Back to Basics

So Former Assembly Member Steven Brooks is back in the news today. Brooks was supposed to be at a court hearing in Las Vegas today. He couldn't make it... Because he was at a court hearing in San Bernardino County, California.

Here's what's happened so far.

The lawyer for a former Nevada lawmaker charged in a car chase and a police confrontation is asking that his client go through a mental health court program.

Ex-Assemblyman Steven Brooks appeared in a San Bernardino County, Calif., court Tuesday after pleading not guilty to charges stemming from his arrest March 28. Prosecutors say there could be a decision Friday on whether he's eligible for mental health court.

Mental health courts divert people into treatment programs and hold them accountable along the way.

Late in March, Steven Brooks was arrested in Victorville following a dispute with a tow truck driver in Barstow and a dramatic car chase with police. His attorney is now requesting for the California case to be transferred to mental health court. This way, he can finally obtain the treatment he needs.

At least there's a chance of Brooks obtaining the treatment he needs in California. Just before his latest arrest, Brooks sounded eerily prophetic in his final interview with Jon Ralston.

In four brief, surreal conversations, alternately heart-wrenching and frightening, shortly after he was expelled from the Assembly, Steven Brooks said he is "the assemblyman of sorrow," wondered why his colleagues "hate me so much" and declared he was going to "break the state" with a lawsuit worth at least $10 million.

Brooks was alternately angry, with expletive-filled rants directed at Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick and Majority Leader William Horne, despondent, weeping and saying he was checking himself into Seven Hills, a Southern Nevada treatment facility, and suicidal, saying he had no other recourse. [...]

"I'm the assemblyman of sorrow," he declared. "Why do they hate me so much? Fill in the blank: I'm so angry I could (blank) myself."

Brooks told me he was "on my way to Seven Hills to check myself into the hospital. He began weeping when I asked why, adding, "I have no other resort. I'm going to kill myself if they keep this up. I have nowhere to go. I'm the assemblyman of sorrow." [...]

"You know why they hate me? You know why want to kill me because I know all of their secrets."

No one expected what was coming next, probably not even Steven Brooks himself. Yet in an incredibly bizarre way, he warned us. Just days after Brooks was sent to jail in San Bernardino County, another former Nevadan emerged in California.

After The Sacramento Bee began investigating the mysterious Greyhound bus trip that landed James Flavy Coy Brown in Sacramento, the Nevada patient dumping scandal steadily grew. Now, there's a strong chance of Nevada facing law suits soon over improper discharge of mental health patients and transport of them out of state.

And now, outrage is spreading to a new state. Last weekend, ABC 15 Phoenix looked into the 100 cases of Rawson-Neal mental health patients bussed into Arizona. And while investigating, they may have uncovered yet another horrifying scandal in the making.

Mark Holleran, CEO of Central Arizona Shelter Services, says it's hard to track those patients down. He says "patient dumping" happens more than you might think.

"It just shows you how it's very easy to do this, and it's sort of under the radar. It's hard to detect," he said.

Holleran says a few years ago, former prisoners from Nevada got dumped at the shelter.

"They had been provided a bus ticket, a small amount of cash, a print out of a Mapquest that showed them how to get to CASS. And written on it was, 'ask for Howie,'" he said.

Holleran says these cases often end in chronic homelessness. He says that stretches resources in other states, like Arizona. And it passes along the problem, instead of fixing it.

"That might be something we might want to take a look at. Because if we can solve it for one place, I think we solve it for all the places," Holleran said.

So now, Arizona officials are reporting cases of Nevada patient dumping. And not only that, but we may have also dumped former prisoners on them as well! How about that for being a "good neighbor"?

One would think this would light a fire under the behinds of the Governor and legislators to fix this glaring crisis. Come on, we're now facing law suits and loss of federal funding! But no, they were too busy kissing the behind of Nicholas Cage. No, I'm not even making this up. And Ralston was downright revolted by today's lurid display of misplaced priorities.

James Flavy Brown can be shipped out of Las Vegas, leaving with barely his wits about him, some meds and peanut butter crackers. But the star of “Leaving Las Vegas” can be treated like royalty, with the mayor of Las Vegas as his sidekick, and an offer pending of enough taxpayer money to buy a peanut butter cracker factory.

These are the Legislature’s priorities – cut mental health funding, ignore English Language Learner money but give tax breaks to those who need them least. Brown gets a bus ticket to anywhere while Cage gets a national treasure trove worth of goodies and Apple gets a 90 percent tax break negotiated by the governor. That is tax policy in Nevada.

This is the state we are in.

I wonder if anyone stops to think: We may get Cage ghost-riding on the Strip, with his production company soaring and a Vegas backdrop for movies. But what does it say if that fake scene is juxtaposed a few miles off-camera in either direction with real tableaus of packed emergency rooms, overcrowded classrooms and jammed thoroughfares.

If this is part of a master plan, I’d like to see the drawing because it seems like a blueprint for disaster to me. What exactly is the policy articulated by this approach that allows $80 million to be cut from mental health services in five years but in one bill lawmakers are willing to give half of that amount [$35 million] to prospective Nevada-based filmmakers?

Lest you think my heart’s bleeding cuts off circulation to my brain, I get the job-creating argument, the economic diversification argument, the image-changing argument. But why is it a good idea for government to give incentives to anyone – movie producers, renewable energy companies – if offcials don’t provide incentives for people to really want to live here by supporting the quality of life, a culture that values higher and lower education, a political class that leads rather than follows?

He's right about this. It simply doesn't make sense.

Honestly, there may be some merit to encouraging more film production here in Nevada. But when we can't even take care of our own, who wants to risk shooting a movie here? Think about it.

Why is it that we always hear that "we can't afford" proper mental health care, decent schools, and repaired roads, yet our Governor and Legislature always seem to be able to afford corporate welfare to shower upon multinational corporations like Apple that neither need the help nor deserve it? Think about that as well. How on earth does this lead to a stable economy for our state? And how on earth does neglecting the most vulnerable in our society lead to a healthy economy?

It doesn't. That's precisely the problem. Our "leaders" in Carson City keep chasing after mythical economic unicorns while failing to provide the most fundamental building blocks of a sound economy.

Sure, luring Hollywood to Las Vegas sounds sexy. But ultimately, that won't mean shit for economic development if our schools keep bursting at the seams, our hospitals keep stuffing patients onto Greyhound buses heading out of state, and our roads are clogged with commuters while paved with just as many potholes. We seriously need to pay attention to the rude awakening we're now receiving. We must get back to basics, and we must do so before it's too late.

Don't Deny It Any More.

On Tuesday, we examined the latest developments in Nevada's patient dumping scandal. The Sacramento Bee has been on this story from the start, and it uncovered even more horrifying incidents of Nevada dumping mental health patients into other states with no plan for future care and no home to go. The investigation began when The Bee found James Flavy Coy Brown, a Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital patient who was thrown onto a Greyhound bus with only a 3 day supply of medication, some peanut butter crackers, and a few cans of Ensure. He was left to wander the streets of Sacramento, California, until officials there found him near suicide in a homeless shelter and placed him into treatment.

Earlier this month, Sacramento Bee Senior Editor Dan Morain traveled to Carson City to ask Governor Brian Sandoval (R-Denial) and state legislators why they allowed this to happen for so long. While Senators David Parks (D-Paradise) & Tick Segerblom (D-Las Vegas) expressed their disappointment (and resignation to continued health care underfunding), Sandoval continued to deny its existence. He couldn't quite express that level of denial to KSNV/News 3 Las Vegas this week, he certainly tried to deflect.



And while other legislators are finally starting to speak out on this matter, they still seem reluctant to take action.

According to an initial review, the state’s mental health agency removed administrative oversight of busing patients with a policy change in 2009, prompting an increase in the number of patients bused out of state, said Mike Willden, director of the state Health and Human Services Department.

The agency has subsequently added back that level of oversight following two internal investigations sparked by the Sacramento Bee reporting.

“We’ve taken action to date. We’ve disciplined staff, referred to the licensing boards. We’ve done several policy changes. Additional training has been done to ensure going forward that this can’t happen again,” Willden said. “Zero tolerance is our goal." [...]

“Until we can get that information in the next couple weeks, we will have to see if any policy changes need to be made,” said Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick, D-North Las Vegas.

Assemblywoman Lucy Flores, D-Las Vegas, called the revelations in the Sacramento Bee stories “shameful” but also said that legislators don’t yet have enough information about the hospital’s policies or the details of the investigations.

Assemblywoman Maggie Carlton, D-Las Vegas, said she’s spoken with Willden but also needs to see more detail.

“What we have to separate is dumping versus sending home,” she said. “We need to figure out what this is really about.”

Sure, no one should rush to a conclusion without having all the facts. But at this point, it's becoming increasingly clear what the problems are. The Nevada Department of Health & Human Services implemented a policy change in 2009 that removed administrative oversight of patient busing. And while state officials continue to deny that recent state budget cuts led to patient dumping, that's become increasingly difficult to do, as Think Progress and others have noted the severity of Nevada's mental health care budget cuts. Think about this: Would Nevada's mental health care officials really have allowed all this patient dumping if this didn't look like an attractive option to save money?

We know Nevada state government has been notorious for cutting corners and attempting to provide necessary services on the cheap (meaning hardly at all) whenever possible. But now, this extreme resolve to cut corners instead of properly providing necessary services is causing real problems for our state. Now, Utah officials are expressing outrage over Nevada's patient dumping.

“It's very bad practice and very bad care for people that are psychiatrically unstable,” said [Doug] Thomas[, Assistant Director of Substance Abuse and Mental Health for the State’s Department of Human Services]. “When you go into in-patient care you have that level of care to help you maintain your functioning, when you discharge you're at risk to go back in."

The story came to light when one of Rawson-Neal's patients turned up suicidal and confused at a Sacramento homeless services agency. 48-year-old James Flavy Coy Brown was allegedly discharged in February with only a Greyhound bus ticket and three days worth of medication for schizophrenia and depression.

Dr. Coni Kalinowski is the medical director for Mohave Mental Health. She says the transient problem and severe budget cuts have put Nevada’s mental health services in crisis mode.

“So we have a huge number of people who have acute psychiatric needs who need to be in a hospital but absolutely no place for them to go,” said Kalinowksi.

Still Doug Thomas says that does not justify putting sick people on a bus and shipping them off to places they've never been.

"The only reason why any of our hospitals, or providers, would put anyone on a bus would be to return them to family members or a community where they had a support system and often they would go with that person."

And the outrage continues to flow from California. Now, Los Angeles & San Francisco are considering legal action against Nevada. Meanwhile, accreditation of Rawson-Neal is in serious jeopardy.

A Nevada state mental hospital's practice of discharging psychiatric patients to Greyhound buses and transporting them to cities and towns across the country is under investigation by the independent, nonprofit body that accredits hospitals nationwide.

In addition, city attorneys in San Francisco and Los Angeles are exploring whether the practice constitutes a form of cross-state "patient dumping," and might be grounds for legal action against Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital and Nevada health authorities.

The responses follow a report in Sunday's Bee that revealed that Rawson-Neal, Nevada's primary psychiatric hospital, has bused more than 1,500 mentally ill patients out of southern Nevada in the last five years, sending at least one person to every state in the continental United States. About a third of those patients were shipped to California, including more than 200 to Los Angeles County, 36 to San Francisco and 19 to the city of Sacramento, according to a review of Greyhound bus receipts purchased since July 2008 by Nevada's mental health division. [...]

The hospital's practices have touched off preliminary inquiries in Los Angeles – which received 149 patients from Rawson-Neal during the five years reviewed, more than any city in the country – and in San Francisco.

In recent years, Los Angeles has cracked down on area hospitals for dumping patients on Skid Row, where the Greyhound station is located, filing lawsuits and criminal charges. Patient dumping is a misdemeanor by city ordinance.

"Clearly, we have an interest," Sandy Cooney, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office, said of the bus trips from Las Vegas. "We're trying to determine if this warrants an investigation." San Francisco also is in the early stages of an inquiry, said city attorney spokesman Matt Dorsey.

They can't say we (and others) didn't warn them. In fact, we've been warning here that Nevada will pay a hefty price if the state continues to dither while mental health services are underfunded and patients continue to be subjected to "Greyhound Therapy". And now, a federal investigation is underway as Rawson-Neal's accreditation is at risk and two major California cities consider law suits against Nevada for carelessly dumping patients into their cities.

Nevada, we have a problem. We can't deny it any more. Governor Sandoval can't deny it any more, and neither can anyone in the Legislature.

These people need treatment. It's in their best interest, and it's actually in the best interest of the greater community. And if you're wondering why it's so damned important, just remember how much trouble we've been seeing from the Steven Brooks case. It ultimately saves us lives and money to treat mental illness than to let it persist and worsen.

And yes, it's simply irresponsible for us to dump our problems onto other states and communities. It's inhumane to simply treat human beings like garbage in busing them to other states without any plans for future housing and treatment. And as we're learning the hard way, there's a price to pay for engaging in this kind of reckless behavior.

So why are folks in Carson City continuing to deny the severity of this horrid scandal? We can't afford to deny it any more. Nevada, we have a problem. And it's long past time for us to fix it.

From Brooks to Brown, a Sordid Tale of a Broken Mental Health Care System

We've known for some time that this is the case. Yet since the Steven Brooks scandal broke, his plight has shed light on the state of mental health care here in Nevada. So what's the state of mental health care here in Nevada? It can easily be described in one word: Awful.

The [Nevada Division of Mental Health & Developmental Services] suffered a 12.5 percent cut in its budget over the past two years and a 13.9 percent decrease in general fund revenue, resulting in a loss of 150 positions. The lost jobs included those in inpatient and outpatient treatment centers. Like other state agencies, those employees who kept their jobs also endured 2.5 percent salary reductions and mandatory unpaid furloughs.

From fiscal 2009 through fiscal 2012, Nevada saw its mental health budget decline by 28.1 percent, the nation's fifth highest drop during that time.

"The cuts have raised concerns regarding meeting client needs," the report stated. "Budget cuts and elimination of positions and services has been a trend since the last comprehensive Needs Assessment in 2008."

One hurdle facing the division is that Nevada already ranks poorly in mental health spending per resident in comparison to most other states. Nevada also was dead last in Medicaid spending per resident from fiscal 2004 through fiscal 2009 and was 49th in 2010. That year, Medicaid spending averaged $1,224 per U.S. resident but only $505 per Nevadan.

Any wonder why Governor Brian Sandoval (R) suddenly found an extra $25 million for mental health services?

Well, here's another reason. The Sacramento Bee has been investigating the story of James Flavy Coy Brown since March. And the Northern California paper has since uncovered the terrifying truth of the mental health system here in Nevada.

It was 6:30 a.m., 15 hours and 11 stops after a taxi had scooped him up in front of Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital in Las Vegas, where he had spent the previous 72 hours, and deposited him at a bus station.

During the long ride to Northern California, Brown had rationed the peanut butter crackers and Ensure nutritional supplements that a staff member at the mental hospital had given him, along with his discharge papers and a bus ticket to Sacramento. His food was gone, and he was nearly out of the medication to treat his array of mood disorders, including schizophrenia, depression and anxiety.

As the bus door opened in Sacramento, Brown, 48, stepped out into the pre-dawn gloom. It was 30 degrees, and his windbreaker was no match for the chill.

Brown, a native of the American South with a distinct accent and a healthy head of salt-and-pepper hair, had arrived in the capital city with no concrete plan for survival. He had no friends or relatives in Sacramento. He had lost his ID, Social Security and insurance cards somewhere in Las Vegas. He had no idea how to fill the prescriptions that helped tame the voices and anxiety that clouded his mind.

Brown was discharged from Rawson-Neal... And thrown onto a Greyhound bus. And 15 hours later, he was in California. And he was clearly still suffering from severe mental illness. James Flavy Coy Brown needed more treatment, yet Nevada just decided to dump him into California.

Obviously, several officials in California are furious. And the Nevada Division of Mental Health & Developmental Services is now facing state and federal investigations. So far, it's already been discovered that Brown was not the only dumped out of state. Far from it, there were many more cases of patient dumping to California and other states.

In February alone, at least three other mental patients were discharged from Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital in Las Vegas to far-flung destinations, including California, with a small supply of medications and a few cans of Ensure for nourishment, according to a report issued Monday by the Nevada State Health Division.

Those four represent just more than 10 percent of the 30 sample files reviewed by state investigators in response to concerns about Brown's care. [...]

Nevada recently has made a practice of busing mental patients out of state. The state sent 99 psychiatric patients to California between July 1, 2012, and the end of February, Nevada health officer Tracey Green told state lawmakers during last month's hearing. She said 81 percent were California residents who wanted to go home.

By contrast, an official with Arizona State Hospital told The Bee that facility has not sent a patient out of state by bus in recent memory. Oregon State Hospital discharged one patient to family in California between July 2012 and January, according to a hospital spokeswoman.

The federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services is working with Nevada authorities to investigate the state's treatment of mental health patients.

Some patients have been sent as far away as Oklahoma and Massachusetts (??!!). And of course, many were simply packed into Greyhounds and dumped into California. And they were done so despite needed further treatment. And they were only given a few cans of Ensure and a tiny supply of medicine.

So is this what Nevada considers to be "proper mental health treatment"? No wonder why Steven Brooks was allowed to wither on the vine for so long. And no wonder why Governor Sandoval suddenly found another $25 million for mental health care. (Yet that still doesn't completely erase the previous 4 years worth of budget cut, let alone help the state catch up with 2 decades worth of growing case loads.)

So what will it take for Nevada to fully fund the kind of mental health care that our state needs? How many more embarrassing scandals must emerge before the state fully funds mental health care?

Dean Heller, Meet Steven Brooks.

Yesterday, Jon Ralston interviewed Roxanne Brooks. She's the mother of Former Assembly Member Steven Brooks. Ms. Brooks went on statewide TV last night to tell her family's side of this tragic story.

(The interview starts at 17:30.)



Last night, Roxanne Brooks confirmed what most had already been suspecting. She recalled her constant efforts to help her son obtain the mental health treatment he needed. Yet for far too long, not enough people saw what she saw. And by the time they did, it may have been too late.

There are many serious and disturbing issues that have been unearthed due to the Steven Brooks scandal here in Nevada. But today, I'd like for us to touch on one that reaches all the way to Washington, DC.

There, gun safety legislation seems to have stalled. Despite strong public support for gun safety reform, some Members of Congress are backing away from common sense measures... Even the ones with nearly 90% support! Last Thursday, just hours after the Nevada Assembly voted to expel Brooks, Senator Dean Heller (R-Office Space) blamed Hollywood for recent gun violence. No really, he went there.

Did Hollywood encourage Steven Brooks to attempt to buy a gun in Sparks in February? I seriously doubt that. Even if some movie or video game did inspire Brooks to walk into Scheels to attempt to purchase firearms and ammunition, the entertainment industry ultimately has no power over firearms policy. Senator Heller, however, does.

So what will Dean Heller do with that power? After initially warming up to wildly popular gun violence prevention measures like expanded background checks, he seems to be flip-flopping back to knee-jerk opposition. As mentioned above, Heller is now blaming Hollywood for recent massacres. And on top of passing the buck in such a ridiculous manner, Heller is also pushing dangerous NRA approved legislation that will actually allow the severely mentally ill to purchase guns & ammunition!

No really, check this out.

[US Senator Mark] Pryor [D-Arkansas], along with Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), Mark Begich (D-Alaska), Dean Heller (R-Nevada), and Jeff Flake (R-Arizona), has introduced the NICS Reporting Improvement Act (S. 480). The Act clarifies that mentally ill people are prevented from obtaining firearms but defines that term narrowly, so as to allow patients who had been treated for mental illness to pass a federal background check and purchase guns.

For instance, federal law prohibits people who are ordered by a court into involuntary treatment, found to pose a danger to themselves or others, or lack the mental capacity to enter into legal contracts from buying weapons —even though individuals can petition to have their rights restored in 22 states. The bipartisan NICS Reporting Improvement Act would allow these people to purchase weapons immediately after being released, unless it can be proven that they pose an “imminent” danger.

Since the shooting at Virginia Tech, the number of mental health records in NICS has grown from 200,000 to 1.2 million, though “millions of records identifying seriously mentally ill people and drug abusers as prohibited purchasers are missing from the federal background check database because of lax reporting by state agencies,” a report from Mayors Against Illegal Guns found. Pryor’s bill would keep even more mentally ill individuals out of the system.

“I doen’t listen to [New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg] on these issues, I listen to Arkansas,” Pryor said. A recent poll found that 84 percent of Arkansans support expanding background checks to all firearm purchsases.

And it's at 86% support here in Nevada. Just don't tell that to Dean Heller. I guess this is how he's being so "no labels post-partisan". He's found a tiny handful of Red State/Blue Dog Democrats to join with him and other Republicans to essentially undermine the very background checks legislation that US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) is rounding up votes for... And Dean Heller at one time suggested he'd vote for!

If Heller, these other conservative Senators, and the NRA get their way, millions of people who otherwise shouldn't be able to access dangerous weapons will be able to do so. Perhaps even Steven Brooks would have been able to buy that gun & ammo at the Sparks Scheels had Heller's legislation been in place. Was Dean Heller that oblivious to what had just happened in Carson City when he was addressing the Nevada Legislature? Perhaps so.

While the rest of us in Nevada have had to learn some tough lessons from the Steven Brooks scandal, it looks like Dean Heller has learned nothing. And not only that, but he's even turning against legislation that even conservative Republicans have supported! And not only that, but Heller is even pursuing legislation that likely would have worsened this hot mess had it been in place earlier this year. This may turn out to be yet another horrific tragedy of this sorry story.

More Brooks Drama Ahead?

Last Friday, we found out about the current tragic twist to the Steven Brooks saga. Since then, we've heard from plenty of pundits on what just happened. Ralston obviously has had some choice words.


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So has his attorney (as he's suing to make the special committee report public). Even Steven Brooks himself sounded eerily prophetic on Thursday.

"I'm the assemblyman of sorrow," he declared. "Why do they hate me so much? Fill in the blank: I'm so angry I could (blank) myself."

Brooks told me he was "on my way to Seven Hills to check myself into the hospital. He began weeping when I asked why, adding, "I have no other resort. I'm going to kill myself if they keep this up. I have nowhere to go. I'm the assemblyman of sorrow."

He would later add, "I don’t want anyone else to think I'm crazy…I'm all cried out, man. I've done everything right and it’s wrong."

Brooks also told me that the leaders were fueled by hatred of him. Why?

"You know why they hate me? You know why want to kill me because I know all of their secrets."

And in case this isn't dramatic enough, Amicus Nevada has hinted of even more Brooks drama ahead. So what can we expect? Possibly another law suit? Possibly.

In Brooks’ case, one of the early complaints about the process was that the Select Committee was not given a specific charge. By the only official public document available, Assembly Resolution 5, the Assembly found the Select Committee was charged “to consider and investigate matters within the jurisdiction of Section 6 of Article 4 of the Nevada Constitution.” Additionally, the Assembly resolved that the Select Committee is “instructed to continue its proceedings to consider and investigate matters within the jurisdiction of Section 6 of Article 4 of the Nevada Constitution.” Assemb. Res. No. 5, 77th Leg., Reg. Sess. (2013). The 687-word resolution makes not a single reference to Brooks, much less to his alleged expulsion-worthy disorderly conduct.

Seasoned political commentators and journalists still don’t know why Brooks was expelled from office, and I’d wager a guess that Brooks didn’t know the reason why either. In Steve Sebelius‘ words, the Select Committee is saying, “You have to trust us.”

The closest thing to a charging document is the letter sent to Brooks by Assemblyman William Horne. The letter states “The alleged conduct which will be the subject of the investigation includes failure to carry out certain responsibilities of an Assemblyman, engaging in unethical conduct and engaging in certain other deleterious conduct.” But this charge was never adopted by the Assembly and does not refer to specific conduct.

After the vote took place, the reason for expulsion became quite clear: Brooks was believed to be dangerous, and was proven to be at the very least unstable, as evidenced by his three arrests, most recently the same day as the expulsion vote. But ex post evidence of his instability cannot be used as a justification for the lack of sufficient due process.

Just like in the criminal arena, a legislator cannot fairly respond to charges of legislative misconduct unless the legislator is put on notice what the charges against him or her are and what the alleged wrongdoing is. This is all the more important because the Constitution limits the Assembly’s disciplinary power against its own to cases of “disorderly conduct.” So what is the disorderly conduct that warranted expulsion? We don’t know.

Even Anjeanette Damon's Sun cast doubt on the process, though she didn't get into detail (like Sean McDonald did) on the merits of a possible law suit challenging this outcome.

So will Steven Brooks actually return to the Nevada Legislature? I personally still doubt it, but I guess it's not entirely outside the realm of possibility. This likely just means there's another lesson for legislators to learn.

Why put this off for so long, only to initiate a process that invites litigation? Perhaps there was no intention to set up such a haphazard process for expulsion. But going forward, legislators will need to be more careful and thoughtful in pondering how to expel their own when they're no longer functioning in Carson City.

And perhaps Clark County Commissioners will need to be careful in wading into this mess. Already, a fight is brewing over how quickly to fill the Assembly seat just vacated by Brooks. So I guess the Steven Brooks melodrama continues...

New Questions Emerge As Steven Brooks Saga Takes New Twist (into California)

I guess this was bound to happen. Newly ousted ex-Assembly Member Steven Brooks found himself in trouble with law enforcement... Again. But this time, he ran into trouble with California cops.

Brooks, 41, a North Las Vegas Democrat, fled from police following a dispute with a tow truck driver on Lenwood Road near the 15 Freeway in Barstow at 6:11 p.m.

"Brooks continued to accelerate at a high rate of speed and was traveling in and out of multiple lanes in an attempt to get away from officers," Barstow police said in a press release. [...]

Brooks eventually got out of his car after receiving orders to surrender. Police said he was acting irrationally and refused to listen to officers' orders.

Barstow police released their dog, Buck, to take Brooks into custody, but before the dog could catch him, Brooks ran back to his car. Buck jumped through the back window of the vehicle.

Police said Brooks began choking Buck and hit him with a metal socket wrench. The dog suffered a cut to his left leg and above his right eye.

CHP and Barstow police officers tried to handcuff Brooks and then used a Taser gun on him when he continued to resist arrest.

A Victorville resident named Jennifer Simpson posted this video, shot by her husband Ken, of Brooks' arrest. But before you view this video, be aware that it contains violent actions and language. Viewer discretion is strongly advised.



I had a feeling this was coming. However, I had a feeling something like this would happen in Carson City. That's why the Nevada Legislature ultimately had the obligation to expel Brooks.

However with that being said, today's series of events greatly disturb me. For one, Brooks again displayed some very disturbing behavior. Wasn't he supposed to be receiving treatment by now? He very much needs immediate mental health treatment.

And were local police and CHP unaware of this? They may not have been familiar with the Brooks scandal, but they should have at least detected a 5150 (California's version of Legal 2000) here. Was that much force necessary to detain Brooks? Did they really need to punch him?

Sadly, this probably means the sad & sordid tale of Steven Brooks continues. But now, we face even more pressing issues as a result of this. When do police actions cross the line into police brutality? When must someone who's already been determined to be a threat to oneself & others be involuntarily committed into treatment? And do we have enough available mental health treatment?

We'll likely have to examine these issues further as this story develops.

Why Demand Action? So They Won't Forget.

Today has been a major day on gun violence. We've seen protests throughout the country demanding action from Congress. So did President Obama. And so did some of the nation's top Democratic campaign donors.

Meanwhile here in Nevada, we've been seeing an entire day of action in Las Vegas... Which has turned out to be the same day when the Nevada Legislature finally expelled troubled Assembly Member Steven Brooks in Carson City.

We'll talk about the Brooks affair in more detail this weekend. For now, let's focus on what happened down here.





Yes, this was the scene outside the Lloyd George Federal Building (where Senators Reid & Heller have Las Vegas offices) today. And ProgressNow Nevada's Brian Fadie helped put it all into perspective.





And so did ProgressNow's Teresa Crawford.



Lloyd George was also the site of the infamous 2010 Courthouse Shooting, so the site of today's event was also quite poignant. A security officer on duty was shot dead there. I had to keep that in mind as I noticed the security officers making the rounds today.

It's been just over three months since the Newtown massacre. And it's barely been over a month since the Las Vegas Strip shooting. And there have been even more victims since then. Can we really afford to forget this?

And should Congress be allowed to forget this?

Why These Families Demand Action

Today, local parents are speaking out. These moms and local volunteers with the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Demand Action campaign just explained why they're speaking up on gun safety in Las Vegas today.



The action has begun at the PLAN Las Vegas office. Local moms like Jessica Nelsen and Linda Cavazos explained their stories on gun violence.





So did Esther Sass. She lost her brother to gun violence. And since then, she's done her research on gun violence.



Yes, this is reality. People are dying because we haven't fixed our gun laws. We've asked this before, and we must ask this again today. How many more people must die before we finally take action?



This is why people in Nevada and throughout the nation demand action.

Just minutes ago, the Nevada Assembly finally voted to expel Steven Brooks. And remember, he came very close to buying a gun despite his recent record.

So now, it's Congress' turn to take action. Something must change. It's time for Senators Harry Reid and Dean Heller to act.

It's Time (to Let Him Go).

After two months of salacious drama and deferred action, the Steven Brooks scandal may finally come to an end... At least for the Nevada Legislature. The special Assembly committee set up to handle this situation voted to expel Steven Brooks from the Legislature last night.

"I take no pleasure in making this motion," Assemblyman Lynn Stewart, R-Henderson, said, before moving to recommend expulsion. "I do it for the good of the Legislature, and I hope the good of Mr. Brooks." [...]

“We all labored over this,” Assembly Minority Leader Pat Hickey, R-Reno, said. “Is there a way to find help for Assemblyman Brooks, who, it would appear to us and, I believe most of the public believes, is someone who needs help.” [...]

Assembly Majority Leader William Horne, D-Las Vegas, said the evidence presented convinced him that Brooks is “unfit to serve.”

“It made me sad,” Horne said of the details of special counsel Mark Ferrario’s investigation. “What I read was not reflective of the man I’ve grown to know.

“As his friend, I am glad those documents are confidential.”

The committee ultimately voted 6-1 to expel Brooks. Assembly Member Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas) was the sole vote against expulsion. She said she preferred temporary suspension.

The rest, however, did not. And now, this goes to the full Assembly for consideration. A 2/3 supermajority will be necessary to ultimately expel Brooks.

Frankly, the time has come for this. It's become increasingly clear that Steven Brooks has "issues". And it's become increasingly clear that those "issues" won't be solved in the Nevada Legislature. Brooks likely needs professional help. It's time for the Legislature to let him go so he can access the treatment he needs.

And regardless of what one thinks of Brooks, the Nevada Legislature doesn't need to be bogged down any more by this distraction. It's time to let Brooks go. Hopefully, the full Assembly will agree to a final resolution to this sorry scandal.

Tuesday's #NVLeg Pre-game Show

Last night, the Nevada Progressive crew finally made it to Carson City just after 8:00 PM. It was an interesting ride up, but I'm glad we finally made it to our state's capital. So now, the real fun begins!

As I hinted at earlier, today will be a super busy day at the Nevada Legislature. We'll be starting today's ongoing #NVLeg coverage with a SJR 13 (marriage equality) liveblog. Later today, SJR 15 (mining tax reform) will get its own committee hearing.

And then tonight, we have another round of Steven Brooks drama. But this time, we may finally be approaching the beginning of the end of this at #NVLeg.

So today will be very action packed. Stay tuned here and follow me on Twitter for updates throughout today and tomorrow. Who knows? You may even find the occasional surprise here.

We'll Be LIVE @ #NVLeg This Week!

As we hinted at earlier, this week promises to be a very busy one at the Nevada Legislature. Marriage equality will finally reach the forefront in Carson City tomorrow when SJR 13 comes before the Senate Legislative Operations & Elections Committee tomorrow. Also tomorrow, mining tax reform returns to the spotlight as SJR 15 gets its own day in committee in Senate Revenue & Economic Development. Oh, and in case that's not enough excitement for you, the Steven Brooks will likely return to the headlines as the Assembly finally approaches a final resolutions on perhaps the most bizarre scandal to ever hit Carson City. And to heat things up even more, health care will take center stage Wednesday morning when the Joint Ways & Means/Finance Committee takes on a key part of implementing the Affordable Care Act in including set-up of the new Silver State Health Insurance Exchange in the next state budget.

Whoa... Talk about a busy week! And the best part? We'll be experiencing all of this live and in person!

I hinted at this earlier this month, but today it's finally happening. I'm hitting the road for Carson City! And tomorrow & Wednesday, I'll be providing updates here and @atdleft on Twitter on the big events happening at #NVLeg.

So stay tuned here at Nevada Progressive. I'm so excited to be able to do this. And I hope this can help all of us better understand what's really happening in Carson City.

In the mean time, I'll just leave you with this tweet from Senator Justin Jones (D-Enterprise) for now.

Carson City: Where policy nerds go for Spring Break. #nvleg

I guess I'm guilty as charged. ;-)

Some 411 on "Vegas 911!"

Back in January, and just as the Steven Brooks scandal began kicking into high gear, a sideshow to the media circus' main event emerged when Las Vegas Township Constable John Bonaventura agreed to "provide security" for Brooks when he first returned to Carson City. But wait, how could do he do that? And why was he injecting himself into the Brooks affair?

Bonaventura claimed he was filling a void in law enforcement. Others, however, claimed that he was just trying to settle a score with political rival and Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick (D-North Las Vegas). And since then, more questions have arisen on the very necessity of the Constable's Office.

As of late, the Las Vegas Constable's Office has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. We already mentioned the Brooks scandal above. John Bonaventura was arrested on a drunk driving charge last month, though Clark County DA later decided to drop the charge. Last year, Bonaventura faced sexual harassment allegations. And of course, there was the "Reno 911!"-esque reality TV audition in 2011.

Yikes. There's been a whole lot of drama at that office. So what is it actually responsible for? Here's the condensed Wikipedia version of an explanation.

Constables are elected peace officers who have statewide powers similar to sheriffs, marshals and police officers, as per NRS 289.150 , but in practice some constables maintain a relatively low profile in the law enforcement community. Constables and their deputies must be Nevada POST certified category 1 or category 2 within 1 year of being sworn in, in order to keep their peace officer status. [...]

The primary duties of constables are to act as a civil enforcement agency. This includes the service in minor civil cases in the Justice Courts of subpoenas, evictions, summons, vehicle and property liens, and wage garnishments, and also enforcing vehicle registration laws.

This is why Kirkpatrick and other state legislators are considering legislation to clarify the role of constables. Meanwhile, Clark County Commissioners are considering abolishing the Las Vegas Township Constable's Office altogether. After all, why have this office do tasks that Metro and other local law enforcement agencies can easily take on?

Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani proposed the ordinance.

"The ordinance that I plan to bring says that the office is redundant, it's no longer working in the way that we believe it should and therefore we need to abolish it, and in two years, we still have an opportunity to look at that."

That, in turn, has led to this.

Bonaventura filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the commissioners in an attempt to prevent them from taking action to abolish his position. A hearing is scheduled for Monday, one day before the commissioners were set to discuss eliminating his job.

In the lawsuit, Bonaventura is seeking to challenge the constitutionality of the commissioners' attempt to abolish the constable’s office. The lawsuit alleges that his office has been subject to questionable acts, such as the county taking $2 million of the constable funds without public notice, agenda or vote.

And that, in turn, has led to this.

Clark County officials have demanded that Constable John Bonaventura outline why he hired lawyers for more than $30,000 or be held personally liable for the expense.

The letter [...] essentially says Bonaventura may have broken the law, needs to pay up or the district attorney will be involved.

And this is all over a supplementary law enforcement agency best known for serving foreclosure notices... And jumping deep into scandals.

Frankly, I'm still trying to wrap my head around this. How did John Bonaventura win elected office (again)? Does Clark County still need constables for law enforcement? And may it finally be time to overhaul and update our law enforcement framework?

Perhaps John Bonaventura is serving a useful purpose. With his wild antics, he's highlighting this problem. It's become more difficult for County Commissioners and state legislators to just sweep this embarrassing series of incidents under the rug. Something must be done.

So what will be done? That will be up to Clark County Commissioners. They should just know that should they decide to shift current constable duties to local police departments, the police departments must be better trained in constituent services.

#NVLeg Gut Check on Gun Safety

It happened again yesterday. There was another mass shooting, this time in upstate New York. And yet, there was also uncertainty regarding the fate of gun safety legislation in Congress.

Yet while even the most overwhelmingly popular gun safety legislation faces challenges in Washington, something may be happening in Carson City. There has been talk of reform amidst the Steven Brooks scandal, February's gruesome Las Vegas Strip shooting, and other recent events. But now, there's finally legislation that's attracting support and promising action: SB 221. Senator Justin Jones (D-Enterprise), the author of SB 221, went on "Ralston Reports" last night to explain his bill and why he's pursuing gun safety reform in Carson City now.

(Skip to around 21:00 for the segment.)



So what does SB 221 propose, exactly? Oh, just the very basic gun safety reform that's stalled in Congress.

Jones’ bill would require a private person who wants to sell a gun to another individual to ask the state Central Repository for a background check to clear the purchaser. If the seller does not follow the law, he or she could be charged with a gross misdemeanor and would be prohibited from possessing a gun for two years.

“Background checks may be a little difficult for some,” said Jones, who is not a gun owner. “But it is supported by a high 80 percent of Americans and probably by Nevadans, as far as I could tell.”

Under the bill, SB221, courts would have five days after finding a person had mental problems to notify the repository for criminal history records. And a psychiatrist or licensed psychologist who learns while treating a mentally ill patient that he or she is a threat to another individual would be able to notify law enforcement. [...]

“There were other states, particularly after Sandy Hook, that jumped on the issue and passed legislation and they got criticized by mental health professionals because it really didn’t address the issue,” he said.

So we finally have a background check bill moving... In the Nevada Legislature. Yet even here, there are challenges. The NRA opposes this, just as it opposes any other state or federal attempt to expand background checks. So of course, this will be a test for those legislators who attended the NRA's Battleground Vegas lobby day in January. Will they agree to something that over 80% of Nevadans support? Or will they stand with the NRA in allowing criminals and those with troubled mental health backgrounds access dangerous firearms?

Consider this a key "gut check" moment in Carson City.

A Painful Reality Check

Last Thursday, 3 people died & 3 more were seriously injured on Las Vegas Strip as a taxi cab was caught in the midst of a roadside shooting. Since then, there's actually been some introspection on the state of gun violence in Southern Nevada. And as expected, LVCVA is going out of its way to spin this story away... But will it work this time?

“What’s really important early on is to put everything in context,” said Lori Nelson, vice president of corporate communications at Station Casinos and a crisis communications expert. “It’s easy for a situation to get blown out of proportion, and it was good for the LVCVA to convey that what happened on the Strip on Thursday was an isolated incident.” [..]

“I think the message we sent was that we were an innocent bystander, just like Las Vegas was a bystander in this most recent incident that could have happened anywhere,” she said.

But some critics aren’t buying it. They say the LVCVA’s “What happens here, stays here” campaign and some of the attractions available to visitors can be interpreted as community permissiveness toward fast cars, alcohol, guns, sex and drugs.

While overall crime slipped last year, the recent string of Strip shootings may be spooking tourists. It's a real concern that can't be dismissed. After all, Nevada has one of the highest gun death rates in the nation. Just look at this AP report on the early fallout from last Thursday's Strip shooting.

But real guns remain permissible. Nevada's relaxed gun laws, including the ability to carry them openly, have made Las Vegas an attractive spot for shooting ranges and gun shows. Some observers think police should step up their presence on the Strip, just as they did after three slayings in 2011.

"Clearly they should be looking into this because they have had a string of incidents now, and while they've all been random incidents, they all did happen," said David Schwartz, the Director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. [...]

But with violent crime, as with so much else in Vegas, perception may outweigh reality. As a place built on the promise of letting loose, the city must work extra hard to banish all fear of danger, said Tony Henthorne, a marketing professor at the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration in Las Vegas.

"It's important for any destination that relies on tourism for a major percentage of its income to appear safe," he said, "and also actually to be safe."

And that especially rings true here in Nevada. With the state still so highly dependent on gaming & tourism, we can't afford for tourists to keep away because of perceived and/or actual danger.

Yet the danger remains. Nevada scored a measly 5 out of 100 in The Brady Campaign's scorecard on gun safety. And even though he's been denied firearms access for 1 year, it's still scary to think that Steven Brooks came very close to buying a rifle! (What if he hadn't received so much media attention?)

This is a real problem. While the gun lobby continues to spout wild conspiracy theories and extreme rhetoric, real people keep dying. And if Congress fails to act on meaningful gun safety reform, voters will take note.

Haven't we suffered enough? Can we handle more of the same on gun violence?

A Scary Reminder from Steven Brooks

Oh, what a week this has been. Yesterday in the Southwest Vegas Valley, a coalition of progressive activists gathered outside Two. Joe Heck's office demanding action on gun safety reform. And at that rally, OFA super volunteer and mental health professional Linda Cavazos talked about the intersection of mental health care policy and gun safety policy.



Yet while activists down south were asking Heck to act on gun safety, the Steven Brooks story took a disturbing new turn up north. Yesterday, KRNV discovered that Brooks tried to buy a gun at a Scheels store in Sparks. Brooks apparently moved to Reno earlier this month, and there's been concern of him returning to Carson City despite being banned from the Legislature Building. Legislature security were placed on alert once news broke of his attempted Scheels purchase.



Now here's the scary twist to this story. Even though Brooks was committed to a mental health treatment facility after his first arrest, Scheels may still sell him that gun! Yes, despite everything we've seen from Brooks in the past month, he can still purchase firearms and ammunition.

This is the reality of our current gun laws, both in state and federally. Even people who may pose a threat to themselves and to others can still access firearms. This is a serious problem.

Imagine what may happen if Steven Brooks gets that gun. Remember what (allegedly) Brooks threatened to do to Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick (D-North Las Vegas)? And remember what Brooks has been up to for the past month? And he may still buy a gun?

Nevada, we have a problem. And Congress, you must act.

Baseline

Is it finally happening? Shortly after the Newtown massacre, State Senator Tick Segerblom (D-Las Vegas) did something revolutionary for the Nevada Legislature: He proposed gun safety legislation. So how's that going? He's still at it.

On the left is a proposal to ban all assault rifles, large magazine clips and armor-piercing bullets, sponsored by Sen. Tick Segerblom, D-Las Vegas. [...]

“Obviously, there is a major issue with guns,” said Segerblom. “I think Nevada has changed from the wild, wild West to a very urban state. I mean, 75 percent of the population is in Las Vegas. People aren’t running around in Stetsons. And this (debate) has nothing to do with hunters, nothing to do with farmers. There are just way too many guns and way too many killings.” [...]

Segerblom said he is proposing his gun bill because of the IHOP shooting in Carson City, which occured not long after the 2011 Legislature adjourned.

Four people were killed and 15 injured when Eduardo Sencion emptied two 30-round clips from his automatic assault weapon just a short drive from the Legislature.

“It is designed to open up the discussion,” Segerblom said. “I don’t think we’ll get everything in this bill, but I’m glad to talk about everything. We are going to have a hearing this next week or the week after that about the shooting in Carson City to see if the law that I am proposing would have had an impact on that. We are trying to get Gabby Giffords to testify, so we are going to raise the profile.”

And at least so far, it has opened up discussion... And companion bills that may actually have a chance at passing this session. In particular, #NVLeg watchers are keeping close tabs on a bill proposed by State Senator Ben Kieckhefer (R-Reno) to limit firearms access to those who have been involuntarily committed to mental health treatment facilities. There are also some NRA approved gun deregulation bills pending in the Legislature, but at least now most legislators will be under immense pressure not to take that bait. Ah, what a difference Steven Brooks has made.

Yet while it's interesting to see this flurry of gun safety legislation in Carson City, we must remember that Nevada is not an island unto itself. Last Friday, some conservatives mocked President Obama's trip to Chicago to talk gun violence. Hey, if gun violence prevention works, then why is Chicago so violent? Here's what they fail to recognize.

Most significantly, it is important to understand that Chicago is not an island. Although Chicago has historically had strict gun laws, laws in the surrounding parts of Illinois were much laxer —enabling middlemen to supply the criminals in Chicago with guns they purchased elsewhere. Forty three percent of the guns seized by law enforcement in Chicago were originally purchased in other parts of Illinois. And even if the state had stricter gun laws, Illinois is not an island either. The remaining fifty seven percent of Chicago guns all came from out of state, most significantly from nearby Indiana and distant Mississippi —neither of which are known for their strict gun laws. [...]

This is a national problem. Illinois laws, loose as they are, are the eight-strictest in the nation. Broader data suggest that 50 percent of all crime guns come from one percent of dealers. Since illegal guns can travel across state boundaries, federal legislation targeting crooked dealers, traffickers, straw purchasers, and private sales without background checks is the best way to address gun violence in cities like Chicago. Which is exactly what the President [called for in Chicago].

State and local gun regulations are not necessarily fruitless. They can, at least to an extent, fill in the gaps in federal laws when properly enforced. But again, no city, county, or state is an island. And as we've seen recently, Christopher Dorner came here to Nevada (and may have gone to Arizona as well) to circumvent California's strict gun laws.

So what's the solution? Simple. We need a better federal baseline for gun safety.

Believe it or not, cold medicine is more tightly regulated by the feds than firearms and ammunition. Why is that? We have enough evidence demonstrating the failure of this almost completely "hands off" strategy to gun safety.

Sure, communities are not all the same. Rural communities have a different relationship with guns than suburban & urban communities. But with that being said, we nonetheless need a better federal baseline to start with.

Again, why do any civilians need assault weapons and/or high-capacity magazines? Why can't there be universal background checks? Why has so much illegal gun trafficking been allowed to happen thus far?

It's great to finally see a realistic discussion on gun safety in Carson City. And hopefully, that will continue. But ultimately, this doesn't let Joe Heck, Dean Heller, and the rest of Nevada's Congressional Delegation off the hook. Congress must still act.

Flashpoint

Yesterday, Assembly Member Steven Brooks was arrested. Again. This time, it was on domestic violence charges. Police also accuse him of attempting to take an officer's weapon when fighting arrest.

Police on Sunday again have arrested embattled Nevada Assemblyman Steven Brooks, D-North Las Vegas, this time after a report that he allegedly attacked a family member.

Officers arrived at Brooks' home around 12:30 a.m. at 6007 Turtle River Avenue to find that he was “agitated and refused to obey officers’ commands,” Metro Police said.

As officers tried to take him into custody, police said, Brooks fought them. In a news release, Metro said the 40-year-old “at one point attempted to secure one of the officers' weapons.”

Police arrested the Las Vegas resident on counts of obstructing police and domestic battery.

Steven Brooks was arrested last month for allegedly making death threats on Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick. And since then, he's exhibited plenty of bizarre behavior. And amidst all the bizarre behavior and lurid scent of scandal, some started asking new questions on the state of mental health care and gun safety here in Nevada.

Even more questions have arisen since last week's Southern California shootings that police suspect Christopher Dorner of committing. Dorner has owned a home in the Southwest Vegas Valley since 2007. And he frequented Lock N' Load, a gun store just south of The 215 in Henderson. Lock N' Load owner Tony Melendez insists his store never sold any actual weapons to Dorner, but he has admitted that the store sold him accessories. Melendez wouldn't specify what they were, but Dorner himself declared in his manifesto that Lock N' Load sold him suppressors. These are often used in gun crimes to reduce the noise of the bullet release, and California is one of 11 states to ban civilian possession and use of them.

The manhunt for Christopher Dorner continues as the City of Los Angeles has now offered a $1,000,000 reward for information leading to his capture. LA police were actually stretched quite thin yesterday as they were simutaneously continuing the manhunt, providing extra security for the Grammy Awards, and proceeding with regular police activity.

View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com.

Ever since news broke of the Dorner manhunt, more questions are being asked on how and why this is happening. And again, issue of easy access to firearms has become the central flashpoint. The Los Angeles Times' George Skelton examined how the Dorner incident may soon unravel the gun lobby's central argument for resisting gun safety reform.

Dorner seemingly was law-abiding — until he wasn't.

And that brings up a larger point: At minimum, he is another example of a so-called law-abiding, innocent gun owner who apparently went berserk and used his arsenal to kill people.

It makes such comments as this one recently uttered by National Rifle Assn. executive Wayne LaPierre look particularly inane and off target: "Law-abiding gun owners will not accept blame for the acts of violent or deranged criminals."

News flash: Some law-abiders do become violent criminals. And their kill rate too often increases with their firepower.

Of course, this gets into the whole definition of "law-abiding." Unfortunately, you don't need to be exactly law-abiding to legally purchase a gun.

"It's one of the really pervasive myths," says Garen Wintemute, director of the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program. "If you ask people the question, 'Can criminals legally buy guns?' they laugh and say, 'Of course not.' But a large segment of the population has a criminal recordandcan still buy guns."

The NRA has claimed that the only way to "stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun". Supposedly, Christopher Dorner was one "good guy with a gun". And supposedly, Steven Brooks was one as well. So what went wrong?

The NRA has already dismissed the push for real gun safety reform as "The Connecticut Effect". Apparently to the gun lobby, the merciless slaughter of 20 children and 6 adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown has just been a political nuisance. I guess they will do the same today with the courthouse shooting in Wilmington, Delaware.

Delaware State Police Sgt. Paul Shavack confirmed three people died in the shooting Monday morning at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington. He said the suspected gunmen and two women are dead. Shavack said police had not confirmed that one of the women was the shooter's estranged wife, though earlier in the day the city's mayor said that was the case.

Two police officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Shavack said officers exchanged gunfire with the shooter in the courthouse's lobby before he passed metal detectors. Shavack did not say whether the shooter killed the two women or whether they were killed in the gunfire. Shavack also did not say how the shooter died.

It's becoming increasingly obvious that the nation has a serious problem with gun violence. And it's becoming increasingly obvious that gun industry lobbyists can't simply sweep this matter under the rug. Newtown won't let them. Neither will Wilmington. Neither will Southern California. And neither can Nevada.

While various states are working on gun safety reform legislation, it's become painfully obvious that we ultimately need a national solution. Nevada's Members of Congress must keep this in mind as they tackle this issue on Capitol Hill.

It Keeps Hitting Home.

He may be on his way out, but he refuses to go away quietly. Even as Assembly leaders take steps to force him out, Steven Brooks remains defiant. And he made this surprising comment when speaking to The Sun's Anjeanette Damon.

Asked for reaction to the Democrats’ decision [to remove him from their caucus], Brooks said: “It’s the dumbest thing they’ve ever done.”

Then he added: “No, don’t say that. I love them still.”

Brooks said he has no plans to join the Republican caucus.

“Why would I do that? I just like to fight for my 2nd Amendment rights,” he said, in apparent agreement with a Republican stance. “Other than that, I stand alone. Only God stands with me.”

No really, he said that. And frankly, considering the chain of events there, "fighting for 2nd Amendment rights" takes a chilling new meaning. It's a reminder of how close Carson City might have been to a very dangerous situation.

And that's not all. Back down south, Southern Nevada law enforcement are participating in a massive multi-state man-hunt. A former Los Angeles police officer is wanted on a murder charge in Orange County, California, he's a person of interest in other recent shootings in Southern California, and he now may be hiding here.

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Authorities issued a statewide "officer safety warning" and police were sent to protect people named in the posting that was believed to be written by the fired officer, Christopher Dorner, who has military training. Among those mentioned were members of the Los Angeles Police Department.

"I will bring unconventional and asymmetrical warfare to those in LAPD uniform whether on or off duty," said the manifesto.

Dorner has available multiple weapons including an assault rifle, said [Los Angeles P]olice Chief Charlie Beck. [...]

Dorner is wanted in the killings of Monica Quan and her fiance, Keith Lawrence. They were found shot in their car at a parking structure at their condominium on Sunday night in Irvine, authorities said.

Quan, 28, was an assistant women's basketball coach at Cal State Fullerton. Lawrence, 27, was a public safety officer at the University of Southern California. There was disbelief at three college campuses, Fullerton, USC, and Concordia University, where the two met when they were both students and basketball players.

Dorner was with the department from 2005 until 2008, when he was fired for making false statements.

Quan's father, a former LAPD captain who became a lawyer in retirement, represented Dorner in front of the Board of Rights, a tribunal that ruled against Dorner at the time of his dismissal, LAPD Capt. William Hayes told The Associated Press Wednesday night.

Christopher Dorner owns a home about 9 miles from The Strip, and Metro Police are now participating in the search for Dorner. He is also suspected of killing a Riverside police officer and wounding another early this morning.

Yet again, we're being reminded of what happens when the right guns fall into the wrong hands. Trouble ensues. And real people's lives are at risk. This is not a game.

Unfortunately, the people of Aurora, Colorado, know this all too well. Dave Hoover's nephew was killed in last July's movie theater massacre. And he's now speaking out on gun safety reform.



And he isn't alone. The latest national Quinnipiac Poll shows that 92% (!!!) of Americans support universal background checks. And on top of that, 56% of Americans support both a high-capacity magazine ban and a military grade assault weapons ban.

In recent days, we've been reminded of the real policy problems we have on gun safety. We've especially seen this here in Nevada. Something must change.

House Democrats are releasing their own gun safety plan, but apparently it's very similar to Vice President Biden's and President Obama's. We now know two of Nevada's Members of Congress (Steven Horsford & Dina Titus) support the entirety of President Obama's gun safety plan, including the assault weapons ban, universal background checks, and a ban on high-capacity magazines. It just remains to be seen how brave Harry Reid, Dean Heller, and Joe Heck will be. Perhaps they need to check in on what's happening here in Nevada.

Gone... But Not Forgotten?

So it's finally coming to an end... Well, at least the part directly involving Legislature security will be.

Embattled Assemblyman Steven Brooks will be sworn in today in Carson City and then take a leave of absence, potentially diffusing a distracting spectacle on the Legislature’s opening day.

“He asked for a leave of absence for medical reasons,” Assembly Speaker-elect Marilyn Kirkpatrick said Monday morning. [...]

Brooks, a fellow Democrat from North Las Vegas, was arrested last month on a count of threatening a public official, Kirkpatrick. More recently, he was taken by Las Vegas police for a psychiatric evaluation. His last appearance at the Legislature, late last month, featured him in a hoodie, offering a "no comment" and the peace sign to reporters after arranging housing in Carson City.

His leave of absence would diffuse a potentially tense opening of the first day of the Legislative Session, where lawmakers bring their families for a ceremonial day filled with promises of bipartisan cooperation.

So Steven Brooks is gone. But will he be forgotten? And should he be?

At first, this affair was downright frightening as news broke of death threats. Then, it took a turn for the bizarre as Brooks made head-scratching media appearances that invited ridicule. And now, his saga is just seen as the pathetic fall of someone who wanted to be a shining star on top.

But really, there's more to this than just the tabloid worthy drama. There's the reminder of what can happen when people can't access the (mental) health care they need. There's also the reminder of what happens when guns and ammunition are more easily accessible than mental health care. It's all out in the open for us to see.

But will legislators keep seeing this? Or will this whole ordeal be quietly swept under the rug so Carson City can return to the "normal business" of debating how much to underfund schools and how much more corporate welfare is needed to steal corporate offices and warehouses from other states? It remains to be seen what kind of mark Brooks leaves on Carson City.

And, for that matter, it remains to be seen whether Brooks himself will return to Carson City at all this year.

I'm told Brooks emphasized he has a passel of medical problems -- as opposed to psychological --that he needs some time to heal, using that as the reason for his leave. But the key here is that the select committee, to be appointed this week, will still go on with its business to investigate Brooks.

So Democratic leaders breathe a sigh of relief as they solve a short-term problem -- getting Brooks the help he needs and NOT in Carson City -- and move forward to address the long-term issue of whether he should be allowed to serve later.

So he will likely be gone. And he may even be gone for good. But will legislators forget the lessons that should have been learned from this rather strange ordeal?

Rethinking Gun Safety & "Freedom"

While we were busy enjoying a lazy, rainy Saturday, this happened in Washington. Yep, that's right. People showed up for a rally for gun safety.



About 1,000 people showed up in the nation's capital, and there were even more "satellite events" across the country. One of the groups that organized yesterday's event was One Million Moms for Gun Control. They've grown from one simple Facebook page to a nationwide movement.

And yes, they're now here in Southern Nevada as well. Yes, even here we're seeing growing support for gun safety reform.

Nationally, there's broad national support for what's essentially President Obama's gun safety plan. Yes, that even includes the Assault Weapon Ban. Yet even after so many polls have been showing so much support for gun safety reform, we're still supposed to believe it's "impossible". Why?

That's what Rachel Maddow asked on Thursday. Both of the US Senators who represent Newtown, Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) & Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut), responded with hope for meaningful action.

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Yet even while most Americans demand comprehensive gun safety reform, the conversation in Washington has mostly revolved around how "impossible" this is. Why?

Even worse has been the conversation in Carson City. While Nevada legislators may be justifiably upset over the media circus that the Steven Brooks affair has become, they can't use that as an excuse for ignoring the real public policy questions behind it. Coolican wondered this morning if the Brooks affair will finally force the Nevada Legislature to better fund mental health care. I'm wondering the same, but I'm also wondering if this will force the Legislature to ask why it's easier in this state to access firearms than mental health care.

On one hand, I get it. I see the "reality" in Carson City and DC where politicians fear the wrath of the gun lobby. Harry Reid doesn't want to jeopardize the reelection of vulnerable US Senate Democrats in 2014, and he doesn't want to hurt his own likely reelection campaign in 2016. Meanwhile, a bunch of freshmen in the Nevada Legislature want to curry good favor with the NRA. Some Democrats don't want to be seen as "anti-gun", and most Republicans don't want to be seen as "betraying their base".

Yet while these politicians live their "reality", we live ours. Children are terrorized in their own schools. Shopping malls become armed battlefields. Inner cities have already felt like war zones for some time. Not even houses of worship seem safe.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again today. This level of armed violence is not conducive to a functioning democracy. Keep that in mind when gun lobbyists cry about "Obama's attacks on FREEDOM!!!" Are we really free when we don't feel free to share ideas at the college campus, buy a gift for the best friend's birthday party, send the kids to school, and/or even visit the Legislature? Think about it.