Tuesday, April 16, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
A Las Vegas chiropractor fended off fraud charges, if only temporarily, when a federal jury could not reach a verdict.
Thomas Shleifer, accused of assisting in a nationwide scheme to con insurance companies, faced four counts of mail fraud.
The Las Vegas jurors deliberated for roughly 16 hours over three days but failed to reach a verdict Monday.
"Some of the people must have believed my client," said Shleifer's former lawyer, Michael Cherry, who withdrew from the case when the chiropractor could not continue to pay him legal fees.
The government built its case, in part, on the testimony of an admittedly crooked insurance man and family of modern-day "gypsies" who traveled the country posing as victims and conning companies out of money.
The government alleged that in 1990 Shleifer participated in a scam when he allegedly said he treated a carload of people who intentionally rammed their car into a utility pole on Lake Mead Boulevard.
Shleifer, authorities contend, said he treated the passengers and driver more often then he truly did. He is accused of helping to cheat Farmers Insurance out of about $36,000.
The insurance man and the so-called "gypsies" have already been punished for their role in the national scheme, Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Schiess said.
Schiess said the government will re-try the case, now set for June 17.
Cherry criticized the government for pursuing charges against Shleifer, who he said is considered a minor player in the alleged fraud ring.
"To me it's a waste of time and money to try this guy again," said Cherry, making reference to the Unabomber case as legitimate prosecution. "They had their one shot and they were unable to do it."
Shleifer faces up to 20 years in prison on the four mail fraud counts.
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