Senate considers making false complaints against police a crime

CARSON CITY -- Making a false complaint against a police officer could be a misdemeanor under a bill being considered by a Nevada Senate panel.

Law enforcement representatives told the Judiciary Committee on Thursday that false complaints against police waste taxpayers' money. They said AB304 would deter those complaints.

"Anyone can walk out of the jail and over to Internal Affairs and file a complaint against an officer. That takes the officer off the street," said police lobbyist Andy Anderson.

Prison guards also suffer from false accusations, said Ed Flagg, lobbyist for the Nevada Corrections Association. Flagg said he was the victim of a false complaint six years ago.

"I was out of work for two months on administrative leave. My reputation was shot. I was found not guilty, but nothing happened to this guy," Flagg said.

Critics of the proposal included David Gibson, a deputy Clark County public defender who raised questions about unintended consequences of the bill - such as discouraging legitimate complaints.

"I don't necessarily agree that it would deter only people who are filing false complaints. It could also keep people from filing with legitimate complaints," he said.

Those concerns were echoed by Sens. Dina Titus and Terry Care, both Las Vegas Democrats.

"If someone filed an Internal Affairs complaint and Internal Affairs found no grounds for it, would that make this a false complaint?" Titus asked.

Gemma Greene, from the Washoe County District Attorney's office, replied that a decision to prosecute someone for making a false complaint would have to be based on the facts of each case.

AB304 passed the Assembly unanimously earlier this month.

In other business, the Judiciary Committee approved a bill requiring bounty hunters to notify police before forcibly entering a residence. Under AB485, bail agents who don't call police would be guilty of a misdemeanor.

Assemblywoman Ellen Koivisto, D-Las Vegas, said she authored AB485 after a constituent complained of bounty hunters who forcibly entered her home to look for someone who wasn't there.

Annie Rees, a bail agent and president of a state association of bail agents, said law-abiding bounty hunters already do this, but there would be recourse for people whose homes are illegally entered.

She added that most captures of people who skip bail are without incident.

Currently, it's "wide open as to what a bail agent can do," said Ben Graham of the Clark County district attorney's office. He said that's because bail bond agents have a contract that allows them to track bail-jumpers and enter their residences to get them.

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