Wednesday, March 19, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Countering claims of his former surveillance chief, Frontier co-owner John Elardi insisted on the witness stand that there was no videotape of an alleged 1992 beating of a California man at the Strip resort.
Elardi on Tuesday rebutted testimony from Wayne Legare, who ran a Frontier spy squad during the peak of the Culinary Union strike, that a camera existed in a holding room where Frontier security officers allegedly beat up Kevin Cimity, an unhappy guest of the resort.
Cimity and his wife, Linda, are suing the Frontier over the March 21, 1992, incident. The trial is taking place in the courtroom of District Judge Nancy Becker.
The couple's lawyer, Jerry Wiese, considers a videotape a key piece of evidence in helping prove his case that Frontier officers used excessive force on Cimity.
Elardi's sworn testimony is the first time he has addressed allegations of wrongdoing raised by Legare, who stepped forward in interviews with the SUN in December.
The Frontier boss confirmed the existence of the spy room Legare headed from 1992 to 1995, which was aimed at keeping a 24-hour surveillance of the Culinary picket line.
Legare, who has previously alleged he led a team that spied and played dirty tricks on the strikers, testified Monday that Elardi wanted him to tape everything at the hotel.
It was the first time Legare has testified in court against his former boss.
Legare's allegations have led to investigations of the Frontier by the FBI and State Gaming Control Board.
His stepping forward also has prompted the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor organization, to conduct unprecedented public hearings in Washington on the 5 1/2-year strike.
The AFL-CIO, which has 13 million members across the country, has launched a national campaign to focus attention on the strike and force authorities to take action against the resort.
Legare, a nondenominational minister who now lives in Arizona, testified Monday that he saw a video camera in the holding room months before the alleged beating. But he acknowledged under cross-examination from Frontier lawyer Steve Cohen that he never saw a tape.
After his testimony, Legare insisted in an interview that the camera should have been in the holding room during Cimity's altercation with security officers.
But Elardi testified Tuesday that the camera was removed and located elsewhere shortly after the Culinary Union strike began on Sept. 21, 1991.
He said it was put back in mid-June or July 1992, when video equipment was purchased for the spy center, dubbed the 900 Room.
Elardi also rebutted Legare's testimony that the Frontier boss had instructed Legare to lie to a grand jury investigating the April 1993 beating of a California couple on the picket line.
Sean and Gail White filed suit against the union and the Frontier over the incident, which was captured on hotel videotape. The union has since settled, but the case is moving to trial against the Frontier.
Contrary to Legare's testimony, Elardi said he never told Legare to bring a copy of the tape, instead of the subpoenaed original, to the grand jury.
Elardi also testified that he didn't have a policy of not providing authorities with videotapes that might portray the hotel in a bad light.
Becker was considering Tuesday whether to allow Cimity's lawyer to see sworn depositions from Elardi and his electronics expert, John Horton, in the White case.
The depositions, in which both men discuss the widespread videotaping at the Frontier, remain sealed under a confidentiality agreement that expires at the end of the month.
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