THE FAMILY COURT PROJECT HAS COME TO A CLOSE.
Effective 6/1/08, Family Court Chronicles has become inactive (announcement), and
no new information will be added. The page below is retained for
archive purposes, but it could be out of date. Upon request,
the webmaster will
continue to correct significant errors and will consider
removing information that is destructively obsolete.
(Email: FamilyCourtGuy (at) gmail.com) Glenn Campbell's other websites
remain active:
KilroyCafe.com,
RoamingPhotos.com
and
Facebook
Danielle, who was a triplet, was found dead in her crib at the family's home in the 8700 block of Shady Pines Drive, near Durango Drive and El Capitan Way, about 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
The death remained under investigation Monday, but Danielle had no obvious signs of abuse, and authorities said her death doesn't appear suspicious, said Lisa Teele, supervisor of the Metropolitan Police Department's abuse and neglect unit....
As for the fact that three babies and six other children were left in the care of a 14-year-old, Teele said there is no law that would specifically bar someone of that age from baby-sitting so many children, but the question of whether it was wise to leave nine children in the care of a 14-year-old remains.
The remains of a 33-month-old boy who authorities said was beaten to death by his father will be sent to Oregon where his mother will bury him, a Family Court hearing master ordered Monday.
Zander Martino died July 10 from blows to his abdomen, authorities said. His father, 25-year-old Richard "Todd" Martino, and his girlfriend, 22-year-old Brandi Reeves, are awaiting trial on charges of murder by child abuse.
Metro told Eyewitness News it's important to point out there were no apparent signs of abuse on the baby, but detectives are waiting for the medical examiner's report...
Four-month-old Danielle Holt was a triplet. She and seven of her brothers and sisters were placed in a home near El Capitan and Durango on Jun. 20. Child Protective Services told Eyewitness News it was a home of a family friend.
Recently, Hardcastle announced he's leaving the juvenile court. The often outspoken judge will start hearing divorce cases in late July.
"I just felt like my ability to impact change in the system had been reduced," said Hardcastle, 61, who has been a family court judge since 1993. "You sit up there every day and do the job for this long, and what happens is everyone becomes familiar with you and less responsive to you. I found myself facing the same problems I've been facing for so many years, and I was becoming intolerant and resentful of the fact that the system wasn't changing like I expected it to.
Comments from the Webmaster
Child welfare is ALWAYS frustrating, and the system is never doing enough.
If someone who has done child welfare for a long time
chooses to move on, that's understandable.
However, it doesn't necessarily mean that the system is
better or worse than it has ever been; it just means that he
has reached the end of his own perceived usefulness.
While he has certainly been a formidable force in child
welfare, we don't take Hardcastle's departure as discouraging.
It's just an interesting change that will lead to a different
equilibrium.
On a photographic note: The green hue in the background of this
photo is totally fake. It looks like it has been photoshopped.
The latest Kids Count report, which uses data gathered from numerous government resources, ranks Nevada at 33 when it comes to the overall state of 10 child welfare indicators. That's a slight improvement from its 36th place ranking in 2006, a gain assisted by decreases in the number of teens giving birth and the child mortality rate.
The state's poorest showing was its high school dropout rate. At 11 percent in 2005, the rate among teens in Nevada was the worst in the nation, the report found. The national average in 2005 was 7 percent.
The marriage of Las Vegas residents Tracy and Mirohim Gayre began in February 2001 with a traditional Scottish wedding, complete with bagpipes and kilts.
It ended Friday afternoon in a Sam's Club parking lot near Tampa, Fla., where police say Tracy Gayre, 41, gunned down his wife in front of her boyfriend.
Kevin Doll, spokesman for the Pasco County, Fla., sheriff's office, said 37-year-old Mirohim Gayre, known as Mimi to her friends and co-workers, was shot in the chest multiple times and died at the scene.
Tracy Gayre fled in a rental car, leading police on a chase that covered more than 40 miles in three counties. He was stopped in a grassy field where he shot himself to death after a standoff with police that lasted several hours.
Attorney Gregory Mills, who represents Cabrera and Olivas, has already reached a tentative settlement worth $300,000 with one of the defendant parties, foster parents Manuel and Vilma Carrascal. They were responsible for Everlyse at the time she went missing.
But the division of that settlement -- payable by a private company that insures Clark County foster families -- and any other that may result from the lawsuit has been thrown into question. In June, U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Leavitt appointed attorney Dara Goldsmith to act as a guardian for Everlyse. One of her first court filings on behalf of Everlyse challenges Mills' proposal to divide the money equally between the child and her parents.
"Everlyse is the one who was neglected by Plaintiffs, subsequently placed in foster care, allegedly neglected there, and the one who has been likely abducted, kidnapped or murdered," Goldsmith wrote in a court document filed on July 17.
"Therefore, there is a strong likelihood that Everlyse is entitled to a larger settlement or judgment from Defendants than the Plaintiffs."
A Family Court hearing master said he needs more information before deciding whether a Moulin Rouge executive owes his ex-wife thousands of dollars in child support.
Stevens was arrested March 23, 2005, as he was trying to leave Buffalo Bill's in Primm with his girlfriend, Duchess Davis, and the body of her 5-month-old daughter, Russia Cheesecake Davis.
Stevens told police that the child fell off the bed during the night and when they woke up she no longer was breathing.
However, he later confessed during a taped interview with police that, "All of it (the killing) was done at my hands."
"I dropped her and picked her up and punched her in the back of the head a couple of times," Stevens told police, adding later, "I didn't want her mother (Davis) to freak out, so I hit her in the back of the head" to quiet the baby.
About three weeks before 33-month-old Zander Martino was allegedly beaten to death by his father, the boy's mother sent a letter to Clark County child protective services noting that she had "great concern" about the father's parenting skills.
given th
Joanna Cunningham, 21, wrote that she was worried that Richard "Todd" Martino was disciplining their three children too harshly, including forcing Zander to stand in a corner until he passed out.
"I ... have great concern as to Mr. Martino's parenting skills, such as the overly excessive use of timeouts, sending our children to be(d) without dinner," she wrote.
Comments from the Webmaster
There's nothing new in this article; just a chance to fill more column space.
It doesn't sound like DFS would have had cause for action based on the
letter alone, given that the mother who wrote it previously admitted
harming the child.
Oasis On-Campus Treatment Homes, a state-run facility at 6171 W. Charleston Blvd., is a 24-hour intensive and structured treatment program for children ages 6 to 18 who suffer from severe emotional disturbances and developmental disabilities.
Willden said their emotional problems are so severe that the children cannot be treated in their own homes.
The children suffer from depression, mood swings and adjustment and attention deficit disorders, and they have problems being around their peers. They also may exhibit physical and verbal aggression, officials said.
Many of them have been in foster care or in the custody of the Clark County Department of Family Services.
Authorities allege the toddler's father beat him -- possibly with a hammer -- and left the 33-month-old in bed at the family's downtown Las Vegas home. Zander's parents waited at least eight hours before calling for help, police said.
By the time paramedics arrived on the morning of July 10, Zander was dead. He had severe bruising on his abdomen and "a belly full of blood," according to a Las Vegas police report....
When a child protective services worker interviewed 3-year-old Hailey Martino after Zander's death, Hailey said, "Dad hit Zander with a hammer last night," the report noted.
Hailey said her father put the hammer in the backyard, according to police, who found it.
The coroner's office ruled Zander's death a homicide Wednesday, and police arrested his father, 25-year-old Richard "Todd" Martino, and Martino's 22-year-old girlfriend, Brandi Reeves, also known as Brandi Byrd. Authorities booked them into the county jail on charges of murder by child abuse.
A father accused of beating his two-year-old son to death is asking that the boy's body be cremated, and soon. But his girlfriend, who's also charged, says he's just trying to destroy evidence.
During the family court hearing, Reeve's mother tried to get custody of the one-month-old. She would not go on camera, but said in court that Reeves showed up at her house the day Zander died. Police contacted her at work and she led them to her daughter....
Hearing Master Frank Sullivan denied the request saying all the remaining children need to stay in protective custody. Sullivan went on to say he takes responsibility for Zander's death.
When embattled District Judge Elizabeth Halverson was told by fellow judges to seek mental help, she met at least four times with a therapist, who concluded the judge was "coping amazingly well," despite numerous controversies surrounding her judicial demeanor and decisions.
"I diagnosed Judge Halverson with adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood," Patricia Delgado wrote in a May 22 letter that Halverson included in a petition to the Nevada Supreme Court.
"Judge Halverson is coping amazingly well considering her situation. At this point, my role is more of a sounding board and support person as Judge Halverson has very appropriate coping skills," Delgado wrote. "Her feelings of anxiety and sadness are based in rational thought processes, and are an appropriate reaction to her very stressful situation."
Comments from the Webmaster
It is nice to know that Halverson is coping "amazingly well" with the
crisis she created. We assume that Hitler also coped "amazingly well"
with all the problems he created.
The court took the children away from him back in 2004 when a then 4-month-old Zander had multiple broken bones and a fractured skull.
Zander's natural mother later admitted to the abuse and Martino was given a second chance with his children.
Comments from the Webmaster
Seeing a photo of the defendant, we realize that we have seen him
in court. It was sometime last year on Judge Hardcastle's foster
care review calendar.
At the time, both the mother and the father were successfully working
their case plan, but the judge expressed reluctance about releasing
the child to them until one of them took responsibility for the
child's injuries.
"Somebody in this room knows what happened," said the judge.
According to the press reports, the mother eventually took
responsbility. It is strange now that the father is charged with
his murder.
The charges are disturbing -- kidnapping with a deadly weapon, pimping, and prostitution. A Las Vegas man and woman now sit behind bars accused of forcing a 17-year-old girl into prostitution.
Police arrested the teen in a parking lot near Harmon and Paradise two weeks ago for solicitation. It was all part of an undercover street prostitution sting in that area. But after talking to the teen, police discovered that she was out there against her will....
[District Attorney]
David Roger continued, "We've really changed the way we think about prostitutes. They are truly victims."
"Brittney is angry," said Steve Hiltz, lead attorney for the Children's Attorney Project, who represents Bergeron. "The one thing she really wants is to be adopted, and her mother won't allow her to be adopted."
Hardcastle has repeatedly ruled in favor of Schmidt, saying authorities should do everything possible to reunite the mother and daughter.
Hiltz is appealing Hardcastle's decision to the Nevada Supreme Court, but the case has been delayed because Schmidt's former attorney, Stephen Caruso, withdrew from the case.
New developments Tuesday in the case of District Court Judge Elizabeth Halverson. Documents unsealed as a part of a case filed with the Nevada Supreme Court reveal a timeline never public -- until now.
In an exclusive interview with Family Court Chronicles on Friday, the 61-year-old elected judge easily dispelled the courthouse rumors of his demise. He looked quite good, in fact. His color was not at all cadaverous, and we might even say that he was "glowing." We didn’t check his vital signs, but they appeared to be quite vital.
He did confirm, however, that he will be permanently quitting child abuse/ neglect cases in two weeks. Effective July 30, he will be taking over Judge Dianne Steel’s divorce calendar, and Judges Steel and Jones will together be trying to fill Hardcastle’s shoes.
Real estate consultant John Burns said home prices in Las Vegas need to drop by 33 percent, or about $100,000, before the market returns to normal conditions. He shows the housing cost-to-income ratio at 50 percent, meaning people spend half their income on housing. Reno is the same.
The national average is around 30 percent.
Las Vegas' housing market is not yet near the bottom, despite claims from some real estate agents that the worst is behind us, Andrew Pugh of SellFastLV.com said.
Pugh said he's uncomfortable making predictions, but if pressed, he'd have to say we're in for at least a couple of rough years ahead.
This morning, a frustrated Clark County Family Court judge ordered an erstwhile couple to divide up their collection of Beanie Babies one by one under his supervision in the courtroom.
Maple the Bear was the first to go.
"This isn't about toys. It's about control," Family Court Judge Gerald Hardcastle told the couple. "Because you folks can't solve it, it takes the services of a District Court judge, a bailiff and a court reporter."
Some poor people accused of federal crimes are represented by full-time federal public defenders who earn salaries, others by court-appointed lawyers who bill by the hour. A new study from an economist at Harvard says there is a surprisingly wide gap in how well the two groups perform.
Both kinds of lawyers are paid by the government, and they were long thought to perform about equally. But the study concludes that lawyers paid by the hour are less qualified and let cases drag on and achieve worse results for their clients, including sentences that average eight months longer.
The toddler who was found dead in his father's downtown home Tuesday may have died from physical abuse.
During a hearing in Family Court on Thursday, a court official representing the state told Hearing Master Frank Sullivan that "Zander (Martino) may be the victim of a nonaccidental trauma."
Change in Judicial Assignments
7/12/07:
Hardcastle Leaving Abuse/Neglect
(Family Court Chronicles/Glenn Campbell)
Entities:
Gerald Hardcastle (change of assignment),
Steven Jones (change of assignement),
Dianne Steel (change of assignment) - Linkable
Entry
Comments from the Webmaster
Judge Gerald Hardcastle has just confirmed to Family Court Chronicles
that he will no longer by handling abuse/neglect cases.
Effective July 30, he will be handling plain old divorce cases.
Replacing him will be TWO new judges in abuse/neglect:
Steven Jones and Diane Steel.
Judge Steven Jones is already hearing foster care reviews.
We assume that Judge Steel will be starting on July 30.
The additional judge was mandated recently by the Nevada
Supreme Court.
This momentous passing almost requires a moment of silence.
Hardcastle confirms, however, that he's not dead yet.
The county first pulled Zander and his two siblings out of their home in December 2004 because of allegations that Zander had been abused, said family court Judge Gerald Hardcastle. Authorities later determined that the boy had been abused, but they couldn't determine exactly who was responsible for his injuries.
In October 2005, authorities filed a "termination of parental rights" petition because "no one was taking responsibility for the injuries to the child," Hardcastle said.
During an April 2006 hearing in family court to consider whether the parental rights should be terminated, however, Zander's mother confessed to being responsible for the boy's injuries, Hardcastle said. It was learned during the hearing that Martino was at work when Zander was abused, officials said.
The county then moved to put the children back into the care of Martino, who had separated from Zander's mother.
Hearing Master Frank Sullivan, the man who returned two-year-old Zander Martino to his father just days before he died, told the court he made one mistake and wasn't about to make another.
He ordered Zander's father and live-in girlfriend to have no contact with the three surviving children who are currently at Child Haven. He granted their mother, who is out of state, only supervised visits.
Both the Las Vegas Metro Police Department and the Clark County coroner are remaining mum about the results of Wednesday morning's autopsy. But sources tell the I-Team the examination revealed clear signs of abuse and that criminal charges are likely.
On this point, there seems to be broad agreement in Family Court—at least off-the-record. State law, called the Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS), provides the basic structure for everything done in court, but it often seems to have been written by monkeys on typewriters. If a monkey scratches an itch and types the wrong word, then a whole class of vulnerable people gets further abused.
One of the populations that the law treats poorly are defendants who fall into the cracks between the juvenile justice system and the adult criminal system. When should a juvenile defendant be tried as an adult? The rules given us by the legislature don’t always make sense. Not only hardened gangbangers are sent to the adult system but also first-time offenders who are otherwise redeemable.
A toddler whose family has a history of being investigated on suspicion of child abuse or neglect was found dead Tuesday morning in his father's downtown Las Vegas home.
The child was identified by authorities as 33-month-old Zander Martino. He and his two siblings were in protective custody less than two weeks ago while the county investigated an injury to Zander, the Clark County Department of Family Services said.
Family Court Hearing Master David Gibson Sr. placed Zander and his siblings back into their father's custody on June 28, authorities said.
On Monday, U.S. Rep. Jon Porter assembled a round table of child welfare advocates and administrators from all levels of community and government to check up on what improvements have been made within the ailing service system and what remains to be done.
"I am very optimistic and encouraged, but I still think we have a lot of work to do," said Porter, who became involved with local child welfare issues after last year's string of high-profile tragedies involving children in protective custody. "And the only way we can do it is as a team."
Comments from the Webmaster
We attended this "round table" — which was actually
square, wouldn't you know! It was a media event, of course.
Introductions and "Thank Yous" dominated the two hours. Porter thanked
Buckley; Buckley thanked Porter; Governor Gibbons thanked Porter;
Porter thanked Governor Gibbons... and on and on. The overall
conclusion was "We've made some progress but still have a long way
to go."
Oh, and teamwork -- can't forget that!
We've all got to work together as
a team!
Surprisingly, the star of the show was Tom Morton, who among the
high-powered bigwigs in attendance was the only one who had anything
substantial to say. He gave an update
on the things he said his department had accomplished since his arrival.
(We are trying to get the hardcopy for further analysis.)
It may have been self-serving, but at least he said something, and
and it didn't sound like total bullshit — which was the light
perfume we got from rest of the room.
We were also impressed by a feisty pediatrician at the other end
of the room, Dr. Neha Mehta. In a couple of well-spoken
rants she echoed our own opinion about the high quality
of care at Child Haven and the unevenness and potential
danger of foster care.
There was free food, but it could have been better: bagels & cream
cheese, coffee and bottled water. We were hoping for some
hors d'oeuvres and dainty little pastries, but no luck.
How does Porter expect our support with such paltry pickin's?
As county and court officials grapple with where to put six new District Court judges, most of the discussion has revolved around building new courtroom space at a cost of millions of dollars.
Another solution, however, might make better fiscal sense and make court-going more convenient - night and weekend court.
The Family Court division will become home to five of the six new judges, and expanding its hours into evenings and weekends could better use existing facilities and eliminate the need for construction....
But night and weekend court is a tough sell among judges, who are the final decision-makers on how the court operates. Expanded hours might be more convenient for residents, but they can be a pain for judges and lawyers accustomed to 9-to- 5 workdays. Although judges acknowledge that they must think creatively to deal with the space crunch, most are not excited about weekend and night court.
"We don't reject any idea," Presiding Family Court Judge Art Ritchie said. But he added: "I have four kids ... It would be important for me to be home in the evening."
Family Court now has one night court session monthly that operates from 6 to 8 p.m. and deals only with uncontested matters....
So far, discussions among judges have included a combination of shifting two Family Court judges downtown to the Regional Justice Center's newly renovated 10th floor, and spending an estimated $7 million to $10 million to add a courtroom and turn one existing courtroom into two at the county's Family Court facility at Pecos and Bonanza roads.
The son and daughter-in-law of former Clark County Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates were arrested on felony child endangerment charges Tuesday after marijuana and unkempt conditions were discovered in their Southern Highlands home, Las Vegas police said....
The officers called Child Protective Services, which removed the child from the home, and narcotics detectives, who removed what appeared to be equipment used to grow marijuana plants. The detectives confiscated about six sun lamps, seven boxes of pots for plants, a six-foot section of ventilation hose and two metal canisters of carbon dioxide.
Recent columns on Bergeron's battle have mobilized a small army of supporters for the girl paralyzed in a vicious knife attack in 2003 that killed her 3-year-old sister. Her mother, Tamara Schmidt, was convicted of felony child neglect and is in prison. While her birth mother is away, Brittney has thrived under the care of foster parents Judy and Bill Himel.
If the many Southern Nevadans I'm hearing from had their way, the adoption would take place immediately. Cynical Southern Nevadans are ready to rally behind Brittney.
According to statistics collected by the American Bar Association from 2002 through 2005 , an average of one complaint each year was filed for every five licensed attorneys in Nevada. That's twice the national average.
For example, 1,362 complaints were filed with the State Bar of Nevada in 2005, when there were 6,321 active licensed attorneys in the state. Only Arizona had a higher lawyer complaint rate.
Yet only a small percentage of these allegedly wayward attorneys are taken to task.
Though 5,032 complaints were received by the state bar from 2002 to 2005, only 198 attorneys were sanctioned. Seventeen were disbarred.
Earlier this year, Thomas Cecrle, a friend and former brother-in-law to Family Court Judge Steven Jones, appeared before Halverson on drug-related charges. During the same time frame, Beller was presiding over a separate case involving Cecrle's continued failure to pay more than $40,000 in child support to his ex-wife, Mary McElhattan.
Beller removed herself from Cecrle's child support case on April 23 and said a phone call from Halverson had provided Beller with information she should not have had. Because of that, Beller stepped aside and referred the matter to Family Court Judge Gloria Sanchez.
"These are issues that really need to be handled by the District Court judge (Sanchez) because of a District Court judge (Halverson) stepping into this action, which probably wasn't entirely proper," Beller said on an audiovisual recording of the hearing....
Judges who violate the code of conduct on proper communication can face serious consequences.
In 1998, former Family Court Judge Fran Fine was removed from office after the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline found she repeatedly had violated the rules on communication.
In 1995, Fine was fined and reprimanded for engaging in ex parte conversations with Family Court judges Gerald Hardcastle and Jones on a case in which she had served as counsel for one of the parties.
Formerly technically under the control of Metro Police and called " deputy sheriff bailiffs," the officers ' designation changed as the result of a bill they had passed this Legislative session. The law mandates that all future deputy marshals become "category 1" peace officers, meaning they will receive 480 hours of academy training.
The bailiffs hired before the bill went into effect could be category 1 or category 2 officers, who have less training.
As part of the unofficial quid pro quo, district judges soon will vote on whether to allow deputy marshals to unionize, something they've sought for years. If the agreement with the marshals passes, a pool of qualified deputy marshals would be created, from which judges could hire.
The problem, Gillis said, is that programs like his didn't think they had the legal right to shelter or otherwise help teens for longer than 72 hours without permission from a guardian.
Now that Assembly Bill 299 has clarified the issue by fine-tuning a 2001 law, he thinks hundreds of teens younger than 18 will be better off.
The new law says that an agency such as the center need only attempt to reach a parent in order to provide help, not that the parent must be reached within a certain period . It also defines homeless or runaway youth, clarifying the kind of services federal money should be supporting.
The problem, say those who work with teenagers in trouble, is that youths often are fleeing parents who are violent, on drugs or themselves on the streets. So reaching them is not always easy.
With the new law, Gillis said, "We'll have more time to work with them and see if we can help them."
In its recent session, the Legislature approved nearly $300 million to build new prison space.
But the big bill will come when the new beds are filled with inmates and taxpayers are on to hook to staff and operate them.
The prison system is eating up steadily larger chunks of the state budget and preventing more from being spent on priorities such as education, warn critics, who range from the state Supreme Court to the American Civil Liberties Union. They say new approaches should be taken to curb growing prison populations and spiraling costs.
"We need to look at whether we're being smart about the way we punish and incarcerate inmates in this state," Nevada Supreme Court Justice James Hardesty said. "If we do nothing to re-evaluate our criminal justice system, we will consume a lot of the state's budget simply incarcerating people and building prisons."
The Clark County District Attorney's office handles 85,000 child support cases, but Gina Baker's case falls into the most difficult, 2-percent to 3-percent of those cases.
Assistant Clark County District Attorney Robert Teuton said, "The hardest job we have is that type of person who has made the conscious decision that they are going to let their children suffer."
Teuton says his office can withhold money from paychecks, seize savings accounts and intercept tax returns. But if people are self-employed, put their assets in other people's names and do not file tax returns, collecting support is extremely difficult. "We don't have the resources to put surveillance on someone like that 24-hours a day, seven days a week," the Asst. District Attorney said.
Each of the six young men, who were juniors at Palo Verde High School at the time of their arrests, was allowed by prosecutors to plead guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to commit arson. J.D. Buonantony, Robert Funk, Rashan Lawrence, Ryan Patterson, Marcus Shaw and Skochenko all received the same sentence, a maximum 12 months probation and 200 hours of community service.
The teenagers also will have to participate in counseling, complete the Youth Firesetter Intervention Program, make restitution and write letters of apology for their actions, Voy said.
If they successfully complete the terms of their plea agreement, then the felony count of conspiracy to commit arson will be reduced to a gross misdemeanor count of conspiracy to commit malicious destruction of property, said prosecutor Michael O'Callaghan. The misdemeanor will remain part of their juvenile record and not follow them into adulthood.
Domestic violence is a rampant problem in the Las Vegas valley that is leaving victims scrambling for help and shelters looking for ways to keep up with the growing problem. Nearly 40,000 Nevada residents reached out for help to a domestic violence program last year alone. That number is actually down from two years ago.
More than any other candidate, Jensen carries on the proud legacy of our national leader, George W. Bush. He’s not afraid to take a moral stand, regardless of the evidence. He knows what is right based on his special relationship with God, so he doesn’t need to wait for the consensus of others. He’s ready and willing to engage the court in protracted foreign wars because that’s where the terrorists are.
District Judge Jeffrey Sobel was conducting a pretrial conference in his chambers in April 2002 when he crossed the line of ethical behavior by confronting one lawyer about his failure to contribute to Sobel's re-election campaign and another who had attended a campaign event for the judge's opponent.
Months earlier, Sobel had raised the ire of another lawyer who had a case pending before him by demanding to know why the lawyer had given less to his campaign than to his opponent's.
Sobel's actions in both instances were serious enough to attract the attention of the Nevada Judicial Discipline Commission, but more than three years passed before the commission reprimanded him and barred him from the bench. By then, Sobel had long since lost his bid for re-election.
Critics of the state's judicial discipline process, including Clark County's chief district judge and the former chief justice of the Nevada Supreme Court, say the commission is taking too long to investigate complaints. They offer the Sobel case as a prime example.
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7/31/07:
Boy's remains to be sent to mother in Oregon for burial: 33-month-old's father faces murder charges in boy's beating death
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Brian Haynes)
An infant foster child is found dead. Entities:
Zander Martino (case),
Frank Sullivan (quoted and pictured) 
7/30/07:
Baby Was in Care of Young Teen When She Died
(KLAS-TV/Colleen May)
Entities:
Death of Child (one) 
7/26/07:
The kids aren't alright: Frustrated with the child welfare system, Judge Gerald Hardcastle is moving on to the divorce court
(Las Vegas CityLife/Matt O'Brien)
Entities:
Gerald Hardcastle (subject),
Tom Morton (quoted) 
7/20/07:
Troubled kids find more oases: State-run facility opens two additional homes
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Annette Wells)
Entities:
Oasis On-Campus Treatment Homes (subject),
Michael Willden (quoted),
DCFS (operated by),
DCFS Mental Health Campus (located at) 
7/19/07:
Toddler's Death: Father Wants Child's Body Cremated Quickly
(KLAS-TV/Edward Lawrence)
Entities:
Zander Martino (case),
Frank Sullivan (briefly mentioned) 
7/18/07:
Toddler's Death: 'Daddy Hit Zander With a Hammer'
(KLAS-TV/Colleen McCarty)
Includes link to arrest warrant and (earlier) DFS death disclosure. Entities:
Zander Martino (case),
Lisa Teele (quoted) 
7/18/07:
2003 STABBING: Custody standoff continues: Mom rejects daughter's adoption
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Lisa Kim Bach)
Entities:
Bergeron (subject),
Gerald Hardcastle (quoted),
Steve Hiltz (quoted),
Ron Cordes (mentioned) 
7/17/07:
I-Team: New Developments in Judge Halverson Case
(KLAS-TV/Mark Sayre)
Includes link to more documents. Entities:
Elizabeth Halverson (subject),
Kathy Hardcastle (briefly mentioned) 
7/16/07:
Judge Hardcastle Goes Back to Beanie Babies
(Family Court Chronicles/Glenn Campbell)
Entities:
Gerald Hardcastle (subject),
maupin (mentioned),
Glenn Campbell (author),
Dianne Steel (mentioned),
Steven Jones (mentioned),
sanchez (briefly mentioned),
Elizabeth Halverson (2004 election opponent) 
7/15/07:
STRUGGLING SECTOR: Outlook for housing: Gloomy and likely to worsen: Las Vegas hit hard by housing slump, and analysts see no end in sight
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Hubble Smith)
Entities:
The Great Las Vegas Crash (subject) 
7/13/07:
Boy found dead in home might have been abused: Toddler had multiple bruises; hearing held on custody of siblings
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/David Kihara)
Entities:
Zander Martino (case),
Frank Sullivan (mentioned),
Christine Skorupski (quoted) 
7/12/07:
I-Team: Father of Dead Toddler Denied Visitation of Surviving Children
(KLAS-TV/Colleen McCarty)
Includes "hild Welfare Agency's Public Disclosure". Entities:
Zander Martino (case),
Frank Sullivan (mentioned),
Child Haven (briefly mentioned) 
7/12/07:
I-Team: Toddler's Autopsy Revealed Signs of Physical Abuse
(KLAS-TV)
Entities:
Zander Martino (case),
Gerald Hardcastle (mentioned briefly) 
7/11/07:
Newsletter #27: Certification Nightmare
(Family Court Chronicles/Glenn Campbell)
Entities:
Certification (subject),
Glenn Campbell (author),
Bob Teuton (quoted and pictured),
Robert Gaston (mentioned),
legislature (mentioned as source of bad law),
nrs62b (concerning) 
7/10/07:
Child welfare gets a checkup: Advocates, lawmakers and other officials talk about problems, progress
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Lisa Kim Bach)
Entities:
Lisa Kim Bach (author),
Tom Morton (quoted),
Jon Porter (quoted),
Michael Willden (quoted),
Barbara Buckley (quoted),
Neha Mehta (present),
Jim Gibbons (quoted),
Shelley Berkley (mentioned),
Lawrence Weekly (present),
Bruce Woodbury (present),
maupin (present),
Annie E. Casey Foundation (representative quoted),
Virginia Valentine (present),
Darryl Martin (present),
Glenn Campbell (present as media),
Lou Palma (present),
Steve Hiltz (speaker),
U.S. Administration for Children and Families (representative present),
ohl (speaker),
klas (present),
Christine Skorupski (present),
Marsha Simms (present) 
7/8/07:
DRUG, CHILD ENDANGERMENT ALLEGATIONS: Ex-official's son jailed: Tip led to arrest of relatives of Atkinson Gates
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Brian Haynes)
7/6/07:
SEPARATE CASES, SAME MAN: Judge stirs more controversy: Case involving child support a 'nightmare' because of call
(Las Vegas Review-Journal/Lisa Kim Bach)
Entities:
Elizabeth Halverson (subject),
Sylvia Beller (mentioned),
Fran Fine (mentioned),
Thomas Cecrle (mentioned),
Steven Jones (briefly mentioned),
Gerald Hardcastle (briefly mentioned),
sanchez (briefly mentioned) 
7/5/07:
What Some Do To Avoid Paying Child Support
(KLAS-TV/LuAnne Sorrell)
Entities:
Bob Teuton (quoted),
Child Support (subject) 
7/3/07:
Some Nevadans Not Seeking Help With Domestic Violence
(KLAS-TV/Melissa Duran)
Entities:
Domestic Violence (subject),
S.A.F.E. House (subject) 
7/2/07:
Newsletter #26: John Jensen for Family Court Administrator
(Family Court Chronicles/Glenn Campbell)
A sequel to #25. 
