while on courthouse property. (Review-Journal)

The Las Vegas Metro Police gang unit is trying to track down the person/people who defaced several restrooms in the Regional Justice Center with gang graffiti. (Las Vegas Sun)

The State Board of Education is taking up to 21 months to revoke the licenses of teachers convicted of crimes, including sex crimes. (Las Vegas Sun)

It's County official criminal charge time: a Nye County Commissioner is accused of bribery (Review-Journal) and in Washoe County a water engineer is accused of forming two bogus companies to sell county water well capacity rights he did not own (Review-Journal).

Members of the Nevada Board of Medical Examiners may soon have to divulge conflicts of interest. (Review-Journal). Meanwhile an editorial says the fact that Shadow Mountain Surgical Center was allowed to continue operating after the facility was found to have infection control problems shows that Nevada doctors are still allowed to flout the rules. (Review-Journal)

The Transportation Security Agency will be using body-scanning machines that generate revealing images of people underneath their clothes at McCarran Intl. Airport. (Review-Journal)

Up in Reno, Federal Judge Loren A. Smith awarded more than $4.2 million to the estate of late Nevada rancher and "Sagebrush Rebellion" private property rights advocate Wayne Hage, ruling that the U.S. Forest Service committed a constitutional "taking" of his water rights during a decades-long dispute over livestock grazing on federal land. (Review-Journal) And an editorial celebrates the now-deceased Mr. Hage's fight for property rights. (Review-Journal)

Fox Rothschild had a big jump in revenue and established a full service office in Las Vegas during 2007. (Law.com)

Monday Roundup

Las Vegas lawyer Jeanne Winkler, who was suspended in March amid allegations that she misappropriated more than $200,000 from her attorney-client trust account, is now facing a felony bad-check charge. (Review-Journal)

An owner of dogs who mauled a man in East Vegas is under arrest because he's also a registered sex offender who failed to inform police of his residence. (Las Vegas Now)

In a 2-1 vote, the Nevada Supreme Court's northern panel has ruled a former sex offender serving time for a non-sexual offense doesn't have to get a psychological panel certification before his parole. (Nevada Appeal)

Doctors threatening Ed Bernstein?

Ed Bernstein of Ed Berstein & Assoc. [you know, the lawyer in that super annoying "doors closed in your face" commercial] apparently received a threatening email related to his representation of Plaintiffs in the Hep-C/Endoscopy/Dr. Needles civil case. Best part is, police tracked the email back to a doctor's email account.

The Las Vegas Sun reports (scroll down under the Aryan Warrior report):

Personal injury lawyer Ed Bernstein received a threat that attracted the attention of law enforcement early in his involvement in the massive litigation over the hepatitis outbreak.

Bernstein received an e-mail from someone using a phony name in March telling him to “watch his back” in the litigation. The writer told Bernstein, “We will be following the events closely, and we will certainly be keeping an eye on you and your associates.”

The e-mail concluded, “It would be quite the tragedy if you or someone you cared for ... were to be diagnosed with hepatitis C, wouldn’t it?” That sentence included
Bernstein’s home address, which naturally caused him some concern.

Bernstein turned the message over to Metro Police which, with the help of subpoenaed records, traced the e-mail to an account belonging to a doctor. Police
determined the e-mail originated at a computer in the physicians break room at
Southern Hills Hospital and Medical Center, Bernstein said. The doctor denied
creating the e-mail, and police have not filed charges in the case.

Wow. In this round of the eternal war between lawyers and doctors, doctors appear to have taken the d-bag title.

Friday Roundup

A Kansas-City couple is suing ex-Crazy Horse Too owner Rick Rizzolo alleging that Rizzolo still owes them $10 million as part of his plea agreement and that Rizzolo is hiding millions. (Las Vegas Sun)

The man who shot up the Penthouse Club [who, amazingly, was not Pacman Jones] ran from the club and, when confronted by police, continued shooting. He injured one officer in the leg before being shot and killed by officers. (Review-Journal)

Yesterday, District Judge Valerie Adair sentenced the two men who tortured a 42-year-old man and then dumped his body in the desert. (Review-Journal)

OSHA is coming to City Center to inspect whether the project is obeying federal worker safety laws. (Review-Journal)

The Clark County District Attorney's office rejected a term-limit challenge to Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley. (Review-Journal)

Since the owner of Harrah's has a 2.4 percent stake in the Celtics, Harrah's 13 casinos won't be allowed to take bets on the NBA Finals. (Las Vegas Now)

Former pastor and intoxicated contractor arrested for road rage. (Nevada Appeal)

Family Court Judge Nicholas Del Vecchio denied he sexually abused his step-daughter when she was a minor says he never sexually harassed her as an adult. He also explained that he never called a Hispanic bailiff a "lazy Mexican" or made sexually explicit comments about female court employees, lawyers and judges, but if he did, the comments "would have been said in jest, and in a joking manner". (Review-Journal)

The Southern Nevada Health District has opened an investigation into an Endoscopy Center-affiliated clinic, Desert Shadow Endoscopy Center at 4275 Burnham Ave., after a former patient was diagnosed with Hep-C. (Review-Journal) Meanwhile, inspections of Nevada's ambulatory surgery centers reveals many are still not following disease control policies. (Review-Journal)

Fri Roundup

Unlike former NBA star Charles Barkley and suspended NFL genius Pacman Jones, Democratic Party fundraiser Tony Rezko isn't going down over casino debts without a fight. (Las Vegas Sun)

The Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline voted to continue monitoring Nevada Senior District Judge Charles McGee to ensure he was getting proper alcohol abuse monitoring. (Reno Gazette-Journal) [wait a minute . . . attorneys aren't allowed to abuse alcohol? the state bar needs to investigate . . . every attorney I've ever met]

The Clark Co. D.A. has filed charges against Harrah's with illegally doing work on the fire control and fire alarm systems at three of the company's hotels. (Las Vegas Now)

Up in Carson City, arrests are on the decline overall, but gang-related arrests have increased. (Nevada Appeal)

The Nevada Supremes held that the Clark Co. D.A. can pursue the death penalty for a murder-for-hire defendant by using "pecuniary gain" as an aggravating circumstance. (Review-Journal)

Congratulations to Mark Gardberg on being hired as an Business Law Associate at Lionel Sawyer. (Review-Journal)

The Las Vegas Police Department will pay $290,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a man who said he was wrongfully arrested after repossessing his ex-wife's car. (Review-Journal)