Comments (18) | Add a comment
Glenn Cook
The Invisible AG appears too late
Updated: Apr. 10, 2012 | 10:15 a.m.
Now we know why Catherine Cortez Masto wouldn't talk about her case against Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki for so long.
On Thursday, Nevada's attorney general finally answered questions about the confounding corruption charges she brought against Krolicki. It had been one year since her indictment against Krolicki was returned, and not once had she come forward to explain a case that smelled of partisanship, puzzled the press and was too procedural to resonate with the public.
The state's top law enforcement officer, an elected Democrat, was trying to obtain multiple felony convictions against Nevada's second-ranking Republican, and she was invisible.
Three days ago, at long last, Masto was in front of the cameras, looking polished, laying out her evidence, firmly explaining that Krolicki was corrupt and guilty as heck and that she was sending a message to all elected officials that they must act with integrity and be held accountable when they don't.
It would have been impressive ... if she hadn't already lost the case and announced that she was dropping the matter entirely.
On Monday, all charges against Krolicki and his chief of staff were dismissed. District Judge Valerie Adair, like everyone else, couldn't make heads or tails of it all. She ridiculed the indictment supporting the charges as totally lacking in evidence that any crimes were committed.
Masto's case against Krolicki could be boiled down to this: Krolicki, as state treasurer, put about $6 million in fees earned by the Nevada College Savings Trust Fund in the wrong accounts, and spent $1.5 million advertising the savings plan (with his image) when the Legislature had not specifically authorized him to do so.
Every dime was accounted for, no money went into Krolicki's pocket, the savings plan was performing well and meeting its obligations, and there was no evidence that Krolicki demonstrated criminal intent. Elected officials at all levels of government use taxpayer dollars to boost their name recognition. It's wrong, but Krolicki, who was planning to challenge Sen. Harry Reid before he was indicted, was guilty of nothing more than being a politician.
On a corruption scale of 1 to 10, where a 10 is former Clark County Commissioner Erin Kenny taking huge bribes and being caught on a wiretap begging for cash, this case was a zero. It would put a jury to sleep.
You can't win a case if you can't explain it. Masto tried mightily on Thursday, both at a news conference and in a separate meeting with the Review-Journal's editorial board, but her answers were riddled with contradictions.
If after 45 minutes you can't make a convincing statement that your prosecution is righteous, the crimes serious and that the defendant deserves to lose his career, reputation and maybe even his freedom, you're probably wasting your time.
Masto had stayed quiet about the Krolicki case because she never had a handle on it. It was a loser from the start.
Thursday, she spoke as though she had no choice but to bring the charges against Krolicki, yet she made the choice to drop the case.
She said she treated the case like any other, then spoke about knowing the politics involved put her between a rock and a hard place.
Her indictment had been deemed unworthy of a second-year law student, but she thought her work and the work of her deputies was fine and the judge was wrong.
She refused to say whether her allegations against Krolicki were more or less serious than other cases, then she declared that mortgage fraud had become a higher priority than the Krolicki prosecution.
She spoke passionately about Krolicki wasting taxpayer money that could have been better used in education or social services, but she didn't know how much money the state had wasted pursuing this case for three years.
She said Krolicki, who served eight years as treasurer before becoming lieutenant governor, deserved to be charged with felonies despite his lack of criminal intent because he should have known the requirements of state law regarding fund use and transfers. Never mind that Masto, a member of the Nevada bar for 19 years and attorney general for three, apparently doesn't know how to write an indictment.
I want to believe Masto's assertion that politics played no role in this prosecution. But her justifications and excuses make me think otherwise. The fact that her husband, Paul, was planning to host a fundraiser for Robert Randazzo, Krolicki's Democratic challenger in next year's election, is too coincidental.
For another perspective on this case, just flip the party affiliations and imagine the reaction. If a Republican attorney general were prosecuting a Democratic lieutenant governor who had planned to run against Sen. John Ensign, then the GOP attorney general disappeared from radar while her husband raised money for the lieutenant governor's Republican challenger, the state's media and political establishments would be freaking out.
If Masto was so eager to sink her teeth into a corruption case, why didn't she tackle the land giveaways by McCarran International Airport and the city of Las Vegas? Taxpayers took a beating in those boondoggles, while favored parties got rich. The wrongdoing was obvious -- and easy to explain.
Only one thing was accomplished in this ordeal: Brian Krolicki is no longer planning to challenge Democratic patriarch Harry Reid.
Glenn Cook (gcook@reviewjournal.com) is a Review-Journal editorial writer.
Trending topics:
Comments
Terms & Conditions
The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsiblity of the authors. The Review-Journal does not review comments before publication nor guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by the comment policy. If you see a comment that violates the policy, please use the Report Abuse button.
Some comments may not display immediately due to an automatic filter. These comments will be reviewed within 24 hours. Please do not submit a comment more than once.
Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background.
RSS
Twitter
Facebook
Krolicki should have known:
I know politics. Mr. Brian Krolicki should have known that he was a target when he ever muttered that he would challenge Senator Harry Reid. He fell right into her trap, hook, line and sinker.
Maesto stays in office with no repercussions and Krolicki's POLITICAL CAREER IS OVER. Whomever was advising this gentlemen should be held responsible.
Ms. Maesto will be rewarded BIG TIME by Senator Harry Reid should he be re-elected. Now, that is the MILLION question. Will he be re-elected? If not her career is OVER!!!
10 to 1 he loses, then her career is over.
There is an old saying in politics. You gotta "C.Y.A" your derriere AT ALL TIMES.
"...there was no evidence that Krolicki demonstrated criminal intent."
Crime does not require intent. Crime can be neglect. When the neglect continues, the crime is willful (intentional) neglect.
AG Masto willfully neglected her duties of due diligence. The AG is to legally counsel Krolicki he was not authorized to spend $1.5 million. Because the fund did well, one would be stretched to argue damages.
Curious here. Is the same Tessa Hafen who works for Sen. Harry Reid in Washington DC the sister of DAG Conrad Hafen?
If so, does the Hafen family connection give more fuel to the claim that Conrad Hafen's prosecution of Krolicki which was filed a day or so after Krolicki publicly stated he was going to run for Reid's federal Sen. Office is political??
If it is true could it be possible that Conrad Hafen was able to influence his boss AG Catherine Cortez Masto on the Krolicki case because his sister Tesa Hafen was possibly Sen. Reid's protege?
Inquiring minds want to know.
MASTO PROTECTED THE WRONG DOINGS OF THE WASHOE COUNTY DA'S OFFICE. SHE IS STILL PROTECTING THE DA'S OFFICE BECAUSE SHE REFUSES TO PULL OUT OF THE 9TH WHEN SHE WAS GIVEN THE DOCUMENTS FOUND IN THE DA'S FILE THAT SUPPORTS AN INNOCENT MAN'S CASE WHO DIED. TAKEN FROM THE Nevada Appeal October 30, 2008 "And the board denied Nolan Klein, who was convicted of sexual assault some 19 years ago. Attorney Robert Hager raised serious questions about the evidence in that case saying the district attorney and sheriff's office have allowed cigarette butts with DNA evidence on them to disappear from the evidence despite Klein's request they be maintained so they could be tested. Klein has always maintained he is innocent of the crime.
Hager said the disappearance of the evidence is especially serious in the wake of a recent TV appearance by Washoe District Attorney Dick Gammick in which he told an interviewer Klein's evidence was tested."Where is that report?" Hager demanded, saying it could exonerate Klein of the crime. "It would either be exculpatory or incriminating." THIS PARONS BOARD KNEW THIS MAN WAS DYING AND CHOSE TO KEEP HIM IN PRISON, EVEN WHEN THEY WERE GIVEN THE DOCUMENTS ON JUNE 24, 2009 SHOWING THE HANDWRITTEN NOTES THAT RACHOW WITHHELD THE EVIDENCE THAT CLEARED HIM OF THE CRIME. THEY CHOSE NOT TO PLACE HIM ON THE NOVEMBER'S AGENDA FOR AN EXONERATION INSTEAD THEY CHOSE TO PROTECT THE WASHOE COUNTY'S DA'S OFFICE OF VIOLATING BRADY V MARYLAND. 4 MEMBERS MASTO, GOVERNOR, JUSTICES HARDESTY AND PARAGARRUIRE ARE UP FOR RE-ELECTION. VOTE THEM OUT OF OFFICE. WHO WILL BE THE NEXT INNOCENT PERSON CONVICTED? WHO WILL BE THE NEXT INNOCENT PERSON TO DIE IN PRISON? COULD IT BE YOUR LOVE ONE? IT HAPPENED TO ME IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU. TONJA BROWN
Good reporting Glenn. You put Jane Morrison's column to shame. Now - do not let AG Mastro get away with her tantrum. Either prosecute Krolicki under a new indictment or resign.
She opened the gates.
MORON!
Prosecuting attorneys cannot lobby for prosecution! Want your license yanked? That's a good way to do it.
Only defense attorneys can stage press conference to help make their clients look like victimized martyrs.
Do your freaking homework.
Removed the challenge wrote on December 13, 2009 03:47 AM:
"Only one thing was accomplished in this ordeal: Brian Krolicki is no longer planning to challenge Democratic patriarch Harry Reid."
Then Masto's accusations did their job. Without one shred of proof, she derailed a challenge against one of her party's own. And as the article notes, just how much taxpayer money did she waste railroading Krolicki?
======================================
Has Senator Stinky Reid congratulated Catherine Cortez Masto for using the court system in getting rid of one of his rivals?
I think Senator Stinky Reid should have to pay back the taxpayers from his campaign funds for getting rid of his political rival by using the court system on a political witch hunt. How many tax dollars were wasted on this political witch hunt?
The court system should be used on Catherine Cortez Masto as to why she used tax dollars to ruin the reputation of a politician of a different political party. Investigate Catherine Cortez Masto!