After an extensive hearing process, the State Bar of Nevada concluded Clark County Commissioner Justin Jones will face a public reprimand rather than disbarment over alleged professional misconduct. The volunteer hearing panel’s decision comes in the wake of Jones being accused of deleting text messages linked to a disputed real estate development project near Red Rock Canyon, although they did not find sufficient grounds to suspend or disbar him, as reported by News 3LV.
During the proceedings, the panel rejected the assertion by the State Bar that Jones had bribed then-county-commissioner and later Democratic Governor Steve Sisolak, as Jones had represented Save Red Rock, a local group opposing the development, the charges stemmed from accusations that Jones improperly deleted text messages which could have aided lawyers suing the county over the project, reports from both News 3LV and KTNV outlined the complex case.
The debate surrounding the commissioner’s conduct included the State Bar’s perspective, with Bar Counsel Dan Hooge vehemently insisting on disbarment to maintain the integrity of the legal profession, asserting that Jones’s actions cast a “shadow over us all,” but the three-member Bar panel chose to lean toward leniency, swayed by evidence of Jones’s community service and pro bono work and the testimonials on his behalf by community figures, including former Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, as per KTNV…