Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Letter to the editor:

New law creates undue strain

In trying to make victims safer, our Legislature passed a bill that anyone convicted of misdemeanor domestic battery loses the right to possess firearms. That right however, is enshrined the Nevada Constitution as well as the U.S. Constitution.

As a result, the state Supreme Court ruled that people accused of misdemeanor domestic violence have the right to a jury trial

“Given that the Legislature has indicated that the offense of misdemeanor domestic battery is serious, it follows that one facing the charge is entitled to the right to a jury trial,” Justice Lidia Stiglich wrote in the unanimous decision of the seven-member court.

It is up to prosecutors to charge domestic violence as a misdemeanor or felony. Serious domestic battery is always charged as a felony as it should be, to take these jerks off the street and lock them up for years.

Now we will have hundreds of misdemeanor defendants appealing for new trials. Managing the thousands of jurors needed will likely overwhelm our courts.

The Legislature should have seen this coming.