Nevada

Judge tosses contempt finding against public defender who was handcuffed for ‘insolent behavior’

A Nevada judge has overturned a contempt finding against a Las Vegas public defender who was handcuffed in court for interrupting a judge. District Judge Gloria Sturman of Clark Clark County said the public defender, Zohra Bakhtary, was not allowed to speak in her defense and was denied due process,…

Aug 3, 2016 10:29 AM CDT

Judge who survived courthouse shooting now educates others about domestic-violence case risks

Almost exactly 10 years after he survived a sniper-style shooting by a man whose divorce case he was overseeing, a Nevada judge is still on the bench. But Reno Family Court Judge Chuck Weller has since educated himself about the threats posed by individuals in domestic violence cases and is…

Jun 13, 2016 10:00 AM CDT

9th Circuit OKs legal fees in failed suit over school bus converted to look like Spanish galleon

A school bus converted to a replica 16th-century Spanish galleon and used to transport attendees, hold weddings and provide a stage for poetry readings at events like Nevada’s Burning Man festival wasn’t a protected artwork under a federal statute. That’s what a federal district court judge decided on summary judgment…

Jun 9, 2016 3:40 PM CDT

Case dropped against paraplegic man accused of stealing from UPS driver, then sprinting away

Antwine Hunter spent two weeks in a Las Vegas jail before an important fact in his burglary and larceny case came to the attention of the prosecutor, the judge and a complaining witness: He is a paraplegic. The perpetrator in his case stole a cellphone and a scanner from a…

Jun 8, 2016 11:55 AM CDT

Defense bar group blasts judge who had public defender cuffed in court

A group of criminal defense lawyers has filed a legal ethics complaint against a Nevada judge who ordered a public defender handcuffed in court last month because she tried to interrupt him and make an argument during a sentencing hearing for her client. Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Conrad…

Jun 1, 2016 12:45 PM CDT

Public defender handcuffed in court at judge’s order says she was just doing her job

An assistant public defender put in handcuffs in a Nevada courtroom on Monday says she was just doing her job and attempting to represent her client when the presiding judge ordered his marshal to restrain her. Earlier, Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Conrad Hafen told the Las Vegas-Review Journal…

May 25, 2016 3:20 PM CDT

Legal aid group adds representation for people facing guardianships, finds evidence of overbilling

A lawyer hired by the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada to represent clients facing guardianship proceedings says she has found evidence of overbilling by guardians. Lawyer Christine Miller was hired after the center began receiving phone calls from people seeking help in guardianship court, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.…

May 25, 2016 12:35 PM CDT

Judge says handcuffing public defender taught her a lesson about ‘proper decorum’ in court

Updated: A Nevada judge says he’s been having a problem for about six months with a lawyer who regularly appears in his courtroom talking over him. So on Monday, he had his courtroom marshal handcuff assistant public defender Zohra Bakhtary. She was then seated in the jury box alongside inmates…

May 24, 2016 12:20 PM CDT

Feds can apply convicted judge’s pension to his $2.9M restitution, court rules

At least 25 percent of a convicted former Nevada judge’s more than $10,000-a-month pension can be applied to his $2.9 million restitution, a federal judge in Las Vegas ruled from the bench on Monday. Prosecutors will put the money remaining after the garnishment into a prison account for Steven Jones…

Apr 4, 2016 3:10 PM CDT

Man admits to Facebook threats against federal judge, agrees to 366-day prison term

A Nevada man has pleaded guilty to threatening a federal judge on Facebook, in exchange for a prison term of just over a year. Jason Andre Willis, 41, pleaded guilty on Tuesday in federal court in Las Vegas to a felony charge of threatening interstate communications, reports the Las Vegas…

Mar 29, 2016 12:50 PM CDT

Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy refuses to enter plea; supporters protest at federal courthouse

Following a protest outside the federal courthouse in Las Vegas, a Nevada rancher accused of orchestrating an armed standoff with U.S. government agents in a grazing-rights dispute was arraigned on Thursday. He refused to enter a plea. Amidst confusion about whether Cliven Bundy, 69, had a defense lawyer, a magistrate…

Mar 11, 2016 1:14 PM CST

Lawyer gets 90 days for filing ‘completion’ forms for unperformed counseling, community service

A judge on Monday imposed a 90-day jail term on a suspended Nevada lawyer who played a role in filing phony certificates of completion for court-ordered counseling and community service in 91 cases. In fact, as Brian Bloomfield now admits, the counseling and community service was never performed. After a…

Mar 8, 2016 4:45 PM CST

Judge tosses lawyer’s defamation suit against Nevada bar

A federal judge in Nevada has tossed a lawsuit by a Las Vegas lawyer that claimed the State Bar of Nevada defamed him by leaking information to the press about pending bar probes against him. In a March 3 order (PDF), U.S. District Judge James Mahan dismissed the lawsuit by…

Mar 8, 2016 10:15 AM CST

Feds seek 14 more in obstruction case over cattle-grazing standoff near Bundy ranch

After a 2014 armed standoff that reportedly occurred between Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, some 400 armed supporters and the feds in a cattle-grazing dispute, no charges were immediately brought. But last month Bundy and four others were charged with obstruction of justice, extortion and other counts, for allegedly blocking federal…

Mar 3, 2016 2:50 PM CST

Businessman wanted ‘broken bones’ due to lawyer’s defamation suit over online review, FBI says

In the course of a money-laundering probe of a Las Vegas businessman, FBI agents say, they happened upon another potential crime. Emile Bouari told undercover agents he wanted to put attorney Paul Padda in a wheelchair, have his hand cut off, or at the very least see him suffering from…

Feb 23, 2016 10:30 AM CST