attorney

CARSON CITY – Several lawmakers raised questions today about a proposal put forth by Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto to spend $33 million over three years on outreach, counseling and legal assistance to homeowners who are facing foreclosure.

I wanted to take some time to send out a special thank you to the awesome Businesses and people in our community who helped support our Junior and Senior Little League All Stars advancement to the Western Regional Tournaments in Vancouver WA and Ontario, CA this year! With out their support this would not have been possible for these fine athletes. Our Juniors (13-14 year olds) and Seniors (15-16 year olds) both Finished 1 and 3 in their tournaments and failed to advance to the Little League World Series but had an experience that most kids never have had.

CARSON CITY – The Committee to Protect Nevada Jobs has filed a new lawsuit against a revised margin tax initiative petition sought by the Nevada State Education Association for violating a prohibition requiring such measures to focus on a single

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval today announced Gerald Gardner has been named chief of staff effective September 5. Gardner takes over for Heidi Gansert who has served as the governor’s chief of staff for the past twenty months and who announced her resignation yesterday.

CARSON CITY – The state Board of Examiners, including Gov. Brian Sandoval, today approved a contract worth up to $72 million through 2016 to set up the information technology system needed to implement the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange.

The contract with Xerox State Healthcare will allow the state to move forward with the exchange, basically a one-stop shop for purchasing health insurance. The exchanges were authorized by the Affordable Care Act, most of which was upheld in a U.S. Supreme Court decision in June.

CARSON CITY – Democrats continued to outpace their Republican counterparts in voter registration efforts in July, the Secretary of State’s office reported this week.

Democrats registered 8,121 active voters, while Republicans registered 3,705 active voters. Active registered nonpartisans increased by 4,946 during the same time period.

CARSON CITY – Carson City District Judge James Wilson heard arguments today but delayed ruling on whether an initiative petition filed by the state teachers association to raise an estimated $800 million a year for education via a new margin tax is too flawed to go forward.

Wilson said after a brief hearing that he will issue a decision “as soon as possible.”

CARSON CITY – A libertarian think tank’s legal team has filed an opening brief in a case before the state Supreme Court seeking to pursue its separation-of-powers lawsuit aimed at state lawmakers who also work in state government jobs.

Despite more than 10 years of outstanding service as a PUC senior economist, my friend Nevada Regent Ron Knecht was fired in March by the PUC bureaucrats, with no reason given and no announcement made.

This story was then intentionally leaked to the press, so that it would be reported just before voting started in Mr. Knecht’s primary re-election campaign. Ron won the primary handily, because voters are very aware his outstanding record, fine character, and dedication to public service.

CARSON CITY – The state Board of Examiners today approved a $3 million contract with an out-of-state firm to spearhead tourism efforts in Nevada after being told the selection process was thorough and fair.

The board, with members Gov. Brian Sandoval and Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto voting, approved the two-year contract with the California-based offices of Burson-Marsteller.

CARSON CITY – The deadline for a free, federal independent foreclosure review for Nevadans whose homes were in foreclosure in 2009 or 2010 has been extended to Sept. 30, 2012, Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said today.

The previous deadline was July 31.

CARSON CITY – Marcia Giller, 76, of Reno, has been sentenced to prison for two felony offenses of submitting false Medicaid claims, the Attorney General’s office announced this week.

Washoe County District Judge Steven Kosach sentenced Giller on Tuesday to 18 to 48 months imprisonment for each count, to be served consecutively, and additionally ordered Giller to pay $226,000 in restitution, penalties and costs.

The Carson City Board of Supervisors will be discussing on Thursday an amendment to the previous redevelopment incentive loan package offered to Micheal Hohl Motors to keep the company's three dealerships in the county.

The company has already received $2.4 million in redevelopment funds that was used to help build the new Honda and Subaru dealerships on South Carson Street, and is preparing to take out the remaining $2.4 million for remodeling of the GM dealership.

The people behind the petition effort to force the Carson City Center aka Nugget Project on the ballot submitted 4,559 signatures to the Carson City Clerk-Recorder's office for verification this morning.

The group needs have have 2,935 signatures verified by the clerk to qualify the petition. Day Williams, an attorney who is part of the petitioners' group, said they did their own verification check of the signatures against the voter rolls and are confident they have more than enough to qualify.

CARSON CITY – The Committee to Protect Nevada Jobs filed a lawsuit today against the “Education Initiative” (margin tax Initiative) charging that that the petition’s description of effect is deceptive and incomplete and that it violates the single-subject rule.

The complaint was filed in Carson City District Court.

CARSON CITY – Former Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley may not be a candidate for public office this year, but this apparent lack of political ambition has not stopped her from maintaining a campaign fund worth nearly half a million dollars.

One of the biggest, once-in-a-lifetime thrills this writer experienced was first-time voting eligibility in local, state and national elections. What a privilege to have my official opinion added in to the larger community, with an impact on public decisions going forward. Much can be learned from the morning-after election results, which chronicle where we are as a community at a given moment. . .a snapshot of what's on people's collective minds, or at least those who choose to exercise their voting rights.

The Carson City Board of Supervisors yesterday approved wording for ballot question seeking a sales tax increase to fund the Carson City Center Project, aka Nugget Project.

See the live Tweets of the meeting here.

Supervisors agreed to two important changes to the original wording released last week.

CARSON CITY – A business margin tax initiative petition filed with the Secretary of State’s office won’t see signature gathering efforts start right away because a legal challenge to the proposal is expected, a teachers union official said today.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval today announced changes to his staff in his Carson City office, including the departure of Senior Adviser Dale Erquiaga, who will move to Arizona in July to be near his children.

CARSON CITY – With education reform a top priority of Gov. Brian Sandoval, the new alignment of the state Board of Education – with four seats up for grabs on the November ballot – is taking on more importance than ever before.

One of the four seats, District 2 which mirrors the new Nevada 2^nd Congressional District from Reno and Carson City east across rural Nevada, has attracted five candidates, two of whom are serving now on the 10-member elected board. The race is nonpartisan.

CARSON CITY – Republican candidates have big leads in fundraising in four of five seats considered critical to control of the state Senate in the 2013 legislative session, with a slight monetary advantage in the fifth, according to campaign contribution reports filed this week.

Both Democrat and Republican caucus leaders are fighting hard to win the seats to control the 21-member house where Democrats now lead 11-10.

CARSON CITY – Three of the Republicans seeking the right to challenge state Democratic Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford for Nevada’s new 4^th Congressional District seat sought to establish their conservative credentials in a televised debate today.

Liane Anderson, of Carson City, was sentenced on Tuesday to 40 to 102 months in prison following her conviction for felony Obtaining Money by False Pretenses and Fraudulent Use of a Credit Card.

Why has the latest version of the City Center project been crafted outside of public view?

The city's recent announcement states the project is now $28 million (excluding interest expense), replacing the $49 million (excluding interest) proposed in September 2011 primarily because the multi-level parking garage has been removed.

The public doesn't know who came up with this abrupt change. However, we do know there were no public meetings about this project shift and the Nugget/City Center Advisory Committee hasn't met since August 2011.

Editor's Note: The story about this person's court trial is here.

As some of you already know, I have been charged and convicted by a jury of “Battery Causing Substantial Bodily Harm” on April 26th of 2012 in Carson City, NV. To get to that, we have to go back to the morning of March 25th of 2011.

Christopher Lash, 28, has been found guilty of Battery Causing Substantial Bodily Harm stemming from a March 25, 2011 altercation at a local bar in Carson City.

Carson City Sheriff’s deputies were called to a local establishment at 2:00 A.M. with reports of a man striking another man in the face with a pint glass. The suspect fled the scene when deputies arrived, but the deputies received statements from witnesses indicating Christopher Lash struck the victim, Nicholas Moen, in the face with a pint glass causing severe injuries.

“John Walker had always known he’d have to come back. No one runs away from a past like his and just walks away clean. Not in the books he’d written or the script he’d just finished. He didn’t blame his wife for being furious with him.”

This is the opening paragraph of local author Jeani Ambrose’s first published book, Legacy of the Father. Legacy can best be described as a paranormal mystery with romantic overtones.

KOLO8 News covers the "CRIME SCENE Flash MOB" protest in front of NV AG Catherine Cortez Masto's Carson City Office.

Protesters rallied with a 4 foot by 150 foot long "CRIME SCENE" banner!

Protesters each have their individual complaints against the Attorney General, NDOC, NHP, the Governor and Reno DA Dick Gammick.

CARSON CITY – State lawmakers today approved $46,284 from a legislative contingency fund to help the Nevada Office of the Military cover a budget shortfall due to high energy costs resulting from a solar project built at three of its sites around the state.

But lawmakers also asked for an attorney general review of the 20-year deal with Sierra Solar to see if the 15 cent per kilowatt hour charge for the electricity can be modified. The rate is now higher than what the agency could get buying power directly from NV Energy.