Monday, Jan. 12, 2004 | 11:04 a.m.
It could be several months before Justice Myron Leavitt, who died Friday night, is replaced on the state Supreme Court, although many community leaders noted that his sense of public service and independence on the bench would be difficult to replace.
Leavitt, who during the last 20 years presided as a District Court judge and Nevada Supreme Court justice over numerous high profile cases and often was a strong voice of dissent, died Friday night at a local hospital. He was 73.
Gov. Kenny Guinn said he knew Leavitt for nearly 40 years.
"He's been a role model as a family man and blazed a path for public service that anyone would be proud of," he said. "While the Nevada Supreme Court will miss his wit and wisdom, he will miss his friendship and his great sense of humor."
The process to select a replacement can take several months.
First, the vacancy must be formally announced statewide and then the application process can take six weeks to two months, Supreme Court spokesman Bill Gang said.
The Commission on Judicial Selection then would meet, conduct interviews and submit three names to Gov. Kenny Guinn who would have 30 days to select one of them as Leavitt's replacement, Gang said.
State officials said if the selection is made before the close of political filing in May, than the appointee would have to run for election in November. If the selection is made after the filing closes May 14, then the appointee would serve through 2006 when Leavitt's six-year term expires. He was last elected in 1998.
Leavitt, who received a kidney transplant on Nov. 17 in which one of his 11 children was the donor, was recovering from that surgery. He became ill several days ago and was taken to the hospital for a checkup, his family said.
Leavitt had diabetes. His daughter District Judge Michelle Leavitt said her father's kidney and heart were functioning as expected. The cause of death was not immediately known.
Services for Leavitt, who also was a successful private-practice attorney, Las Vegas Township Justice of the Peace, Clark County commissioner, Las Vegas City councilman and Nevada lieutenant governor, will be noon Wednesday at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at 4040 E. Wyoming Ave. near Charleston and Lamb Boulevards. Visitation will be 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at Palm mortuary, 1325 N. Main St.
During his recovery from surgery, Leavitt had kept up with his caseload, working at home writing and signing court orders and opinions. He planned to return to his post for hearings in Las Vegas today, however his doctor had advised him it was too soon to come back. The Supreme Court has canceled its scheduled hearings in Las Vegas this week.
Chief Justice Miriam Shearing called Leavitt a "generous person who added so much to the court."
"He has been a public servant for so long, his passing will be a great loss to the state," she said.
Former Gov. Mike O'Callaghan, executive editor of the Las Vegas Sun, said Leavitt was a great Nevadan who will be sorely missed.
"Myron has been one of Nevada's finest and dedicated public servants," O'Callaghan said. "His legacy has been capped by exceptional leadership and contribution on our highest court.
"The state of Nevada will miss our most outstanding son."
Leavitt was appointed to the District Court in 1984, was retained in 1988 and reelected in 1992 and 1996. In 1998, he was elected to a two-year term on the Supreme Court and won election to a six-year term in 2000 without opposition. His high-profile cases and issues included:
Born Oct. 27, 1930, in Las Vegas, Leavitt at age 14 was a member of coach Harvey Stanford's legendary Las Vegas High School football squad that gained national attention for going undefeated, untied and unscored upon in the days when there were no other local high schools, forcing the Wildcats to play powerful California and Utah schools.
Leavitt and three other members of that squad -- Bill "Wildcat" Morris, John Mendoza and Tom Bell -- went on to become prominent Las Vegas attorneys.
Also at Las Vegas High, Leavitt won state championships in the 100-yard and 220-yard dashes, was named to the All-State football and track teams and edited his high school newspaper before graduating in 1948. He earned an athletic scholarship to the University of Nevada, Reno, where he was a star running back and sprinter.
After graduating with a bachelor's degree in journalism, Leavitt worked briefly as sports editor of the Las Vegas Review-Journal then enrolled at the University of Utah, where he earned his law degree.
Leavitt served as North Las Vegas deputy city attorney from 1956 to 1957, Las Vegas justice of the peace from 1961 to 1962, Clark County commissioner from 1971 to 1974, Las Vegas city commissioner -- now councilman -- from 1975 to 1978 and lieutenant governor from 1979 to 1982.
As justice of the peace, he established the county's first medical-coroner system. He also created the first night court for small claims cases. As a city commissioner, he initiated the drive to build the Dula Senior Center.
In the 1970s, Leavitt served on no fewer than a dozen key local boards, including the Clark County Health District, the Southern Nevada Memorial Hospital (today University Medical Center) Board of Trustees, McCarran International Airport Committee, Clark County Gaming and Liquor Licensing Board, Clark County Solid Waste Management Board and the Metropolitan Police Commission.
After narrowly defeating Republican Devoe Heaton for lieutenant governor in November 1978, Democrat Leavitt became a thorn in the side of Republican Gov. Bob List, accusing List of going out of state too often, forcing Leavitt to handle List's duties.
As lieutenant governor, Leavitt also presided over the state Senate where he broke a tie to help move a restrictive abortion bill through the Legislature. He broke another tie vote to kill the Equal Rights Amendment. He also cast the deciding vote to break a tie to retain capital punishment.
In announcing his candidacy for governor in 1982, Leavitt promoted himself as the conservative alternative to Nevada Attorney General Richard Bryan, who would go on to win the gubernatorial election and later become a U.S. senator.
In 1984, Leavitt was appointed by then-Gov. Bryan to fill the Department 12 District Court vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Robert Legakes. At the time, Bryan said of his former Democratic primary opponent: "He is an able lawyer and will be a distinguished judge."
Leavitt eventually became chief judge and served as president of the Nevada District Judges Association. But he long desired to serve on the high court.
Leavitt failed in heated campaigns in 1988 and 1994 to unseat Justice Bob Rose.
Four years later, the high court was expanded from five to seven members and Leavitt sought one of the new seats against Carson City attorney Michael Powell, who had specialized in criminal appeals but had never before made a bid for public office.
Leavitt this time focused his campaign on his experience, which at the time included 28 years of practicing law and handling every type of case -- criminal, civil and family law. Since winning the post, Leavitt and has had to tackle several tough issues, especially in the last year.
During the Legislature's heated state budget impasse last summer that resulted in delays in approving a tax plan, Leavitt and five other members of the court came under scrutiny for setting aside a constitutional amendment requiring the Legislature to pass new taxes by the super majority.
In September, the Nevada Supreme Court declined to reconsider that controversial decision, again by a 6-1 vote, calling it a moot point because of the Legislature's eventual action to approve an $836 million tax plan via a two-thirds vote.
Leavitt often was not on the winning side in high-profile Supreme Court decisions, but at times was passionate in his dissent.
Last September, Leavitt was on the losing side in a decision that rejected the appeal of the Pappas family over the city of Las Vegas in 1993 using eminent domain to acquire 7,000 square feet of their downtown property on which the Fremont Street Experience garage now sits.
The high court, by a 4-2 vote, sided with the city, saying the Las Vegas Downtown Redevelopment Agency was justified in condemning the property that initially was appraised at $500,000 by the city and turning it over to the Fremont Street Experience.
Justice Nancy Becker wrote in the majority decision that the construction of the parking garage "furthers the public purpose of eliminating blight in downtown Las Vegas." Leavitt, in a dissent, noted, "The Pappases' property was not a slum" and said the taking the property was unconstitutional.
Two months earlier, the divided court overturned the first-degree murder, robbery, grand larceny and burglary convictions of Murphy, who was Binion's girlfriend, and Tabish, who was having an affair with Murphy.
Binion, son of Horseshoe hotel-casino founder Benny Binion, was murdered in 1998, and Tabish and Murphy received life terms with the possibility of parole after 20 years.
Leavitt, along with Justice Bill Maupin, dissented, saying they believed the convictions should be upheld. A new trial is pending.
In March 2002, the Myron Leavitt Middle School was dedicated in northwest Las Vegas during a ceremony attended by Leavitt. Two months later, Leavitt swore in his daughter Michelle as district judge for Department 12 during her investiture ceremony at the Clark County Government Center.
After his surgery, Leavitt's doctors advised him not to fly until February, when he was to join the full court in Carson City to hear arguments. His doctors also told him not to mingle with a crowd during his recovery because he was at high risk of susceptibility to the flu.
Survivors include his wife of 49 1/2 years, Shirley; and their children: Dennis Leavitt, Steven Leavitt, Kathy Wright, Cindy Foote, Deborah Earl, Thomas Leavitt, Andrew Leavitt, Michelle Leavitt, Delbert Leavitt, James Leavitt and Susan Abbatangelo; and one brother Jack Leavitt.
James, a 36-year-old Las Vegas attorney, had donated a kidney to his father, but Leavitt last month credited all of his children for offering their kidneys to save his life.
The family said donations can be made in Myron Leavitt's memory to the Kidney Foundation of Nevada, 3050 E. Desert Inn Road.
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