Kevin Williams, District Court hearing master, dies at 51

By Las Vegas Sun Staff (contact)

Tuesday, March 30, 2010 | 2:38 p.m.

Clark County District Court Hearing Master Kevin V. Williams has died.

Williams, 51, died peacefully in his sleep Tuesday morning at his home, the district court information office said.

He was a member of the county legal community for more than 21 years. He began working for the Eighth Judicial District Court in 1989 as a law clerk for Judge Addeliar D. Guy. In 1990, he began working as an attorney in the public defender’s office, handling misdemeanor and felony cases. In 2006, he left the public defender’s office to become district court’s first criminal arraignment hearing master.

“Kevin was a tireless and conscientious employee who vastly improved our processes and helped this court run more efficiently,” District Court Chief Judge T. Arthur Ritchie Jr. said in a statement. “We are saddened by this news and extend our condolences to Kevin’s family.”

Williams earned a juris doctorate from Georgia State University and a master’s degree in educational psychology from Clark-Atlanta University, both in Atlanta. He was admitted to the George State Bar in 1988. He earned his undergraduate degree from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

Williams became a member of the Nevada State Bar in 1989 and the United States Supreme Court Bar in 1999.

He is survived by his wife, Chestine, and his brothers, Judge Timothy C. Williams and Dr. Carl N. Williams Jr., of Las Vegas. Funeral services are pending.