National TV audience in Strohmeyer case risky for Las Vegas

JEFF GERMAN is a senior investigative reporter. His column appears in the Las Vegas SUN on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. He can be reached at 259-4067 or on the Internet at [email protected]

IN AN ELECTION YEAR, we can expect anything to happen.

Chief District Judge Myron Leavitt isn't disappointing us.

Leavitt, who's running for the Nevada Supreme Court, surprised both sides this week in the upcoming murder trial of Jeremy Strohmeyer, when he allowed live Court TV coverage.

The case, set to begin Aug. 17, doesn't rise to level of national interest as the murder trial of O.J. Simpson. But it's going to give Las Vegas the kind of publicity it doesn't need, as a federal commission studying the impact of gambling in America gears up to visit the city this November.

"It's not good timing. That's for sure," says one casino industry insider. "I guarantee you it's the last thing we want to see."

The Strohmeyer case already has attracted attention from the industry's critics in Washington concerned about the downside of gambling. Strohmeyer, you'll recall, is accused of killing Sherrice Iverson, a 7-year-old Los Angeles girl, at the Primm Valley hotel-casino in May 1997, some 45 miles south of Las Vegas.

The trial is expected to last about two months. That's two months of daily unflattering publicity for Las Vegas around the country leading into the National Gambling Impact Study Commission hearing.

Court TV is not shown here, but Las Vegas One on Prime Cable plans to air the trial.

That gets us back to Leavitt's election-year decision.

The prosecution team, led by District Attorney Stewart Bell, and Strohmeyer's high-profile defense lawyers, Richard Wright of Las Vegas and Leslie Abramson of Los Angeles, didn't find out about the decision until after it was reported in the media.

Both sides were under the impression Court TV would not be allowed live coverage. At least that was the opinion of former District Judge Don Chairez, who presided over the case until he left the bench in May to run for Congress. Chairez was concerned about turning the case into a circus.

Leavitt, however, apparently doesn't share the same concern.

Though Leavitt certainly has his bid for a Supreme Court seat on his mind (he has run twice before and lost), one can argue his decision was not influenced by the campaign.

This time around, the veteran jurist faces little opposition and is considered a shoo-in to win the race.

Leavitt also has to know that it can be risky to allow a national television audience to watch every decision he makes during the trial. Remember Judge Ito? Like CNN, Court TV has legal experts who love to second-guess judges and lawyers at the end of a long day in court.

So why do things you least expect happen in an election year?

* Most Republican office-holders have endorsed Las Vegas businessman Kenny Guinn in the GOP race for governor.

But that's not stopping Hollywood producer Aaron Russo from rustling up his own bigtime supporters.

Russo, who insists a new poll shows him dead even with Guinn among Clark County Republicans, says he plans to air radio commercials next week touting an endorsement from his pal, Oscar-winning actor Jack Nicholson.

"When Aaron gives you his word, you can bank it," Nicholson says in the ad. "His loyalty will be to you, the voters and that's as good as it gets. We need a few good men like Aaron Russo."

Asked what he thought of the Nicholson endorsement, Guinn Campaign Manager Pete Ernaut quipped: "I guess another one flies over the Cuckoo's nest."

* Las Vegas Mayor Jan Laverty Jones, the Democratic front-runner for governor, was featured prominently in a New York Times story this week.

But the article, which talked about the governor's race and the mayor's battle to overcome cancer, isn't necessarily helping her with Nevada voters.

Jones is getting a lot of ink in Nevada over her alleged ethical lapses, and she doesn't appear to be handling the stepped-up media scrutiny very well.

Despite her ethics troubles, Jones is likely to win the Democratic primary on Sept. 1.

But the general election is a different story, especially if she ends up in a fight with the well-financed Kenny Guinn, who has the ability to exploit the ethics issue.

Republicans have to love watching Jones squirm.

The mayor will have to learn to keep her composure to avoid the same kind of melt-down she suffered in her 1994 campaign for governor.

archive