Nevada Attorney General

CARSON CITY — Now that open enrollment has begun for health insurance plans affected by the Affordable Care Act, Nevadans need to be wary of scammers looking to take advantage of consumer’s uncertainty surrounding this law.

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto joined 39 other states in asking the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to put an end to mobile cramming, the placement of unauthorized third-party charges on mobile phone bills.

“Consumers have the right to have extra charges removed,” said Masto in a news release. “My office will continue take appropriate action against those who bill unauthorized amounts on consumers’ mobile phone bills.”

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto and other supports of the bill will join Sandoval as he signs AB67 into law. The bill establishes the crime of sex trafficking of children and adults, and makes victims eligible for state assistance and allows them to sue their traffickers. By doing so, the bill holds pimps accountable and protects the victims of sex trafficking.

The board of the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau will meet today to discuss, among other things, hiring an interim executive director. The board began its search for the interim director after Candace Duncan retired in December.

CARSON CITY – Insurance Commissioner Scott J. Kipper is warning Nevadans about a telephone scam circulating in the Silver State.
The scam is an automated call that tells consumers that their zip code has been re-evaluated and that they now qualify for lower insurance rates. According to a news release, consumers are then asked to “press one for more information,” if they do, they will be transferred to a voicemail system that asked them to leave personal information.

Friday, Jan. 18 is the deadline for qualified borrowers who lost their homes in foreclosure to file claims for a one-time payment under the $25 billion national mortgage foreclosure settlement, Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said.

Nevada and 16 other states have reached an agreement with the nation's largest tobacco companies to resolve 10 years of disputes regarding terms in a 1998 settlement. The agreement provides Nevada with about $21 million in 2013.

With widespread use of social media among adults and children, there's been an uptick in the amount of cyber-bullying cases brought to Carson City area school officials and law enforcement. Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto will discuss this and other internet safety concerns on Saturday, Nov. 10 beginning at 2:30 p.m. The presentation, geared for parents, students and educators, will touch on cyber-predators, sexting and cyber-bullying.

CARSON CITY – A behavioral health company based in Las Vegas was fined $125,000 today in a Medicaid fraud case involving the failure to maintain adequate records to support Medicaid claims.

Rainbow Child and Family Services was sentenced for one gross misdemeanor offense of intentional failure to maintain adequate records by Clark County District Judge Valerie Adair and ordered to pay the $125,000 in restitution, penalties, and costs.

RBS Financial Products will pay a $42 million settlement to resolve an investigation into the firm’s role in purchasing and securitizing subprime and payment option adjustable rate mortgages in Nevada.
The assurance of discontinuance, filed in Eighth Judicial District Court, requires RBSFP to commit to certain changes in its practices to the extent it securitizes Nevada mortgages and to pay the State $42 million to be used for payments to affected borrowers, mortgage fraud enforcement, and foreclosure prevention, and attorney’s fees and costs.

CARSON CITY – Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced today that Aurora Volero-Alvarez, 61, of Las Vegas, has been sentenced in a Medicaid fraud case involving the false reporting of personal care services.

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced Thursday that she and 36 other AGs reached a record $181 million settlement, the largest multi-state consumer protection settlement of its kind reached with a pharmaceutical company, with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson. Nevada’s share of the settlement will be $3.3 million.

CARSON CITY – The Nevada Attorney General’s Office has reached two separate agreements this week, one with a pharmaceutical firm over the marketing of anti-psychotic drugs and another with three book publishers over e-book price-fixing allegations.

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.

http://youtu.be/YyG_i4MHHRY

Today several people staged a protest in front of the Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto's office in an effort to show solidarity and that Masto's office has abused her privilege to serve Nevada.

The Nevada Attorney General's Office and a court clerk are accused of illegally backdating court filings. Story coming up Wednesday on KRNV MyNews4:

CARSON CITY – State Sen. Greg Brower, R-Reno, today criticized his Democrat challenger for “quitting” on her constituents when she resigned her Senate seat and then filed to run against him. Brower is running for election to a full four-year term in what is now Washoe District 15 after the state’s legislative districts were redrawn following the 2010 census. Leslie, who was in the middle of a four-year term in what is now Senate District 13, formerly Washoe Senate 1, resigned when she moved into District 15. She then filed for election to the Senate 15 seat.

CARSON CITY – Here is a selection of comments made by Nevada public officials today following the announcement of the death of former state Sen. Bill Raggio:

U.S. Sen. Dean Heller: “I am deeply saddened by the death of Bill Raggio. There are no words to describe his dedication to the state of Nevada and I wish to express my deepest condolences and prayers for his wife Dale, and his family. Bill was a true statesman who dedicated his life to making Nevada a better place to live. His legacy will be remembered for generations to come.”

CARSON CITY – When state Sen. Greg Brower asked the Attorney General’s office earlier this month about the $6 million in outside legal costs incurred so far in defending the state in a freeway construction dispute, he said his motives were purely fiscal in nature.

The Office of the Nevada Attorney General will host eight trainings starting on Tuesday, Jan. 31 running through Thursday, Feb. 9 throughout the state about the Nevada victim notification service.

The goal of the trainings is to teach first responders, victims of crime, victim advocates, prosecutors, law enforcement agencies, and community members about a service currently available in 13 of Nevada’s 17 counties called Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE).

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto will chair the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Statewide Team meeting on Thursday, January 12 at 9:30 a.m. at the Best Western Plus Airport Plaza in Reno.

The group, who is meeting for the first time, is comprised of prosecutors, police, domestic violence service providers, treatment providers and community and faith leaders.

The fatality reviews will create a greater understanding of the tragedies associated with domestic violence and will lead to the implementation of preventative interventions.

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto is warning Nevadans who may be participating in last minute holiday shopping to be aware of identity theft, charitable donation scams, and text message scams.

Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced today a lawsuit against Lender Processing Services, Inc., DOCX, LLC, LPS Default Solutions, Inc. and other subsidiaries of LPS (collectively known “LPS”) for engaging in deceptive practices against Nevada consumers.

Attorneys General Kamala D. Harris of California and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada today announced that their states have entered into a joint investigation alliance designed to assist homeowners who have been harmed by misconduct and fraud in the mortgage industry.

By forging this alliance, California and Nevada will combine investigative resources, including litigation strategies, information, and evidence gathered through their respective ongoing investigations, assisting each state as it pursues independent prosecutions.

The Office of the Nevada Attorney General announced today that complaints have been filed against three more notaries in the State’s ongoing massive robo-signing investigation. Meghan Shaw, Jennifer Lowe and Joseph Noel have all been charged with notarization of the signature of a person not in their presence.

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced today that a settlement agreement has been reached with Registered Agent, Inc. regarding advertisements sent by mail to corporations in order to deceptively change registered agents.

Veterans In Politics International, Inc. presents the Veterans Valentines Ball and Gala, hosted by the Plaza Hotel and Casino, 1 South Main Street, Las Vegas, Nevada 89101
Guests will be received by: Crowned members of the Miss Nevada Organization including Miss Nevada 2011 Alana LeeMrs. Clark County United States 2012 Melissa Jeanne Arias
— Opening Ceremonies to be performed by Nellis Honor Guard
— National Anthem will be performed by Miss Vanessa Bayot
— Masters of Ceremonies are Miss Rowena Richards of Shine Foundation, and Mr. Les Krifaton of Fox 5

The Office of the Nevada Attorney General announced today that Tracy Lawrence, 43, a local notary, has pled guilty to one count of notarizing the signature of an individual not in her presence, a gross misdemeanor in violation of NRS 240.155.

Notary fraud carries a potential jail sentence of one year and/or a fine of up to $2,000.

CARSON CITY – Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto has joined with her Utah counterpart Mark Shurtleff  in asking the U.S. Senate to take up consideration of Rich Cordray’s nomination to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).