North Las Vegas constable’s lawsuit moved to federal court
A lawsuit between Clark County and North Las Vegas Constable Robert Eliason has been moved to federal court at the county’s request.
County spokesman Erik Pappa said the decision was a “standard practice,” but Eliason’s attorney said the county’s move is an attempt to get a more favorable judge.
“Clark County knows that it lost in its own court, so now Clark County is exploiting a technicality to shop for a different judge in federal court,” attorney Jeffrey Barr said. “The irony is that Clark County does not trust its own courts to decide this issue and instead has run to federal court hoping for a different outcome.”
In July, District Judge Elissa Cadish issued a court order preventing county commissioners from declaring the constable’s elected office vacant because Eliason has not received the required law enforcement certification.
The lawsuit, filed this year, seeks to nullify a state law that requires constables of North Las Vegas and Henderson to forfeit their office if they fail to obtain Nevada law enforcement certification within 18 months of taking office.
Eliason had been on the job without certification since January 2015 when commissioners began discussing whether they could appoint a replacement constable. Eliason sued before the commission could take action.
The constable’s lawsuit claims a “documented neurological condition” prevents him from passing the situps test required for certification. Therefore, the law violates the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.
That claim allowed the county to move the case to federal court.
“It’s our standard practice to take federal claims to federal court,” Pappa said.
The case is now assigned to U. S. District Court Judge Jennifer Dorsey.
Barr said he has not decided whether to request the case be returned to Clark County District Court.
“All legal options are open at this point, and of course remand is one we might consider,” he said.
The county pays Eliason about $103,000 a year to hold the office.
Contact Michael Scott Davidson at sdavidson@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861. Follow @davidsonlvrj on Twitter.
