Tuesday, April 23, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
A Carson City woman has filed a complaint with the state Ethics Commission against Nevada Gaming Commission Chairman Bill Curran.
Ande Engleman, former executive director of the Nevada Press Association, asked the ethics panel Monday to investigate whether Curran failed to fully disclose his possible conflict when removing himself from a disciplinary case involving suspended Horseshoe executive Ted Binion.
Curran last week bailed out of the case because of a just-discovered "situation" involving one of his private legal clients.
He refused to disclose the name of his client and the possible conflict as outlined in NRS 281.501.
But the Nevada attorney general's office said the limited information he provided was good enough to comply with the statute.
Engleman, however, said the Ethics Commission, not the attorney general, is the final authority on whether Curran followed the law.
She said the ethics panel has not rendered many opinions on this subject, and that has led to confusion among the public.
"In this instance, such confusion has raised questions about the Gaming Commission, one of our most respected public bodies, at a time when gaming is coming under close scrutiny all over the nation," Engleman said in her complaint. "It is imperative that as much be made public as possible for continuing trust in the Gaming Commission."
Curran said late Monday he isn't worried about the outcome of an ethics probe.
"Perhaps there's some way to have an impartial review of it, rather than have it analyzed by people who seek to make something out of it that isn't there," he said.
Curran has refused to disclose the name of his client on grounds it might harm the client's interests.
The Gaming Commission has set a Monday hearing on whether to ban Binion permanently from the casino industry.
The State Gaming Control Board, however, has asked the commission to delay the hearing so it can lodge another complaint against Binion. The commission is set to take up the matter Thursday in Carson City.
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